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Poster Name:
fact check

Poster Message:
Actually, at the first level, each state has a different cut off score in order to qualify to be a semifinalist (the first stage of the competition). It is higher in states with higher numbers of graduating seniors so as to make sure the top 3% of students in every state enter the competition. So in the sense that in some states you can enter the competition with a lower score than students from other states with higher qualifying cut-offs, it is "easier" to be a National Merit Scholar in Alabama though in subsequent rounds entrants are scored against their peers on a national level. For example, for the Class of 2014, Alabama's cut off score to become a semifinalist was 211- still a good score and not the lowest of the states, but still a lower threshold than say, Mass (223) or Virginia (222). A student scoring 211 on the PSAT in Alabama would get to enter the competition but would not make that first cut if she went to school in one of the 30 states with higher cut off scores. So if we're talking about good students who could reasonably expect to score at least a 200 on the PSAT, it is indeed easier to enter the NMSC from Alabama than it is in most states.