From 1904 to 1905, Schneider studied at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich under Friedrich von der Leyen, Franz Muncker and Hermann Paul.

From 1906 to 1910 he studied German and Romance philology at the University of Berlin under Andreas Heusler, Richard M. Meyer [de], Erich Schmidt and Wolfgang Schulze.

Completing his habilitation in 1912, Schneider became a lecturer at the University of Bonn, where he in 1914 was appointed an associate professor.

Since 1921, Schneider was Professor of German Language and Literature at the University of Tübingen.

Schneider was a member of many learned societies, including the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the Modern Language Association and the Royal Society of Arts and Sciences in Gothenburg.