Masters...PhD...Puzzles: One Philly Man's Interesting Career Journey
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - A Philadelphia man who has tried several careers has landed a job that seems like it's all fun and games.
Evan Birnholz has worn a lot of hats, but now he writes the crossword puzzles for the Washington Post Sunday magazine.
Birnholz started out as pre-Med, then got a master's in public health and epidemiology from Drexel University. After working in the pharmaceutical industry, he went back to school, getting a PhD in American History at Temple.
But puzzles have always been with him.
"I was just solving puzzles back in 2006 and not very well," he tells KYW Newsradio.
In 2009, he made his first crossword, "and it was terrible!"
But he kept at it, and started submitting them to publications on a freelance basis, and last year, when the Washington Post's Sunday puzzle master passed away, Evan got the call to apply and he was offered the job.
The 32-year-old says it takes several days to create a good crossword from start to finish. But it's not all fun and games:
"Copy editor looks at it and proofreads it, then I send it to testers to make sure that it works out well, and then it's ready to go."
He works out of his home in Philadelphia.