La Jornada: Carlos Ramos Mamahua
Translated by Jenna Whylly
One of the main problems amongst Mexican university students is their high dropout rate. According to the information from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD] only 25% of university students graduate.
Scholars of the dropout phenomenon pointed out that this is due in part to the fact that the university doesn't meet the students' expectations and that many students don't get to study in the school of their choice. Nevertheless the university system assumes no responsability and leaves the burden of this failure on the students and their families, they added.
Herlinda Suarez, an academic for the Regional Center for Multidisciplinary Research of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), said the results of the National Youth Survey (ENJ) 2010 show that 76% of those aged 12 to 29 state they would like to "get a degree". However, only 23% of those aged 18 to29 have studied at this level, which they didn't necessarily complete.
Many young people view college with frustration, "most want to enter, but few can. Studying for a degree is a matter of luck, something that is fortuitous and a matter of hope," said Suarez, participating in the symposium "The Public University in the Future", recently held by the Institute for Social Research at the UNAM.
Of the 36 million young people living in the country (31.23% of the total population), 18.75% (3,377,372) are students in higher education (teacher's college, professional or graduate school). The ENJ reveals that 15% of those within that level of education admit to studying in a school that was not their first preference because they had no other option.
Suarez added that this study showed that 37% of undergraduates in Mexico are not enrolled in the college of their choice. In addition, 13% of college students said that the courses that they took ranked below their expectations and 16% of those who dropped out said that they did it because they were bored.
José Antonio Pérez Islas, coordinator of the Youth Research Seminar at UNAM, emphasized that day to day school life is not as difficult as the analysis claims. "They go through because they have to go through."
Of the Mexican youth studying at a professional level, almost 78% percent are supported by a family member, 19.9% had to leave school at some point, 24.3% attend a private school, 5.5% do distance learning and 35.9% think private higher education is better than public education, the academic said.
Also according to the ENJ, 81.5% of undergraduates think their career will help them get a job, 76.8% that they will earn more money, 73.5% say it will solve problems and 71% say it is so they can start a business, Perez Islas explained.
The data show that 63% of these students have worked at some time. Of this percentage, 48.2% continue to work through college, 83.9% like their current job and 71.8% got their first job through a family member or friend. Despite the latter figure, only 9.8% of those undergoing professional education believe that one of the most important chances for employment lies in having personal contacts; 52% say it is because of education and 23% say it is due to work experience.
For Adrian Garay, an academic from the Azcapotzalco campus of the Metropolitan Autonomous University, the number of young people who abandon their degree programs has reached ''significant'' proportions because schools fail to stop 40% of them from dropping out.
He added that nearly five out of 10 university students drop out during the course of their studies. Spanish original