In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a travel partner. Since my friend was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had booked a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the UWS known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, sat down, and began chatting with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I consider applying for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student came up to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she responded: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I also received free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to approach someone at an elite institution and request employment. Moreover, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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