Jóvenes Adelante 2025: A New Era

As 2025 begins Jóvenes Adelante – San Miguel’s premiere University Scholar support program – is launching into a new era.

Graduating 300 successful scholars from unprivileged backgrounds since 2001 has been no small feat. It is easy to underestimate this achievement, to assume continued growth and success. Each graduate spent 3-5 intensive and formative years with JA — not 1 semester or year at a time with some funds and then a reapplication process, but instead living within the wide spectrum support of the “JA family” for the duration. While the program has expanded, and the services JA offers have increased over the years, the core vision and formula has remained unchanged: broadcast an open call throughout SMA city and close neighbors, find the brightest students needing financial and other support to reach and/or succeed in university, commit to them as they commit to the intense JA program and their studies, and then mentor and watch over them on their path to success.

What is the JA difference:

– JA’s annual 30,000 pesos baseline scholarship is amongst the highest in Mexico, and higher than any other in San Miguel.

– The commitment is for the length of a student’s higher education studies through accreditation.

– JA currently offers the only local open university call to residents of San Miguel, Comonfort and Dolores Hidalgo.

– Our basic support is only the beginning. Each student also directly receives or has access to:

• Their own individual mentor assigned and usually met on their first day
• A new laptop computer loaded for their field of study
• A team of psychologists for psycho-pedagogical support
• English Tutors
• Success Skills classes in core and specialized subjects
• Extra emergency funds
• Extra funds for those with very limited resources
• Parental support workshops
• A Guidance Counselor
• Professional Credentialing Costs
• Travel cost coverage for international or national conferences, semesters abroad, professional development or intensive English study
• Graduate network contacts, support and job bank.

1. Flagship: The original JA scholarship supporting a student for an average of 4-5  years.
2. Finish Line: A new exciting offering for students with only 2 years remaining to complete their studies. They have proven university track records, are close to completion, but typically have exhausted their private resources and need more support to get over the finish line. This new offering is in response to the absence of this support in the current market place, and the sad rejection of hundreds of these students in recent years.
3. Medical: Medical students require 7 years and we stick with them all the way.
4. Master’s: JA now supports our own undergraduates seeking more advanced study and specialization.

• Cyber Security
• Biological Immunology (With support from CONAHCYT)
• Neurological Education and Cognitive Development
• Structural Engineering
• Political Analysis
• Project Management (University is in Germany)

JA’s graduation rate of 83% is more than 3 times the national and state average (26%)!
JA’s goal for 2025 is to launch 45 new undergrad and 5 master’s students. With an applicant pool of 453, up from 375 in 2024, that goal appears within reach – but our selection process is multi-staged and our scholars will not be finalized until July.

Mexico is blessed with a young population, but its potential is blocked by underinvestment in that immense human capital, and by huge gaps between those with and without privilege. The future for Mexico must happen now – embodied by the largest generation of youth in its history, aged 15 to 30, embodying the key human resource crucial for all of North America if nearshoring is allowed to reach its full potential. To waste this moment would be tragic, but only 26% of the population aged 25-34 has a college degree. Mexico’s adolescent youth is its greatest asset, but that crucial asset is at great risk. Only 1 in 10 kids born today will achieve a university degree if higher education does not become a more urgent priority.

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