He was the Rosebush Professor Emeritus of University of Wisconsin in USA.
Even after his retirement from the university and moving to Florida, he continued teaching for a number of years as an adjunct professor at Rollins College near Orlando.
Zillur Rahman received numerous awards including Willard Smith Distinguished Teaching Award at the departmental level, Rosebush Professorship Award at the university level, and was recognised twice by American Political Science Association for Excellence in Teaching and Research.
Recognising his contributions to political science focusing mainly on South Asia, the Foreign Affairs Committee of US Congress invited him to testify in a Congressional Hearing (100th Congress) on Democratisation of Bangladesh and Afghanistan in 1988.