“Whenever you want something badly enough, you find a way to make it happen.”
For Carina Schluter, that belief has guided a life shaped by two ambitions: becoming a doctor and competing at the highest levels of football. The German goalkeeper has long pursued both dreams, and today she is doing exactly that—splitting her time between medical school lectures and representing St. Pölten in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
A decade-long dominant force in Austrian women’s football, St. Pölten have provided Schluter the rare opportunity to combine elite sport with a demanding academic path. The 28-year-old, who once played for Bayern Munich and holds one senior international cap for Germany, is now enrolled at a local university while playing professionally.
“I’m living my dream life—playing football and becoming a physician. There is nothing better in the world to me,” she told the BBC Women’s Football Weekly podcast.
St. Pölten face Valerenga on Wednesday as they continue their Champions League campaign, though the club is still seeking its first win of the group stage. The difficulty of their fixtures—against Atlético Madrid, Lyon and Chelsea—has placed them firmly in the underdog role.
“With the big teams, we just enjoy every minute,” Schluter said. “Nobody expects us to win or even draw, so we focus on embracing the moment.”
In their previous European match, the Austrian champions suffered a 6–0 defeat to Women’s Super League holders Chelsea. The margin could have been even greater were it not for a standout performance from Schluter, who delivered a series of exceptional saves.
While her teammates departed for Oslo early Monday, Schluter delayed her travel by a day to attend university lectures—an illustration of the carefully managed dual life she leads.
Her experience in Germany underscored how rare such balance is. During her time at Bayern Munich (2019–2021), she attempted to study medicine but soon realised the workload was incompatible with the schedule of a top-tier Bundesliga club.
“Studying medicine while playing in Germany or England is almost impossible,” she explained. “Here in Austria, the club supports me. They are happy about it, and that’s why I enjoy it so much.”
To keep up academically, Schluter often relies on classmates for notes and revision support, compensating for missed lectures due to matches and training sessions.
“At university, I have good people around me, and the club understands my situation. Somehow, it all works,” she said.
She is not the only player at St. Pölten pursuing medicine—midfielders Sarah Mattner and Magdalena Rukavina are also studying to become doctors, creating a unique academic-athletic environment within the squad.
Schluter describes her weekly routine as a cycle of training, travel, study—and exhaustion.
“I wouldn’t do all the practices, matches and busy travel if I didn’t love it this much,” she said. “My body hurts—being a goalkeeper means everything hurts. But the joy of big matches and the big stage makes it worth it.”
Her passion for medicine runs just as deep.
“It’s tough spending hours studying and having sleepless nights before exams,” she said. “There’s always time I’m missing because of football, so I make it up with sleepless nights and lots of coffee.”
In the end, she insists it is the love of both callings that sustains her.
“It works because I love it. It makes me so happy.”
