Organization

The university sector is the most important with 66% of the total number of establishments and around 70% of the total student population. Higher education in Mexico employs 114,724 professors in 1,309 universities and technical schools, public and private. There are 40 public universities accounting for 80% of university students in Mexico. The Ministry of Public Education states that in 1995, 1.4 million students were enrolled in universities, and estimated 1.8 million for the year 2000.
The academic calendar is divided into trimesters or semesters. There are generally 16 weeks of classes and 3 weeks of exams. Summer courses usually last 8 weeks. The calendar varies according to the level of studies. The first semester begins at the end of January and lasts until the end of May, with exams lasting until the beginning of June. The second semester begins in August, finishing in early December, followed by exams. The dates can change from one university to another.