During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Since my travel mate was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had booked a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at Columbia University. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – right next door to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I should apply for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The Iraqi student walked over to me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a place where opportunities abound – she declared: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in so many ways. I didn't possess the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university resulted in a position in Switzerland where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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