finalist

B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun British English

n. a student who is in their last year of university and taking their final exams.

n. a university student in their final year of study, typically preparing for or sitting their final degree examinations.

“As a finalist, she spent most of her time in the library studying for her degree.”

“The career office organized a special networking event specifically for finalists looking to secure graduate positions before the summer break.”

C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Academic · Formal

n. someone who believes that everything in nature is moving toward a specific final goal or purpose.

n. an adherent of finalism or teleology, believing that natural processes are directed toward a specific end or purpose.

“The professor explained how a finalist views the evolution of the human brain.”

“In his lecture on the philosophy of biology, he contrasted the views of a strict finalist with those of a proponent of random mutation.”