During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my friend was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I consider applying for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that night. The man from Iraq walked over to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately informed my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
As is common in NYC – a city where anything feels possible – she declared: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or self-assurance to reach out at an Ivy League university and request employment. Moreover, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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