🎓 Milestone Achieved: LLB Graduate from the University of Amsterdam
Today, I’m closing my educational chapter—not the learning one, because real learning happens every day, outside the walls of any institution.
For someone entrepreneurial, traditional education can feel limiting. Spending hours memorizing things we can easily look up misses the mark on real understanding. It’s an outdated system that values memorization over true knowledge. I’ve never fit the mold of the ‘ideal’ student according to the standards of the current educational system, but I know I’m not alone in questioning a model that feels disconnected from the world we live in.
And where is the funding going? Billions supposedly go into education, but most of it is spent on research, not on the students who are paying ever-higher fees. Promises of 0% interest on our loans were quietly broken, and my generation never benefited from the basic grant.
To the students who feel unheard, unworthy, or different in academic spaces, know this: you can succeed on your own terms. As Bill Gates once said, “I will hire a lazy person because they’ll find an easy way to do it.” This isn’t about laziness; it’s about efficiency, and the world needs an education system that values results over rigid processes.
I’m also living proof for all the ‘efficient’ 😉 students out there—you don’t need to attend every lecture or workgroup to succeed. Those who really know me know I graduated by taking my own path, without attending the typical lectures and workgroups. So I hope this post motivates you to study on your own terms.
However, not every part of my educational journey was frustrating. My time at Cartesius Lyceum was transformative. I had the privilege of learning from some of the best teachers I could have asked for—teachers who shaped me not just academically but as a person. Leo Tjoelker, Annemarie Proost, Ruth Tjon-Affo, Frans Jager, Monique de Wit, Simon Verhoef, Dabrowka Ujec, Spanish teacher Vega, and Menno Lagerwey, who’s now making waves with his math videos on YouTube—these are the teachers who made a real impact. They took on more than teaching; they were mentors, figures of integrity, and examples of what education should stand for. They taught with empathy and high standards, making students feel seen and supported.
It’s time to honor that kind of teaching. Instead of a system that forces students to redo years for a few missed courses, we need flexibility and efficiency.
I never wanted to openly criticize the system without first proving I could succeed within it. Now, having graduated, I feel it’s time to share my perspective on what needs to change.
The system needs to change. Education should align with today’s realities, foster understanding over memorization, and focus on supporting students to reach their full potential, not just pushing for prestige.
