International Credentials
How to Verify Mexican Degrees
Mexico has a unique professional licensing system — the cédula profesional — that allows employers to verify both the degree and the professional license in a single lookup. Here's how to use it, plus WES evaluation and apostille paths for US employers.
Key takeaway
Mexican higher education is overseen by the Secretaría de Educación Pública (SEP). The most powerful verification tool is the cédula profesional — a government-issued professional license number linked to the degree. Search it at cedulaprofesional.sep.gob.mx to instantly confirm the institution, degree, graduate name, and license status. For US employers, WES or ECE evaluation is standard. UNAM is Mexico's most prestigious institution and the most commonly forged credential.
Mexico's higher education system
Mexico's higher education is governed by the Secretaría de Educación Pública (SEP), which authorizes all public and private institutions to grant academic degrees (títulos). The Registro de Validez Oficial de Estudios (RVOE) is SEP's system for authorizing private institutions to operate specific academic programs.
ANUIES (Asociación Nacional de Universidades e Instituciones de Educación Superior) represents 200+ member institutions — public and private — and serves as an indicator of institutional standing, though ANUIES membership is not itself an accreditation mark.
Program-level accreditation is provided by COPAES (Consejo para la Acreditación de la Educación Superior), which oversees accrediting bodies for specific fields (engineering, business, medicine, etc.). COPAES accreditation is voluntary but increasingly required for competitive employment.
Mexico's degree structure: licenciatura (bachelor's, 4-5 years), especialidad (postgraduate specialization), maestría (master's), and doctorado (doctorate). The tecnólogo (3-year technical degree) is below licenciatura. Técnico Superior Universitario (TSU) from tecnológicos is a 2-year associate-level credential.
The top institutions by prestige: UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México), IPN (Instituto Politécnico Nacional), Tec de Monterrey (ITESM), UAM (Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana), ITAM, and Iberoamericana.
The cédula profesional — Mexico's built-in verification system
Mexico requires graduates of regulated professions (medicine, law, engineering, architecture, accounting, nursing, and others) to register their degree with SEP and obtain a cédula profesional — a government-issued professional license number. This creates a searchable national registry.
How to use the cédula lookup
- 1. Go to cedulaprofesional.sep.gob.mx
- 2. Enter the candidate's name or cédula number
- 3. The result shows: full name, institution, degree title, year awarded, and license status
- 4. A valid result confirms the degree was granted by a SEP-authorized institution and the professional license is active
Note: Not all degrees require a cédula. Academic degrees not in regulated professions (some humanities, social sciences) may not appear. For those, use WES/ECE evaluation and SEP/RVOE verification instead.
How to verify a Mexican degree for US employment
Step 1: Check the cédula profesional (regulated professions)
For any candidate in a regulated profession, search the SEP cédula database. This is the fastest and most authoritative check available for Mexican credentials. No cédula for a claimed medical, legal, or engineering degree from Mexico is a serious red flag.
Database: cedulaprofesional.sep.gob.mx
Step 2: Verify the institution holds RVOE authorization
Private institutions must hold SEP's RVOE (Reconocimiento de Validez Oficial de Estudios) for each program they offer. Check the SEP RVOE database to confirm the institution had valid authorization for the program during the years the candidate attended.
Database: rvoe.sep.gob.mx
Step 3: Request an apostille
Mexico is a Hague Convention signatory. Academic documents can be apostilled through the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE) or state-level notaries. An apostilled transcript and diploma confirms the documents' authenticity as official Mexican government records.
Apostille: through SRE or state-level Secretaría General de Gobierno
Step 4: Use a NACES credential evaluation service
WES, ECE, and other NACES members regularly evaluate Mexican licenciaturas and maestrías for US equivalency. WES evaluations are particularly common for professional licensing boards (nursing, engineering, medicine) that require a formal US degree equivalency determination.
Evaluation services: naces.org/members
Red flags for Mexican credentials
UNAM and Tec de Monterrey forgery
UNAM is the most prestigious university in Mexico — and the most commonly forged. Fake UNAM degrees and transcripts are widely available online. For any UNAM credential, search the cédula database if it's a regulated profession; otherwise contact UNAM's Dirección General de Administración Escolar directly for verification. Tec de Monterrey (ITESM) is the second most commonly forged.
Institutions without RVOE or operating after RVOE revocation
Some private Mexican institutions operated for years before having their RVOE revoked. A candidate may hold a degree from an institution that was once authorized but no longer is — or was never authorized. The RVOE database is the authoritative check. An institution absent from the RVOE list issued unrecognized degrees.
Técnico Superior Universitario (TSU) misrepresented as a licenciatura
TSU programs at tecnológicos are 2-year associate-level credentials. They are legitimate and held by millions of Mexican professionals — but they are not equivalent to a 4-year licenciatura. Check the degree level on the cédula or transcript before assuming bachelor's equivalency.
Diploma mills claiming SEP registration
Some fraudulent operations claim "SEP registered" status without holding a valid RVOE. "SEP registered" and "RVOE authorized" are not the same. Always verify the RVOE directly in the SEP database — do not accept institutional claims of authorization at face value.
Major Mexican universities — verification reference
| Institution | Abbreviation | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México | UNAM | Public flagship |
| Instituto Politécnico Nacional | IPN | Public polytechnic |
| Tecnológico de Monterrey | ITESM / Tec de Monterrey | Private |
| Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana | UAM | Public |
| Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México | ITAM | Private |
| Universidad Iberoamericana | Ibero / UIA | Private (Jesuit) |
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