In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my friend was considering pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a large ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an research lab at the institution – adjacent to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I should apply for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for three years. An advantage of the role was that I also received complimentary education 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 bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an prestigious college and request employment. And, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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