I'm not sure how many free rides Merit Scholars get or got. But I think *sometimes* they are offered free rides by colleges--generally, somewhat less selective ones. I seem to recall that this was offered to me by a safety school of mine.

Because my father worked for a company that sponsored NMS, my tuition was reduced by about 25% for all 4 years. The money came from the company, not my college. It was a huge deal for me and my family.

By contrast, my husband was also a semi-finalist but didn't get anything. (His parents were in public service.) So to him, it was more of the "Throw it in the box" variety.