Jordan Anderson walked into a late-summer meeting in search of scholarship options for dental school.

He emerged as a Rhodes Scholar candidate.

The process advanced one more step when Anderson, an Auburn University senior from Hidden Valley High School, was notified of his selection as a Rhodes Scholarship finalist.

"If that's as far as it gets, it's still an incredible honor," said Anderson, who is the first finalist from Auburn in more than two decades.

Anderson, who has contributed to a pair of NCAA men's swimming championships at Auburn, was one of 12 finalists chosen from a region that includes Tennessee, Alabama and Florida. The finalists will convene in Birmingham, Ala., next weekend for a series of interviews that will culminate Nov. 21 in the selection of two scholarship winners.

He still plans to attend dental school, but Anderson will seek a master's degree in global health science if he receives the Rhodes Scholarship, which would involve up to two years of study at Oxford University in England.

Anderson decided to pursue the scholarship at the urging of Dr. Paul Harris, Auburn's associate director for national prestigious scholarships. The application was done online and required submission of a 1,000-word personal statement and eight letters of recommendation.

"I knew that my grades would not inhibit me," said Anderson, a biomedical science major with a 3.91 grade-point average. "There's an athletic component, as well as a community-service component. ... I met all the standards."

Anderson was the 2006 Timesland swimmer of the year at Hidden Valley, where he was a three-time state champion in the 100-yard butterfly.

He was the runner-up in the 100-yard butterfly last year at the SEC men's championships and finished sixth at the U.S. National Championships.

"I remember him calling me after his freshman year at Auburn," said Brent St. Pierre, Anderson's former year-round coach in Roanoke. "He said he was one of the worst swimmers on the team and that his goal was to be one of the best hosts for the kids they were bringing to campus as recruits. From there, he's gone on to become one of Auburn's all-time great butterfliers. What's made Jordan so special and something that I've turned into a lesson for my swimmers is his ability to compartmentalize all aspects of his life."

Anderson's only disappointment as he prepares for next weekend's session in Birmingham is that he will be unable to swim in the Tigers' meet with SEC foe Georgia.

In the interim, he has been going through regular mock interviews ("just getting grilled," he said) and familiarizing himself with current events and such issues as world peace.

"This is a very knowledge-based process," Anderson said. "It's not like they'll be asking, 'What's the latest book you read?' Or, 'What is your favorite color.'"

That would be easy. Burnt orange and navy blue.

"This is a tribute to Auburn swimming," he said, "and what Auburn swimming has done for me."