Jóvenes Adelante Launches 2026 Sponsorship Campaign for University Applicants and Master’s Degree Candidates

By Don Krim

As Jóvenes Adelante’s selection team screens hundreds of 2 biographical videos, and other document submissions from eager undergraduate students, there is another quiet process under way: our own graduates seeking specialized Master’s degrees. Some of those requests I expected - one of my own mentees, for instance, applying for a Master’s in criminal law prior to a further specialization in criminal investigation; another I know seeking an advanced degree to support an already successful career in systems engineering. But my excitement level soared as I saw 2 applicants, who entered Jóvenes Adelante in 2004 and 2007, respectively. Both are female, one whose undergraduate degree was in organizational psychology, the other in education.

When I entered Jóvenes Adelante in mid 2017, our graduate network, those we had any information about, stood at around 35 students. Today that number is 250. That extraordinary growth has been the result of concerted efforts to track, gather data, reengage, and offer continued support with English, professional credentialing, and now our Master’s degree scholarship. As a result, more graduates are becoming mentors, interviewers of new applicants, or JA Peers - not as a substitute for mentors, but as an adjunct. And more and more are seeking specialized degrees. This is thrilling! Those with a Master’s degree in México are way behind other developed nations, but a growing segment. Like we see elsewhere, more and more students in the higher education segment are beginning to concentrate either at shorter term, more technical degrees, or at the other end of the spectrum, advanced specialization.

Jóvenes Adelante’s new Master’s Degree Scholarship saw its first advanced degree graduates in 2025. We still have 10 Master’s candidates in process. Although the formal selection process for 2026 has not officially opened, already 12 candidates have come forward - 4 of whom are seeking a long 4 year master’s degree specialization in medical fields.

These students are a high priority for JA. Looking at our current roster of  Master’s students, their fields of study are representative of exactly the kind of high impact potential that JA seeks: Neuropsychology, Neurocognitive Development, Immunology, Structural Engineering, Research and Investigation in Educational Innovation, Organizational Leadership and Human Resources, Industrial, Operations & Quality Control, and Food & Beverage Management, European Master’s in Project Management (Germany), Digital Marketing, and Political Analysis.

Read some these student’s own words: “Being part of Human Resources allows me to transform lives, build strong teams, and contribute to a world of work where empathy, talent, and passion come together to achieve goals.”

“Neuropsychology teaches us that, even in the face of brain damage or dementia, the person remains. My goal is to provide support and tools, in English and Spanish, to preserve identity and improve quality of life, because every mind deserves to be understood with dignity.”

“For me, engineering is more than calculations and numbers; it's a bridge between an idea and reality. I am passionate about seeing how the world works and how it can be improved. Thanks to this, today I can turn uncertainty into direction and transform goals into concrete actions and results.”

“A bachelor's degree in education teaches us that being a teacher is more than transmitting information: it is touching lives, sowing hope, and opening paths to new possibilities. It prepares us to be guides and companions on the learning journey, with the ability to inspire, guide, and develop citizens capable of improving their world.”

México as a nation faces many problems but also has many advantages. It is a wealthy nation despite uneven wealth distribution, it is strategically located in the Americas, it has natural resources, and most of all it has a talent pool that is demographically young. The largest and most important economic segment of the population is between the ages of 15 and 34. This talent pool with such enormous potential, is still under-educated, under-invested in. Jóvenes Adelante on a local level is here to address that in the Bajío region. University and Master’s degree students are the future of México, now. To lose them would be a tragedy that will not return in our lifetimes.

If you are passionate about the future of México and San Miguel, or about local kids dreaming of their own different futures, there is no better way to get involved in building those futures.

Don Krim is the President of Jóvenes Adelante and Development Director. For more information on how to support a 2026 student, he can be reached at donkrim@jovenesadelante.org.

www.jovenesadelante.org