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Q & A With Sophomore Haden Snyder
8/31/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Aug. 31, 2004
HOW WAS PRESEASON CAMP?
Preseason this year was very tough for me because I returned from Germany just a few weeks before it started, and my fitness level wasn't as good as it had been during my previous two preseason camps. I think the integration of freshmen this year went very well. A lot of those guys stepped in right away. I think the team actually looked very good as far as being able to integrate new guys both in midfield up top and as well as the defensive zone.
YOU SPENT THE ENTIRE SPRING AND MOST OF YOUR SUMMER STUDYING IN GERMANY. HOW YOU ABLE TO STUDY ABROAD?
I took German in high school and wanted to take it in college, so I signed up for the class. I took the class from the program coordinator, who was the head of the German department, and I did not have to do anything extra special because he already knew me. I turned my application to the study abroad office, which was the leadership of the program, paid my $100 non-refundable fee and I was in. From there, the hardest aspect of the wanting to take the trip was asking Coach McIntosh's permission to miss the spring season.
WHERE DID YOU LIVE IN GERMANY?
I lived in Siegen, Germany. During the first month, I lived with a host family, the Knuppels, for the duration of my internship. When my internship was over I moved into the student dormitory.
HOW LONG WAS THE INTERNSHIP AND WHAT ELSE DID YOU DO?
It was five weeks long and it was unbelievable. I worked every day from 8-5 and sometimes I had to work on Saturday. My internship was more of an observation period. I was observing business culture and seeing how things worked. They took me on field trips to see sites within the company. I also attended meeting and I was also taken upstairs to meet the big shots. I got to see how the business culture in Germany works as far as relationships. I was not paid, but I did receive a coffee mug at the end.
WHAT WERE YOUR EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES?
Through one of the workers, I met the coach of a semi-professional club in Siegen. They are true professionals. In their division in Germany, they receive enough money to be able to live off this. The second squad is the reserves. These players are a little younger, typically 19-23, and they are trying to make it into the first team. They receive a little bit of money, but they have to work as well. They can't support themselves by just playing soccer. That was the team that I was able to train with. We trained every day, but I could not play. In order to play you have to sign a contract and you have to register with the National German League.
WHAT ELSE DID YOU GET TO DO WHILE YOU WERE IN GERMANY?
I pretty much traveled all over Germany. I went to Munich, Berlin, Hamburg and Stuttgart. I also went to Paris, Prague and a few other cities in Europe. It is much easier to get around over there than it is here, especially now with their cheap flights. If you know where you want to go and you know early enough, then you can book flights to places on rounds trips for as little as 40 Euros. Even if that fails, there are always the trains.
WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU GAINED OF OUT GOING TO GERMANY?
I gained a new prospective. I got to hear what Europeans think about Americans from their perspective. The current environment is a little more negative toward America than it has been in the past. Europeans in general disagree with the war in Iraq. They were never bitter or hateful about it, but they were very curious. They were very well informed. Most of them knew more about our politics than people you meet on the streets in America. I was very impressed by that and it gave me a lasting impression of what it means to be politically informed and active. It was acceptable dinner conversation in Germany. Here in the states, people avoid politics in the social atmosphere because it gets people heated and it ruins the moment. In Germany and in Europe and its okay to disagree with people, but they believe it needs to be talked about. They are also willing to talk about their own politics. As far as they are concerned, these are public issues and they need to be discussed in public.
YOUR'RE AN INTERNATIONAL BUINSESS MAJOR. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO DO WHEN YOU GRADUATE?
I would actually like to work abroad, either in Switzerland or Germany. I would like to take ideas that have worked in the states and move them over into a European setting. But, before you doing something like that, you have to understand there are certain changes that have to be made. They don't understand the concept of convenience. The word does not translate very well into German. I think this is because businesses that operate 24-hour stores are nowhere to be found. Buying school supplies at 11:00 p.m. at night at Wal-Mart is unheard of. Nothing is open on Sunday. They plan ahead very well, and as a foreigner its something you notice right away. Convenience is not high priority. Also with their labor laws, they have strict laws about the number of hours you can work in a week. Right now it's illegal to work on Sunday, but I believe globalization is something that is going change that in the next decade.
