During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a travel partner. Since my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had booked a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a large 10-storey building on the Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and started talking to fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, 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 evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but straight off explained to my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she said: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for three years. A perk of the job was that I also received complimentary education at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in numerous aspects. I lacked the bravery or self-assurance to approach someone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York led me to a role in Europe where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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