Germany
I was born and raised in the north of Germany. An important harbor city called Hamburg with a population of around 1.7 million. From a young age I have been passionate about a variety of sports. In Germany, I played the two most popular sports, soccer and field hockey. As a family we loved to travel and explore our neighboring countries. Often going on skiing vacations to places such as Austria and Switzerland. We also spent a lot of time in the South of Spain, where my grandparents built a house by hand in the region of Malaga. Most of my time was spent at the training fields, near the river or exploring with my friends. Here are a couple of photos from one of our many vacations to Spain.
New Zealand
In 2009, my family decided it was time for a move. They wanted to get as far away from Europe and Germany as we possibly could. So naturally, we moved to New Zealand. A small island in the Southern Hemisphere away from literally the entire world. The reason why we moved is still to this day unclear. It wasn’t for business reasons, nor did we hate our established life in Germany. It was simply the call for adventure that prompted my parents to make the move. (Although I think they were having a mid-life crisis.)
In New Zealand, I continued to pursue my athletic dreams. However, I switched my focus from Soccer & Hockey to Cricket & Rugby. Eventually however, I had to make a choice. So I focused entirely on Soccer in the hopes of playing professionally one day.
United States
In 2018 I decided to take those dreams to the US. The college format offers a unique blend on academics and soccer, in which you can easily combine and balance the two. In other countries such as Germany and New Zealand, these two aren’t interconnected. Which means you would have to choose one or the other.
I completed my Batchelor’s of Science in Business Administration at Saint Mary’s College of California in 2022, having completed 4 happy years in the Californian sun.
For my 5th and final year, I decided to take a risk and transfer colleges to take on a new challenge. Since then, I have joined the MEITE program at the University of North Carolina and have continued to play soccer at the Division 1 level.
My path into the MEITE program was not a linear one. This program wasn’t exactly on my radar coming into UNC. However, I have really enjoyed learning the content and the collaborative nature of the program itself. I have met great people and enjoyed getting to know southern culture. I could not be happier with my overall experience at UNC, thanks to the welcoming nature of MEITE faculty and my classmates.
