Unemployment: SA woman’s TikTok exposes harsh reality after graduation [Video]

Graduate unemployment rarely gets a face, but one South African woman’s TikTok has given it one.

In a short video, Amahle Shezi shows the gap between her graduation day and her life today, working as a Milo promoter in a supermarket.

Thousands of graduates have since shared their own stories in response.

Shezi, who posts as @mashezi, shared the video on 8 November as part of a TikTok trend.

It has since drawn more than 2 000 comments.

Life after varsity in two scenes

The clip has just two parts. In the first, Shezi stands at what looks like a graduation venue, with the words: “I haven’t seen you since we graduated.”

In the second, she is behind a promotional stand in a supermarket, offering shoppers cups of Milo.

The video doesn’t spell out the message, and it doesn’t need to.

‘It gets better’

The comments quickly became a space for honesty and encouragement.

One law graduate said they had spent two years unemployed and a year packing groceries before landing a lecturing job, urging others to keep going.

Another said they had skipped their graduation ceremony altogether because they could see what was coming.

Many others shared the jobs they had taken to get by while searching for work in their fields.

What the numbers say about graduate unemployment

The video went viral just as new jobs figures landed. On Tuesday, 10 November, Statistics South Africa reported that the official unemployment rate rose to 33.7% in the third quarter of 2026.

Youth unemployment stood at 47.3%.

A degree still helps. In the second quarter, graduates had an unemployment rate of 12.4%, compared with 39.2% for people without matric, according to the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA).

But graduate unemployment itself increased during that quarter.

Every job counts

For many young South Africans, roles such as promotions, retail and call centre work are a way to earn an income and build experience while they look for work in their field.

If you are still searching, government programmes and youth platforms can help you find opportunities and gain experience.

WHAT JOB DID YOU DO WHILE LOOKING FOR WORK AFTER YOUR STUDIES?