“We Are Over Tested”: Woman Doing Her Masters Abroad Shares Why Studying There Is Easier Than in SA

• A South African woman studying her master's degree in Ireland says students who survived a South African university will find studying abroad easy
• She talked about a study comparing UCT and the University of Amsterdam, and what the findings meant
• People shared their own experiences, with many saying the pressure of studying in SA nearly broke them

A young South African woman living and studying in Ireland posted a video on 1 April 2026 while walking through the streets. She shared her honest take on what it's like doing a master's degree abroad compared to studying at a South African university. Her message came with a suggestion:

"Guys — I know that this sounds wild, but a lot of people have said very similar. So ask your friends who have studied abroad if they agree."

She said that if you have an honours degree from a South African university and passed with decent marks, you will likely find studying abroad far more manageable than expected. She studied at the University of Cape Town and said that because of SAQA, she assumed academic standards are similar across South African institutions.

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She said that a study by a friend who lectures at the University of Amsterdam proved what she experienced. The research, done in the anthropology department, found that UCT second-year students are tested more. She said she was not entirely shocked by the finding, given her own experience, but she was saddened by what it means for South African students who drop out feeling like failures.

"Imagine dropping out of university feeling like you're a failure in life, meanwhile, we are just being over tested," she said. She added that it is not fair that students abroad are seen as the clever ones when South African students are simply being filtered out by excessive testing.

Watch the TikTok clip below:

SA debates woman's experience abroad

South Africans had a lot to say in the comments section on TikToker @southernjewel_'s clip:

@Raees Ahmed Khan 🇿🇦 said:

"Even high school in SA is much harder than in most other countries."

@entl3🦋 asked:

"Do you think it's on purpose that SA uni is like this? Like it's a system?"

@Janine_J shared:

"My husband went to a top 5 global business school and was very confused by how difficult my MBA in South Africa was. In the US, an MBA is a party and networking degree. In SA, they make you sweat tears."

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@Ase Snooks added:

"Over tested and overworked only to be jobless afterwards."

@nm n u said:

"My honours year in SA nearly took me out. Developed hypertension."

@cang noted:

"I partially agree, but it also depends on what you're studying. Abroad, unis give a more holistic degree — there's a very different view of what success looks like."

@Bylee said:

"Yho, I cried at Rhodes. Now I'm just cruising abroad 😭"

More South Africans living abroad

• Briefly News recently reported on a South African woman in South Korea who broke down the country's minimum wage and compared it to that of South Africa.
• An Afrikaner content creator based in Seoul went viral after sharing her very unexpected reason for refusing to come back home.
• A South African woman living in New Zealand shared lifestyle stats comparing the two countries.

Source: Briefly News