In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my friend was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had booked a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did, and I explained that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I should apply for a role with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that after dark. The Iraqi student approached me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but straight off told my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a place where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for a trio of years. One of the benefits was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in multiple respects. I would never have had the courage or self-belief to approach someone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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