Waltham High School Student Named National Merit Finalist

Thomas Waddick, a senior at Waltham Senior High School, has been named a National Merit Scholarship Finalist by the National Merit Scholarship Program in the 2013 National Merit Scholarship Competition. 

Waddick joins the approximately 15,000 students nationwide who have become finalists and are now eligible to win one of approximately 8,300 merit scholarships. The annual National Merit Scholarship competition is a privately-funded academic competition for recognition and scholarships.

Of the more than 1.5 million students throughout the United States who enter the competition annually by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) as juniors, only 15,000 or less than 1% advance to become National Merit Finalists and consist of entrants with the highest scores in each state. Candidates are notified in February that they have advanced from the semi-finalist to finalist standing.  High school principals are notified and provided with a certificate to present to each finalist.

Finalists have met high academic standards and are chosen based on their abilities, skills, and accomplishments–without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference. A variety of information is evaluated including the finalist's academic record, information about the school's curricula and grading system, the finalist’s SAT scores that must confirm the earlier PSAT qualifying test performance, the high school’s official written recommendation, information about the student's activities and leadership, and the finalist's own essay.

Since its founding in 1955, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation has recognized 2.9 million students and provided over 360,000 scholarships worth more than $1.4 billion, according to the organization. The honors awarded by NMSC to exceptionally able students are viewed as definitive marks of excellence.