Irvington High School senior Maxwell Ma has been named a finalist in the prestigious 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program. He is among the top high school students nationwide to continue competing for scholarships that will be offered in the spring.
Ma entered the academic competition as a junior by taking the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which served as an initial screen of entrants. Out of more than 1.3 million students who entered the highly competitive competition, he is among the top 1% of students in the United States who earned the highest scores in each state. According to the corporation, the National Merit Scholarship program honors students who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.
To become a finalist, students submitted a detailed scholarship application, provided information about their outstanding academic record, participation in school and community activities, employment, honors and awards received, and demonstrated leadership abilities. They also wrote an essay, which was endorsed by a high school official, and earned scores confirming their earlier performance on the qualifying test.
About half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship. Scholarship winners will be announced in the spring.
