Marvin received his doctorate in 1968. He began full-time teaching in 1967, first at Rutgers University in New Jersey, and then at California State University at Northridge. A year later he began teaching at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he taught until 1997. During his almost 40 years at MU, he taught large introduction to political science classes, courses on comparative politics, and courses for the Honors College on the Vietnam and Iraq Wars. Marvin often arranged for veterans to talk to students about their combat experiences and how they shaped their lives. He served as Director of Undergraduate Studies in Political Science for ten years. In 1979, he resurrected the inactive Peace Studies program on the MU campus with the support of local businessman Charles Atkins. The program is active on the campus today. In 1981, Marvin received a Fulbright Scholarship, which he spent in Indonesia with his two young sons, studying Indonesian language and politics.
Columbia Tribune