About

Welcome! This is Evelyn, Zihan Zhu.

I’m a PhD student in Government and Politics at the University of Maryland, College Park with a primary field in International Relations and a secondary field in Comparative Politics.

Prior to beginning doctoral studies, I was awarded Honors Bachelor of Arts by the University of Toronto, St. George’s in June 2019, and received Master of Social Sciences from the University of Macau in June 2023.

I currently study the interaction between domestic political institutions & actors and foreign policy decision-making (particularly regarding international trade) with a country-specific focus on Japan due to its uniqueness among democracies. I also take some interest in electoral politics (specifically political dynasties), and the emerging trend of global authoritarianism. I have been working as a research assistant to Prof. Todd Allee on projects that broadly cover international trade and international institutions.

As a political scientist in an early career stage, I tend to keep things open for furture research. I’m also gradually building my CV and other relevant materials.

Beyond my professional profile, I’m a dog person and a J-pop fan.