Weissman earned a master's degree from SAIS, where he studied Middle East policy, building early connections in the foreign affairs community that propelled his AIPAC career.

Wolfowitz served as Professor of International Relations and Dean of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University from 1994 to 2001, between his government service under George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. During his tenure he added more than $75 million to the university endowment, developed an international finance concentration, and consolidated Asian studies programs. He used the deanship to recruit allies like Francis Fukuyama and maintain the neoconservative policy network.