My dd got a letter from The National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists Award of Excellence saying she was nominated to go to a national congress in DC. Do you thinks its a scam?
My first reaction is that it was probably an out-and-out scam, like the vanity-press publishers that charge $30 to print someone's poem in a book that next to no one will read. My second, on rummaging around some Web sites, is that it may not be fully a scam - there DOES seem to be a congress to attend - but that the price being charged for the congress rather handily exceeds the value that your kid will get. If she's not in college yet, she'd probably get more good from finding ways to be involved in medicine locally: volunteering, or spending that money on a really cool summer science camp, or seeing what the local medical society and/or big healthcare employers in the area and/or colleges might sponsor by way of outreach events for kids interested in medicine.
I get a lot of mail like this to nominate students. I haven't heard of this particular academy, but it "sounds" like the others I have seen. I suspect it is a real thing, but it will be very expensive for anyone to participate.
My daughter has received similar things. Like I'm going to send her to Canada with a bunch of strangers.
My nephew got something like this when in high school, and despite my protests, my sister paid to have him go. He had a good time, saw some sights, but not a lot of substance, and certainly not anything prestigious. I always assume these academies and honors are always generated for all students above a certain GPA, hoping to snag a few who are willing to pay.
