Using access to higher education to redress inequities: tensions between equity and excellence in the polytechnic universities in Mexico

Despite the expansion of higher education and the growing number of students from disadvantaged socioeconomic background and/or from ethnic minorities who now access university places, inequalities in access to higher education based on social class and origin remain a challenge. This article analyses the Polytechnic Universities in Mexico, examining them as a public policy for democratising access to higher education. We conducted 15 semi-structured interviews with the rectors and heads of the academic administration staff of 12 Polytechnic Universities, aiming to identify the limits and potential of the various strategies that make the PU model a policy of equity. These strategies include (i) the geographical decentralisation of university campuses, (ii) the scholarships and financial aid programmes, and (iii) the recruitment campaigns to attract new students. The interviews enable us to uncover the trade-off between equity and excellence and to observe how the PU model addresses it. While some of the responses and effects have already been examined in the literature, others highlight some nuanced specificities in the context of PUs in Mexico. Our results provide evidence that suggests a need to reconsider the most effective equity PUs strategies for enhancing access to higher education for disadvantaged populations in Mexico.