Anchen Dreyer grew up in the then
Transvaal province, attended primary school in the small town of
Brits, and matriculated at Voortrekkerhoogte Hoёrskool in 1969. She obtained her tertiary education at the
Rand Afrikaans University (RAU) obtaining the following degrees: BA, 1973; BA Honors in Sociology, 1977; BA Honors in Psychology, 1981; and MA in Clinical Psychology, 1983. She registered as a clinical psychologist with the South African Medical and Dental Council in 1983 and thereafter worked as a clinical psychologist in both Auckland Park and Sandton, Johannesburg, from 1983 to 1988. She established and managed a successful private practice as a clinical psychologist in Meliville, Johannesburg, from 1988 to 1994. She now considers herself a retired clinical psychologist and a full-time politician. ==Political career==