Whiz Kid: Max Evers

Name: Max Evers

Age: 18

Grade: Senior

School: Hinsdale Central High School

Accomplishment: Out of the nearly 3.2 million high school seniors across the country who are expected to graduate this year, Evers was among just 3,000 to be nominated for the Presidential Scholars Program. The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, selects 120 Academic Scholars and 20 Arts Scholars each year and is considered to be one of the most prestigious honors for high school students.

Key to Awesomeness: What makes the nomination more impressive was that Evers didn’t even apply for the program, but rather was chosen by the Presidential Scholars committee.

“I’m not sure how they found me,” said Evers. “I know that they look at your ACT and SAT scores, as well as your overall GPA and extra-curricular activities. I worked really hard throughout high school, so it’s just really nice to see that was recognized.”

It would be hard for Evers not to be noticed with his academic accomplishments. In addition to high grades while taking a number of AP level courses, a perfect SAT score in reading and math, and an ACT score of 35, Evers is also a member of the National Honors Society and competes on the wrestling team at Hinsdale Central.

What’s Next: Evers recently filled out the final application for the Presidential Scholars Program and will find out next month if he was one of the two Academic Scholars in Illinois chosen by the committee. He will be attending the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the fall, where he will pursue a degree in biology with the goal of attending medical school afterward. His father, Hans, is a doctor.

“I knew that I wanted to go to a large school and was really impressed with their academic program overall,” said Evers. “Of course, the residential tuition means that it will be less expensive as well, which is definitely a huge help.”