The Jalisco legislature and all 123 municipal councils have unanimously approved changes to the state Constitution decreeing that the budget for the public Universidad de Guadalajara (UdeG) never falls below five percent of the state government’s entire annual budget.
The legislation ends almost three years of wrangling between the UdeG and state authorities over the university’s budget—a back-and-forth tussle that at times became excessively fractious.
“This constitutional budget is historic and making it a reality is one of the greatest honors of my life,” said Jalisco Governor Enrique Alfaro.
“This means educational coverage can be expanded to many more young people who aspire to upper secondary and higher education,” a government press release stated.
Acceptance rates at Mexico’s second-largest public university average out at around 50 percent, with some courses, such as law and medicine, far more in demand than others.
UdeG Rector Ricardo Villanueva said the challenge is “to create 100,000 new higher education spaces.” This includes admitting 30,000 new post-graduate students, to raise the number of people taking master’s and doctorate degrees to 50,000, he said.
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