Alumna Julie Phillips ‘15 says she’s tried to get on the famous game show 15 to 20 times and this year, she finally got to buzz in.
Julie Phillips ’15 is achieving a dream she has had since childhood.
“When I was a kid, the only thing my mom would be OK with us having on TV while we were eating dinner was the evening news and Jeopardy,” said Phillips. “It was a great family experience. We would watch it, shout in answers and it would spark discussions and conversations. It’s just something I really love and it’s relaxing too.”
This September, Phillips had the opportunity to hear the famed Jeopardy jingle, not through the TV, but as a contestant, standing behind the podium with a buzzer in hand.
“I walked into the studio for the first time and saw the stage and my jaw dropped,” said Phillips.
Phillip’s episode is scheduled to air Friday, Nov. 1, but her journey to the Jeopardy stage has been years in the making. Potential contestants must first take the Jeopardy! Anytime Test, which Phillips estimates she has taken 15 to 20 times. In April 2023, she took the test again, and a year later, was finally selected to take a second, proctored exam. Then she was chosen for an audition, meeting with the casting producers to see if she could play the game.
“Playing the game is very different than answering the questions on the quiz,” she said. “It was a whirlwind of a summer, just all Jeopardy, all the time.”
An audition does not guarantee a spot on the show, but for Phillips is paved the way to her appearance. To prepare, she took advice from previous contestants who noted that a lot of the questions are going to be what you already know. But she still practiced with 500 flashcards for a month before filming at Sony Studios in Los Angeles in September.
“The best part was spending the day in the green room with the other contestants for that week,” she said. “We couldn’t have our phones so the only thing we did was talk to each other and watch the games that were happening. It was an amazing group of people who all shared a love of knowledge, facts and trivia.”
Phillips graduated from Elon with a double major in history and international studies and a minor in political science. She took a year off and then earned her law degree from the College of William & Mary. Originally from Rockville, Maryland, she now lives in Alexandria, Virginia, and is a commercial space regulatory attorney for the Federal Aviation Administration. While at Elon, Phillips immersed herself in the Elon Experiences, including two study abroad experiences: in Ireland and in London.
“They were so much fun and I learned so much,” said Phillips. “I really appreciated both of those.”
While Philips could not talk about the specifics of her Jeopardy episode before it airs, she could emphasize how her Elon education made an impact.
“I became such a well-rounded and life-long learner at Elon,” she said. “There was such encouragement to try different things and constantly explore new areas. That well-roundedness helps with a show that is general knowledge trivia.”
Phillips becomes the second member of the Elon community to appear on Jeopardy this year. Marko Saric, an adjunct instructor in mathematics, was a contestant on the long-running show in April.