In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to Europe with a companion. Because my companion was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had planned a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, found a table, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I did, and I explained that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – close to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The man from Iraq walked over to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
As is common in NYC – a city where anything feels possible – she responded: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the bravery or self-assurance to reach out at an Ivy League university and seek a position. Moreover, I had always wanted 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 met my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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