Paulson has dual Canadian-British citizenship, thanks to his French-Canadian mother and British father. Paulson was born in the UK and grew up in Tetbury, Gloucestershire and attended Pate's Grammar School, before going to Princeton for an undergraduate degree in biology. Paulson signed on to a one-year master’s program at Arizona State University in Phoenix. After competing in the NCAA he finished fifth in the indoor mile and fifth in the outdoor 1,500m in 2019. Paulson holds the Arizona State University record for fastest mile, running a time of 3:58.07 indoors in February 2019. Paulson won the Canadian 1,500m title in 2019 and also won a bronze medal at the 2019 Pan American Games. In 2020, he turned professional with the Oregon Track Club.