During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Because my friend was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had arranged a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big 10-storey building on the Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and began chatting with other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student approached me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but straight off informed my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she responded: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I was granted free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in so many ways. I lacked the confidence or self-assurance to contact anyone at an prestigious college and seek a position. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia led me to a job in Zurich where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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