By ELEANOR HEDGES DUROY, age 11
PHOTO: C.W. Anderson
Do you like to write? Do you think you might like to teach one day? Did you ever consider becoming a professor? C.W. Anderson works as an assistant professor of Media Culture at the College of Staten Island (CUNY). IndyKids reporter, Eleanor Hedges Duroy, interviewed him about his experiences as a professor.
Eleanor Hedges Duroy: Why did you decide to get a PhD? And why did you decide to become a professor of media studies?
C.W. Anderson: For a long time I didn’t think I wanted to get a PhD. But eventually I realized that I enjoyed trying to come up with answers to big, important questions, and that I was good at sharing these answers with people and at getting them to try to come up with new questions of their own. So to do that, being a professor seemed like a good idea, and to be a professor you need a PhD.
EHD: How much time do you spend teaching and how much time do you spend researching and writing articles and books?
CWA: I usually spend two days or three days a week teaching, and two or three days a week working on writing books and articles. In the summer, I just write and read.
EHD: What did you want to be when you grew up, and is it similar to or different from your current job?
CWA: I think when I was young I wanted to be an astronaut! So I guess that’s pretty different than what I do now.
EHD: What advice do you have for kids who want to get a degree, like a PhD in communications or journalism?
CWA: Getting a PhD is hard work—you spend another six years in school, and don’t make a lot of money for a really long while. Even after you find a job, you still won’t make a lot of money. But if you love teaching and you love coming up with answers to big questions, maybe it is the job for you.
