Now a naturalized US citizen after immigrating to the United States, Tariq Karim is a former Bangladeshi diplomat with over three decades of experience. He opted for early retirement from the Bangladesh Foreign Service in 1998 in order to return to academia. He joined the University of Maryland (1999-2000) initially as a Ford Fellow in the capacity of Distinguished International Executive in Residence. .

He is now a Doctoral Candidate (ABD) in the department of Government & Politics, University of Maryland. State fragility, civil society, democratic transition, human rights and rule of law, governance issues in South Asia; and political Islam and globalization issues are among his primary areas of academic interest. While pursuing graduate studies, with his expertise in the structure of government institutions, diplomacy & negotiation, and contemporary Islam, he was Senior Advisor at the IRIS Center of the University of Maryland in 2002-2005. He teaches courses on government, politics and business, and international relations as adjunct faculty at the University of Maryland, Virginia International University and George Washington University.

Among key assignments he held at headquarters were Additional Foreign Secretary (1995-1997) with responsibility for the South Asian region, Director General for United Nations and Economic Affairs (1982-84), and Director Personnel (1973-74). He served in Bangladesh Missions abroad, notably as Ambassador to the United States, and earlier as High Commissioner to South Africa (with concurrent accreditation to Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland, and consular jurisdiction over Zambia and Zimbabwe), Ambassador to Iran (with concurrent accreditation to Lebanon, and Deputy Chief of Mission in Beijing and New Delhi.

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