Sven Lüdemann – also known as Svopo – has been involved in numerous committees in addition to his studies. Where the name Svopo comes from and what motivates him to get involved, he told Sergej in the interview “Among Friends”.
In our interview format “Among Friends”, we introduce you to people at the university who are particularly active or have a special story to tell. So get an impression of who is actually behind your university friends. Do you also have something interesting to tell? then feel free to contact us at pr@hochschulfreun.de with your story. We are looking forward to it!
University friends: Hello Sven! It’s nice that you found a little time for this interview during the learning phase. In the future, we would like to establish a new format on hochschulfreun.de called “Among Friends”, since you are an old hand in committee work, I wanted to start with you before you turn your back on committee work due to your degree. So let’s get started.
How are you doing right now?
Sven: I’m fine. I have successfully completed the semester operation. Now it’s time for the exams. I have a total of three exams ahead of me. But there was a lot to do during the semester, so the pressure has now decreased.
How do you stay on the ball with the lectures with/despite Corona?
I ask myself that every day. But somehow it works out. For me and my fellow students, the pandemic is of course a great challenge. Otherwise, people met for group work and worked things out together. Today, everyone is at home, and people “meet” digitally. It’s not the same thing. But we make the best of it. The studies are very interesting and my fellow students and I manage to motivate us every day. I am grateful to them for that.
What volunteer tasks did you take on during your studies?
I was a consultant for higher education policy in the AStA (General Students’ Committee) for almost three years. In addition, one year as a student representative in the Faculty Council of the Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences (Economics and Social Sciences) and in the Senate of the university. In addition, I’m currently in a working group at the university in the area of studies and teaching and then all the little stuff right and left. At the end of 2017 I became part of the organizing team of the Terrassenfest and now I have been treasurer of the Terrassenfest Osnabrück e.V. for almost a year, unfortunately without the Terrassenfest 2020.
How did you get your committee-specific nickname “Svopo”?
There was already a Sven in the AStA. That just doesn’t work. Other names are accepted twice, but unfortunately this is not the case with Sven. For example, the name of the department in the AStA (HoPo, editor’s note) was combined with my own name. The result was the name “Svopo”.
Did you already volunteer before your time at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences?
Yes. I have been active in the volunteer fire brigade of my home village for about 20 years.
How did you come to your honorary position in the student committees? What skills did you bring with you?
As for the competencies: nothing special, time and motivation. Nothing more.
About the story: I was employed as an assistant at the Faculty of Business, Economics and Business, which then brought me into closer contact with the student committees. With Marius (my later colleague in the department, or my predecessor), for example, I once spent an evening at the Caprivi Lounge counter. I had a little time left over in my studies, somehow I was missing something. So I looked for employment and learned about the AStA for the first time.
A short time later, I talked to an AStA speaker and asked if there were still any departments available in the AStA. The next morning I went out to eat with my boss. When we picked up Sergej from the AStA office at Westerberg, Sergej opened the door and said “Ah, so you’re the new HoPo”. I will never forget that, the AStA speaker had already spread my interest within 24 hours.
What have you learned so far in the volunteer position? What additional skills have you gained through which tasks?
To name just a few buzzwords: communication, teamwork, presentation skills, discussion processes, event organization, project management, resilience, soft skills, self-organization.
Do you think you can use the experience you have gained in your professional life?
Yes. I think the above competencies in particular are certainly helpful.
Does committee work sometimes frustrate you and what was your low point in committee work?
Yes, it frustrated me all the time. Democratic processes, co-determination, participation and discussion sometimes hurt, are long-winded and sometimes seem unnecessary. Sometimes the structures stress you, sometimes it’s individual people and much more often yourself.
But I didn’t have this one low point. At times you just don’t feel like it anymore.
What was your absolute highlight of the committee work?
Despite all the frustration, it was worth it. You often have points where you despair. Nevertheless, the whole committee time of the last few years was extremely cool for me. The absolute highlight was the success of the first university elections, for which I was responsible. That was in November/December 2017. I put a lot of time into it and in the end most of it worked really well.
Thank you Sven!
The interview was conducted on 21.01.2021 via Zoom.
Author: Sergej Friesen is a member of the General Students’ Committee