In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a companion. Since my travel mate was considering starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there en route to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I my profession was, and I explained that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The engineering student came up to me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately told 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 anything feels possible – she said: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in so many ways. I lacked the courage or self-belief to reach out at an elite institution and seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
Critically, that job in New York resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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