About Me

 ​I am an Assistant Professor in the Social Sciences department at the United States Military Academy at West Point, where I teach classes on international relations and grand strategy. I am also the Executive Director of the Rupert H. Johnson Grand Strategy Program at West Point. In this capacity, I manage the grand strategy minor, advise cadets interested in the minor, and develop programming related to grand strategy. My research interests encompass both international relations and comparative politics, but the underlying theme of my research agenda is the question “how do different military policies affect states and the people who live in them?” My additional academic interests include military strategy and conflict, civil wars, civil-military relations, and state formation.

​Originally from Connecticut, I went to McGill University in Montréal to receive my BA (in Political Science) and completed my PhD in Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania. I now live in Highland Falls, NY--which I am enjoying considerably more than Samuel Huntington's closing pages of The Soldier and the State led me to expect I would. When not doing research or teaching, I enjoy playing tennis, keeping my cats away from my food, and reading. You can reach me at max.margulies@westpoint.edu or on twitter @mzmargulies.