In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Because my companion was considering pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had planned a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a large 10-storey building on the UWS known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and started talking to fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did, and I explained that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – close to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student came up to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a place where opportunities abound – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for three years. An advantage of the role was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his identity, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I would never have had the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that role at the university led me to a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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