During the late 1980s, I was beginning a low-cost journey to the European continent with a friend. Because my friend was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had planned a fortnight visit there before heading to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the UWS called International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the canteen, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He inquired what I did for a living, and I shared that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been performing experiments involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at Columbia University – close to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student 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. Since he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but straight off informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a city where anything feels possible – she responded: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the courage or self-assurance to contact anyone at an elite institution and request employment. Moreover, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
What's more, that job in New York resulted in a role in Europe where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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