During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to Europe with a travel partner. Since my friend was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and began chatting with people eating there.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He wanted to know 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 pointed out that there was an research lab at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I consider applying for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that night. The Iraqi student approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off explained to my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and request employment. And, I had consistently hoped to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia led me to a role in Europe where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising 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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