Centro Fox: Hybrid Summer Field Study in Mexico!

Summer 2025 - Applications now Live! (Due April 11th)

APPLY HERE!

Watch a highlights video from a past Summer Field Study Abroad: Guanajuato, Mexico trip here!

Program Overview

We invite you to apply for our exciting Hybrid Field Study Abroad program in beautiful Guanajuato, Mexico this summer! Our School received grant funding to support a group of 10 Social Ecology students to participate in a hybrid summer field study program, which includes a week-long trip to the Centro Fox facilities in Guanajuato, Mexico—former home of past Mexican president Vicente Fox, now home to the large non-profit Fundación Vamos México!

Throughout four weeks of the 5-week field study program during summer session I, students will work remotely to support the community serving programming of Fundación Vamos México, in service of areas like physical and mental healthcare, accessibility, public safety and wellness, access to critical resources such as nutrition and shelter, and environmental sustainability. Students will also focus on mentoring Mexican youth through Fundación Vamos México's program, ALAS (Activating Leaders in Social Action), where field study students will help the ALAS youth develop and structure their year-long community service projects.

For one special week, however, students will get to embark on an immersive seven-day trip to Centro Fox in Guanajuato, Mexico (7/05 - 7/11) led by faculty members from the departments of Urban Studies and Public Policy and Chicano/Latino Studies. In addition to supporting the aforementioned non-profit programming in person, students will also be guided on several educational and cultural day trips to learn about real-world issues affecting local communities in areas of criminal justice, public policy, education, and other topics related to Social Ecology. During these trips, students will meet with several government, industry, and university officials, culminating in a meeting with former Mexican President Vicente Fox and First Lady Marta Fox.

Please read additional program details below very carefully and be sure that you are eligible for the trip and submit your materials on time!!

Program dates (5 weeks): June 23 - July 30
- Travel dates in Mexico: July 05 – July 11
Must be available for four weeks of remote fieldwork and one week of in-person fieldwork at the Centro Fox facilities in Guanajuato
Must submit a Summer Course Enrollent Form to be authorized to enroll in SE195 before Friday, May 16.
Must enroll in SE 195 Field Study (online) during Summer Session I. Students will "attend" SE 195 remotely for four weeks from home, and one week remotely while in Guanajuato.
Participants will stay at the Hacienda San Cristobal (two per room), located on the grounds of the Centro Fox facility, and will be served three meals a day by the center’s chefs
Nearly all of students' travel, room, and board expenses will be covered, but students will be required to enroll in SE 195 for Summer Session I at their own expense ($1,116 in total).

Eligibility Requirements

Strong written and spoken Spanish
Permanent U.S. resident, current passport, and ability to travel internationally
School of Social Ecology/ENSP Majors ONLY
Meet eligibility for summer Field Study (Junior/Senior by end of Spring '25; SE 10 completed by program start)
Availability to spend three weeks abroad in Guanajuato, Mexico [travel dates: 7/05 to 7/11]

Application Details:

Applications can be found here
Each application requires four open-ended responses that detail your interest in and qualifications for this opportunity
Each applicant must provide contact info for a strong professional reference (e.g., professor, staff, research supervisor, boss, volunteer manager, etc.) who will be contacted by our office if your application is under strong consideration
Applications due by Friday, April 11th
Students will be notified of their application status by the end of day on Friday, April 18

Relevant Links:

For additional questions, please email sefieldstudy@uci.edu