Benedict attended IB Program at North High School 1994-1998 .He went to summer camp at Interlochen 1997.He found symphony great fun.He praises the teachers he had for helping him learn the basics of music and also how to work as a group.He graduated from McGill University with a BA in Political Science in 2002. Throughout he played in various groups,including bluegrass fiddle in a band called Notre Dame de Grass. From 2004 to 2006 worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin,West Africa as a rural health worker and afterwards in the Sudan as an aid worker.He transitioned into working as a journalist ,for outlets like Bloomberg News and NPR which he still does. Benedict completed his graduate degree in 2008 with a Masters in International Affairs and Masters of Science in Journalism from Columbia University.He now is a producer for Al Jazeera English in NYC covering international news and other US news.
Benedict’s violin has been a constant companion to him through the years. He plays with the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra.