He is the author and editor of many books, scholarly articles, conference papers, book reviews and newspaper contributions in English and many foreign languages on topics as varied as German and Austrian politics, anti-Semitism, anti-Americanism, social democracy, social movements, the European right and the European left.

At the age of nine, he and his father emigrated from Romania, first to Vienna and then to New York, the two cities that would play the most important roles in his upbringing.

After receiving his doctorate in political science in 1976, he went to the Center for European Studies at Harvard University of which he would remain an active member and a research associate until June 30, 1999.

At the Harvard Center, Markovits chaired for many years the study group on German Politics as well as one entitled "The Jews in Modern Europe."

In turn, the center's uniquely rich intellectual atmosphere and immensely creative interdisciplinarity have had a major hand in forming Markovits's scholarly life.

Andy Markovits was a Fellow in 2008–2009 at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) at Stanford University.

Markovits's research interests and areas of publication include: German and European labor; German and European social democracy, as well as social movements; German-Jewish relations; Germany's role in the new Europe; Anti-Americanism in Europe; the comparative sociology of modern sports cultures and – most recently – the new dimensions of the human-animal bond, particularly its deeply feminized features.

Markovits's scholarly work has been published in English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish, Hungarian, Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Chinese, Persian, Hebrew, Korean, Georgian, and Czech.

Markovits's latest book publication is entitled Hillel at Michigan 1926/27 – 1945: Struggles of Jewish Identity in a Pivotal Era.

He also enjoys all kinds of music with a special penchant for Mozart, Beethoven, Dvořák and the Grateful Dead whom—in his youth and on rare occasions—he would follow on tour on both coasts of the United States.

In addition to being a Deadhead, Markovits greatly enjoys the company of golden retrievers who have been his constant companions for three decades.

Third, Markovits published a book entitled From Property to Family: American Dog Rescue and the Discourse of Compassion, with the University of Michigan Press.

Throughout the book, Markovits offers insights on cultural similarities and differences between Europe and America and sheds light on how those distinctions shaped his life.