Hailing from Grimma, Germany, Martin von Thun ’25 is majoring in psychology along with playing on the Saints men’s soccer team.

“I had some personal problems a couple of years ago and thought about quitting soccer and our sports psychologist really helped during that time,” notes von Thun on why he is pursuing psychology. “After that, I started my interest in how the brain works.”

He is not sure where he will specialize.

“I think I would love to do something with sports, but on the other hand I think clinical psychology and research sounds really interesting as well,” said von Thun.

“I really like the small campus and the familiar environment on campus, especially in the classroom,” said von Thun. “And I have the chance to take classes at Notre Dame.”

“I think the time when I was thinking about quitting soccer has had a huge impact on my life. That’s the sport I was playing my whole life and just because I was procrastinating for a couple of months, I thought about throwing all of that away,” recalls von Thun. “Talking to the psychologist really helped me understand that there is no point in worrying about things that we cannot control. Focusing on what is in my hand helped me find the joy of soccer again. Learning about that mindset was also pretty useful for daily life. Since then, I am definitely less stressed and worried. That’s why I think that’s something that made me who I am.”

He would like to pursue a master’s degree and possibly a doctorate.

“I think I would enjoy living in one of the Scandinavian countries and working there on research or with a sports team sounds pretty good to me,” said von Thun.