I realize that I am a little late to this thread, and this is a little tangential, but...
My AXiD lil sis was the president of NSCS at the University of Washington last year (her senior year) - I'm not sure where the "Cagey Consumer" website got their info, but it really isn't at all true. She had the opportunity to attend conferences, partcipate in service projects, network, etc... I think she even received a scholarship.
here's a link to the NSCS website at UW if anyone would like to check it out:
http://students.washington.edu/nscs/main/
As for NSCS not being recognized by schools, the keynote speaker for this fall's induction is the UW president. PFFFT on Cagey Consumer.