In the late 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had planned a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a sizeable 10-storey building on the UWS named International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an research lab at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I consider applying for a role with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, coming back to the dining hall that night. The man from Iraq approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but straight off told my host that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his identity, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I lacked the confidence or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and seek a position. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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