marquit studied electrical engineering at the college of the city of new york (1942-48—interrupted by 22 months in the united states navy (1944–46). he was blacklisted as an engineer and barred from completing a master's degree dissertation in physics at new york university in 1950 due to his communist party affiliation and he emigrated to poland. he returned to the united states in 1963 upon completing the degree of doctor of mathematical and physical sciences at the university of warsaw. after a research appointment at the university of michigan (1963–65) in particle physics and an assistant professorship at the university of colorado (1965–66), he was appointed associate professor of physics at the university of minnesota in 1966.