Sheinbaum: Study for entrance exams, but education access shouldn't depend solely on them

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has called on young people aspiring to enter higher education to prepare diligently for their entrance exams. However, she emphasized that gaining access to education should not be solely contingent upon passing a single evaluation. Instead, she argued, sufficient spaces must be available in public institutions.

Speaking at a Jóvenes Construyendo el Futuro event in Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, Sheinbaum reflected on her own time as a student at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She recalled participating in student movements from a young age, advocating for increased educational opportunities.

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(...) you have to study for the entrance exam.

"You have to study for the entrance exam," she stated, acknowledging the need for preparation. Yet, she cautioned that exam results should not create an insurmountable barrier for students seeking to continue their studies. "There must be enough places so that if a young person finishes secondary school, they have the possibility to study high school. If a young person finishes high school and wants to continue studying, there must be enough places to study university," she urged.

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There must be enough places so that if a young person finishes secondary school, they have the possibility to study high school. If a young person finishes high school and wants to continue studying, there must be enough places to study university.

Sheinbaum, who attended Colegio de Ciencias y Humanidades (CCH) Sur for high school and later studied physics at UNAM, recounted her youth involvement in student protests against "rechazados" – students who were denied admission due to limited spaces. This experience solidified her belief that education is a fundamental right, not a privilege determined by family income or the availability of spots.

Her administration, she stated, is working to expand educational infrastructure, aiming to rectify what she described as decades of underinvestment in new preparatory schools and universities.

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I participated at 15 years old in a student movement against the rejected. That's what they called young people who wanted to study high school and there was no place to study high school.