In 2015, the government of Mexico established Proyecta 10,000, which aims to support 10,000 Mexican students, teachers and researchers to study in Canada by 2018. The initiative resulted from conversations that took place between Canada and Mexico during the North American Leaders’ Summit. Both countries agreed education was a strategic cooperation priority.

Now in its third year, Proyecta 10,000 has nearly 1,500 students in Canada. There are 158 students at post-secondary institutions in BC, an increase of nearly 800% from the 20 students in 2016.  

The program provides support to students across different subject areas, but most students come to BC for short-term ESL training in the summer.

Proyecta 10,000 students join nearly 2,000 full-time Mexican international students in BC. Mexico is now the 8th largest source country of international students to BC.

The timing is ideal for welcoming more students to Canada. Several factors are making Canada increasingly desirable for students globally.  For example, there is no visa required for Mexicans attending short-term language programs, and the current exchange rate is favourable.

We anticipate Proyecta 10,000 will facilitate downstream opportunities for educational engagements between BC and Mexico. Over the long-term, there should be more sustained cooperation on recruitment and partnership development.

Additional information

For more information on Proyecta 10,000 see here.

BCCIE will be facilitating a Team BC Mission to Mexico from October 1–11 for schools and institutions looking to represent themselves in this market. To express interest, see the Mission page.