Singaporean coach Daryl Tay found his true calling in Finland

Daryl Tay, a 29-year-old Singaporean volleyball coach who works in Finland, studied coaching and sports at the local institution. Now he aims to be a professional volleyball coach.

Daryl Tay (second from left) and his colleagues in Finland. Picture by CEV

Back in 2015, Tay was in Finland for a holiday and heard many great things about studying in Finland from the local exchange students. Eventually, their stories sparked an interest to move there and begin a new chapter in his life.

“On the Finnair flight back to Singapore, I saw an advertisement for Vierumäki Urheiluopisto and it stuck with me. I went home after to do more research about it.”

Since studying was still free of charge for international students back in 2015, it was only natural that Daryl Tay eventually ended up at the Finnish Sports Institute.

“I chose to study sports in Finland because of the limited options in Singapore and also the opportunity to move abroad to a much bigger sporting country. The chances of working in a top sport environment here are much higher than in Singapore. I had considered options such as Australia but the financial aspect of it made much more sense at that point to come to Finland.”

In terms of studying, Finland came as a surprise to Tay. The structure of the studies as well as the daily routine was far different than what he had been used to.

“Studying in Finland is VERY different than in Singapore. In Singapore, everything is result driven and competitive. While in Finland, my experience was much more holistic development of each student, flexible in terms of the structure of studies. The pace was also a lot slower as compared to Singapore. In terms of studying sports, it is much more than just an academic subject (as we were studying mostly related to coaching). So we did more practical work in class, like coaching in small groups and peer evaluation. We also had time to go out of the classroom into the real work environment to practice theories that had been taught in class. “

Picture by CEV

When it comes to living in Finland, Tay explained, that life isn´t always a walk in the park.

“Initially, it was really difficult to do any errands in Finland because most official documents are in Finnish only. Some classes were also more skewed to Finnish (even though it was an English language program) because there were just more Finns in the classroom, so it took some time to get used to. Having Finnish friends really helped with all the processes, and many Finns speak very good English so the language was not a major issue at all. “

Tay also noted that the way people operate and go about their daily lives in Finland differs from the Singaporean way of living.

“In my opinion, I think Finnish society is a little less confrontational when it comes to problem-solving. Sometimes when people have unpleasant news, they do not say it as straight as they could. Also, Finnish society is more liberal, but that has to do with cultural differences between the two countries.

Long distances between cities and experiencing his first winter, at first Tay found it difficult to deal with the local “slow pace” –mentality.

“Something that was hard for me to deal with initially was that life is a little slower pace in Finland, therefore I was always wondering why things are not done sooner but then I realized it was just how everyone works.”

However, the kindness of local people eventually compensated for the struggles of dealing with the differences.

“Finnish people are quiet and thoughtful. It was not difficult at all to make friends in my situation. I studied in the middle of the forest in Vierumäki and we only had a small community to bond with. I think that situation benefitted me even though I was the only Asian student on campus. Everyone was welcoming and I had made lots of friends whom I am still close with even after graduation.”

While Tay misses the food from Singapore, he’s keen to bring a piece of Finland to Singapore.  With this, he means snow, of course.

 “Especially now that I live in Kuortane, accessibility to South East Asian food is limited, so often time I miss hot and spicy food from home. If there is something I wish to bring back to Singapore, everyone would agree that it’s some snow and colder temperature.”

Tay is currently busy working as a volleyball coach in Finland. He feels motivated to continue his career and develop his coaching skills even further. 

“Working life has started out good for me. I am doing something unconventional, which is coaching volleyball professionally. Being able to do it at an Olympic training center and in the environment of top sports is something that has helped me grow a lot as a person and a coach. What motivates me the most now is helping all the young boys and girls in the training center to develop their potential and guide them towards the path of a professional athlete.”

For someone wondering whether they would be able to do the same and move abroad, Tay wants to highlight one important point he learned during his studies:

“The biggest lesson for me is about living abroad by myself and learning life lessons along the way. Even though sometimes you might feel lost, if there is a clear goal, you will get there eventually through hard work and dedication. My advice for anyone interested to study and work in Finland is to do enough research on all kinds of situations, whether it is banking, housing, or weather. It is common for non-EU citizens to run into issues regarding those. Also, instead of only making friends with your own countrymen, be brave and make friends with everyone. It is then you will get the true experience of Finland and feel the warmness of Finnish people.”

Take a step towards your future now like Tay. Finland awaits you!