University funds tough to find in Mexico

According to New York Times, the University of Veracruz claimed that they did not receive their assigned budget through Javier Duarte’s government. The ex-governor was involved in a corruption scandal when he stole more than 3,000 million US dollars in the course of six years. This meant that many students were affected as the university did not obtain the necessary income.

A 4-year private university degree in Mexico City can add up an average of 500,000 MX pesos, which contrast the country GDP of 162,000 MX pesos, according to the World Bank Group.

This may raise the question, should college be free? There are several public universities through the country which have modest to non-cost that benefit the population throughout the country, however private and higher-ranked universities are not always easily accessible for the majority of the population.

Gabriela García Hubard, a profesor at UNAM (Universidad Autonoma de Mexico) university, believes that education should be completely free as it is the key to end poverty.

She said “the problem is corruption, even public money aimed for SEP, which is the Secretaria de Educacion Publica, never arrives to the destination. A lot of money is even stolen by employees of a higher level.

In Mexico, because of free education, poor people are able to get out of their situations and have more opportunities of development and growth.” Her believes support the idea that if the goverment was not corrupt them education could be more accesible. When asked if she believed that if colleges were free their ranking would fall, she stated that in France some of the best universities are free.