During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Since my companion was exploring pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a big multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did for a living, and I shared that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the institution – right next door to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The man from Iraq approached me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a place where everything seems achievable – she declared: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. One of the benefits 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 full name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the bravery or nerve to approach someone at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university resulted in a position in Switzerland where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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