Esmaeil received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee. His research interests lie in the areas of applied macroeconomics and open economy macroeconomics. During his teaching career he taught a broad range of courses such as introductory econometrics, money and banking, statistics, principles of micro- and macroeconomics, and economics of globalization. In his free time, Esmaeil enjoys reading, doing research, watching movies, fishing, and biking.