TIME WAS when the award of a scholarship was a matter strictly between a youngster anda college. Things are no longer that simple. Schol arship selection is rapidly becoming a big busi ness. Third parties, fourth, and fifth now are involved. High school counselors s c r een and test candidates. Principals and headmasters ex ecute candidate rating scales and furnish secon dary school records. Testing bureaus in col leges and elsewhere administer secure testing programs. Selection committees of college ad missions deans dive into seas of data to reach considered judgments as to who should receive scholarship awards and who should not. Finan cial analysts determine how much is needed to keep the scholar's budget in the black; and corporate sponsors furnish the funds necessary to move sponsored scholars happily on their way to college and through it. How does one filter out of a group of eager and notably able scholarship aspirants number ing 50,000, the 600 who can make best use of higher education? This was the problem faced in the National Merit Scholarship Program in 1955-56. Or, by what means may we bestbeas sured that the group of 16, 000, as eager and as notable as those mentioned above, but with their sights on General Motors National Scholarship awards, are rendered down most equitably to 100 scholarship recipients? The latter problem has been faced for two years in the General Mo tors National Scholarship Plan. Let us, for a moment, develop an hypothesis that young people in America come to a sophis ticated understanding of the competitive system at a tender age. Interest in competing for schol arship opportunities is high. Further, that the talented among them seem to adjust readily to their own version of such a system. They are willing to take their chances. Finally, that in standing up to a nationally competitive situation, the candidate's whole concern is directed toa commendable performance as a scholarship can didate. He is so engrossed in the task that it is only in passing that he may estimate the odds against his winning. Let us now add to the picture factors which may better be assumed than hypothesized.