Thomas Woodson

• School of Public Policy

• Ph.D. PUBP 2014

From Princeton to Georgia Tech’s School of Public Policy

Alumnus Thomas Woodson, Ph.D. Class of 2014, earned his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Princeton University. The Houston, Texas native, now an assistant professor in the Department of Technology and Society at State University of New York-Stony Brook’s School of Engineering, explains why he chose Georgia Tech’s School of Public Policy.

Fielding Offers: “I was accepted for admission to other prominent graduate schools. One of the things I wanted from a graduate school was to look at how technology affects people and the societal implications of technology. I found there were only two schools that were doing this type of work and Georgia Tech was one of them. The opportunity to work with Professor Susan Cozzens, who was doing groundbreaking work in technology in developing countries, really drew me in to Georgia Tech’s School of Public Policy’s doctoral program.”

On Campus: “There are renowned economists, sociologists and public policy scholars at this great science and technology institute. It was very exciting to have that type of intellectual diversity at the School of Public Policy. The faculty pushed me to do good work and good scholarship.”

Research and Field Work: “I was very fortunate to be able to work with and travel with Professor Cozzens and my own Ph.D. colleagues on research projects, including trips to international locations. I went to South Africa for two weeks, met and interviewed other scientists there for research. I went to Finland for a graduate student conference. I also went to India for another conference on international development issues. Those experiences were one-of-a-kind and extremely memorable. ”

On the Right Career Trajectory: “At SUNY-Stony Brook, I teach innovation policy to graduate students. I’ve taught the Ph.D. statistics class and next, I will be teaching a class to undergraduate students on science innovation policy. I’m also pursuing my research projects in nanotechnology and 3-D printers for development.

“At some point in my career, I’d like to work for the government or large organization. The School of Public Policy prepared me to analyze complex problems and trained me in a wide variety of tools that have made me successful as a researcher. They gave me the capability to do different research methods whether it’s statistics, interview, or survey.

“The School of Public Policy turned out to be much more than I ever hoped for in a graduate school.”