Mexico

Placement Information

• Partner Organization: U.S.-Mexico Commission for Educational and Cultural Exchange (COMEXUS)
• Eligible Program Dates: 3 ‐ 6 months from January – June 2026 or September – December 2026
• Host Institution Expectations: Participants will be placed with a host institution upon acceptance into the program. Host institutions are typically public universities with a teacher education department.
• Language Requirement: Proficiency in Spanish is preferred.
• Monthly Allowance: Between $2,500 ‐ $2,800 (exact amount to be confirmed at a later date)
• Dependent Information: An allowance of $2,000 per eligible dependent will be provided as part of the Fulbright grant. Enrolling a dependent in a Mexican public school can be complicated as it demands a lot of paperwork and permissions and can take a considerable amount of time. Non‐residents often enroll their dependents in private institutions where registration can be more easily facilitated. Private schools are approximately between $300 and $500 per month. The American School Foundation is approximately $1,900 per month plus other fees. For more information, please visit their website. Please note that tuition support for dependents is subject to availability and requests for funding are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Applicants are strongly encouraged to research schooling options for their dependents during the application phase.

Country Overview

Mexico, located in North America, shares borders to the north with the United States; to the south and west with the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast with Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and to the east with the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost 2,000,000 square kilometers (770,000 sq mi), the nation is the 5th largest country in the Americas and the 13th largest state in the world. With an estimated population of close to 130 million people, Mexico is the 10th most populous country and the most populous Spanish‐speaking country in the world, while being the 2nd largest nation in Latin America after Brazil.

Mexico is a federal, representative, democratic republic comprising 32 free and sovereign states, with Mexico City being the capital and its most populous city (9.21 million inhabitants according to the 2020 census). The country’s government is divided into legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The elections held in 2000 marked an important milestone in the country's ongoing democratic transition as it was the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that the opposition defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Since then, two different parties, the right National Action Party (PAN) and left National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), have been in office. In 2024, left‐wing Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (from MORENA) won the presidential election for a six-year term, becoming the country’s first female president.

Some articles covering the Mexican context in social, cultural, political, economic, and artistic fields include: “Inside Mexico City’s Meteoric Rise to Art World Capital” and “¿Cómo celebra México el Día de Muertos?” 

Educational System Overview

The Mexican educational system can be characterized by a high degree of centralization. Since 1921, the Ministry of Public Education (Secretaría de Educación Pública - SEP) has overseen the country's public education system which now includes nearly 35 million students. Through 32 state departments of education, SEP provides educational services including the setting of national standards and curriculum as well as textbook selection and distribution to the majority of the 260,262 schools in the country.

Although the figures differ by state, the percentage of young adults (ages 25–34) who have completed tertiary education has risen from 23% in 2017 to 27% in 2022, while the proportion of young adults (ages 25-34) with upper secondary education has increased from 47% in 2016 to 58% in 2023, according to the OECD. This trend is expected to continue. In 2002 an educational reform made pre-primary enrollment compulsory beginning in 2009. Since then, enrollment rates among 3–5-year-olds increased from 64% in 2005 to 74% in 2021, close to the OECD average of 86%. Increasing enrollment also extends to the lower secondary level.

Mexico is taking measures to address these and other issues. For example, a national program to introduce and strengthen English language instruction throughout primary education, called “Programa Nacional de Inglés” (PRONI), was launched in 2009. Other programs include the “Programa Expansión de la Educación Inicial” (PEEI, 2018) to increase access in early childhood and “​​Programa Fortalecimiento de los Servicios de Educación Especiales” (PFSEE, 2020) for special needs education.

Possible Topics of Interest for U.S. Educators

• Instructional technology 
• Teaching English 
• Science education
• Post-secondary educational and career counseling
• Improving school completion rates