Norcross High 2012 graduate Ryan C. Ward has joined the pool of Gwinnett County Public Schools recipients of the 2012 National Merit College-Sponsored Scholarship.

Ward, along with two other GCPS graduates, recently learned that their prospective colleges have selected them to receive between $500 to $2,000 annually for up to four years of undergraduate study.

Approximately 2,000 students throughout the nation were named this week as NMCS Scholarship winners, according to a press release. Thirteen other Gwinnett students were named scholarship winners last spring.

According to a press release, Ward plans to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology with a probable career field in business.

Ward was among one of four semifinalists from Peachtree Corners-area schools for the scholarship last September. There were 16,000 students nationwide in the running for more than 8,000 National Merit Scholarships, totaling more than $34 million.

The other two latest Gwinnett scholarship winners include:

• Drew A. Vander Wood of Brookwood High, with a probable career field in biochemistry, attending the Georgia Institute of Technology
• Kathryn M. Fitton of Peachtree Ridge High, with a probable career field in medicine, attending the Georgia Institute of Technology

About 1.5 million students entered the competition last school year as juniors by taking the 2010 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which served as the initial screening for program entrants. The highest-scoring participants in each state were then selected as semifinalists, according to a press release.

Finalists were then selected by a review of the student’s outstanding academic record; scores from two standardized tests; an endorsement/recommendation by a school official; and a self-descriptive essay and information about their participation and leadership in school and community activities.