Patty Zakaria has a Ph.D. in political science as well as an MA in Industrial Relations from Wayne State University. Also, Dr. Zakaria has a BA in international relations and economics from the University of Windsor and graduate-level certificates in program evaluation (Wilfrid Laurier University) and politics of the Balkans (University of Zagreb). In 2018, Dr. Zakaria was the recipient of the OECD award for research innovation in corruption and in 2021 she spoke at the OECD anti-corruption and integrity forum about the importance of research and statistical analysis as a means for anti-corruption. Dr. Zakaria has over 12 years of teaching experience at various universities and colleges in the USA, Canada, and Croatia. Since 2018, Dr. Zakaria has been teaching at Yorkville University, where she has taught several courses in the general studies department. Dr. Zakaria has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals, edited volumes, book chapters, and a book.