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(Last updated: 20 May 2008)
Trends and opportunities
The market
The education sector has played an increasingly important role in Mexico’s development over the last six years.
The total market for international education in Mexico is approximately 60,000 students.
The market size, which depends greatly on the stability of the economy, and the total number of available students, is increasing due to the demographics of the country.
The demand for Australia as an education provider for Mexican students has been constantly growing and now Mexico is Australia’s third largest source market in Latin America, accounting for 1,433 enrolments across all sectors in 2007. This figure represents a 15 per cent growth compared to 2006, according to Australian Education International (AEI).
There are many factors which have helped to drive the constant growth and strengthening of opportunities for Australian education providers. Some of these are:
- The bilateral education, training and research between Australia and Mexico
- A long-term approach by providers
- Regular visits to the market by providers
- Close co-operation with the Australian Government and agent networks
- The development of relationships with Mexican institutions and government and non-government organisations
Although the US remains the primary overseas study destination for Mexican students, the market share for other countries such as Australia is significantly increasing, as students seek out new study destinations that can offer quality education combined with a substantial cultural experience.
The main market consists of students in the private education system located in the major cities of Mexico, namely Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Merida and Puebla.
Higher education is the leading sector for Mexican students, accounting for almost 30 per cent of enrolments in 2007 with special interest in studying at the postgraduate level, primarily in Masters by Coursework programs. The leading fields of study are ‘Business Administration, Management’, ‘Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences’ and ‘Engineering and Surveying’.
In 2007, with 66 per cent growth, the VET sector, once again has shown the strongest growth of any sector. This figure represents the awareness raised among Mexican students of the Australian VET system with the promotion of VET programs by AEI and the Mexican agent network. The three leading fields of study are: Business Administration, Management and Visual and Performing Arts.
Opportunities
In 2003, Mexico and Australia signed a Memorandum of Understanding on education promoting programs and student and staff exchanges between Mexican and Australian institutions.
The Mexican education sector offers a wide range of opportunities for Australian institutions, with the Mexican Ministry of Education showing a high level of engagement with Australia.
With a range of upcoming events and initiatives and as more education agents enter the market, there is a great deal of scope for Australia to grow its educational base in Mexico.
The most popular requested courses (according to local agents) are:
- business and administration
- accounting
- engineering and architecture
- applied science and IT
- marketing and graphic design
There is also demand for specific courses such as: marine biology, media production and multimedia visual arts.
Opportunities for exchange agreements as well as scholarship programs are available with CONACYT and SEP.
In terms of ELICOS, Australia’s market has been growing and as a direct result of the education MOU and high-level education missions between Mexico and Australia, there is strong engagement by the SEP in offering Australia as a preferred English language trainer/provider. The majority of this market is approached via trade fairs, industry publications, advertising and connections with various institutions and campuses.
E-learning
The fact that the Mexican Government has been investing in creating more resources to train more people in order to compete in the global market, represents latent opportunities for Australian universities, educational institutions, training providers and other content developers in the emerging sector of distance learning.
With more than 20 million Internet users in Mexico, e-learning has become an option to provide lower cost or remote programs in the education and training sectors. Australian institutions and e-learning training companies have good potential in Mexico by partnering with Mexican higher education institutions and training companies to offer and develop e-learning programs.
Training opportunities in the Mexican market
The training sector in Mexico has seen significant changes during the last two years in both public and private sectors. Training is now considered a need for organisations, which search to be competitive and invest in their human resources. As a result, learning needs to meet ambitious programs have risen.
Australian training companies have a large market to explore in Mexico, as the demand within the market grows for programs in executive management, marketing, sales management, leadership, quality control, and executive language.
However, competition with local providers is fierce. Australian providers should pay close attention to program development (in Spanish) and partnership opportunities. |