First-ever bilateral industrial internships for Canada and Mexico

Ottawa, ON — Mitacs, a Canadian not-for-profit research and training organization, and Mexico’s National Council of Science and Technology (CONACyT) signed an agreement today creating opportunities for graduate students from both countries to participate in industrial research internships through Mitacs’ Globalink program.

The bilateral agreement, which was welcomed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, was signed today by Alejandro Adem, CEO and Scientific Director of Mitacs and Enrique Cabrero Mendoza, Director General of CONACyT. The partnership allows for the exchange of up to 20 graduate students per year from Mexico and Canada to undertake 16- to 24-week industrial research internships with local companies in each country.

The program is a first of its kind to foster bilateral industrial research internships for Canadian and Mexican students. It’s modelled after Mitacs’ successful domestic internship program, Accelerate, which pairs graduate students for collaborative research projects with industry partners in Canada.

Quotes:

Alejandro Adem, Chief Executive Officer and Scientific Director, Mitacs
“Mitacs’ partnership represents the shared interests of Canada and Mexico in fostering research innovation for the benefit of our economies. Canadian and Mexican graduate students will see opportunities to engage first-hand with businesses and apply their research skills in new settings, contributing to their development as globally engaged citizens.” 

Quick facts:

• Within Canada, Mitacs has worked with 60 universities, over 6,000 companies, and federal and provincial governments, building partnerships that support industrial and social innovation.
• To further strengthen international research collaborations, Mitacs Globalink now offers two-way mobility opportunities between Canada and partner countries — Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia — for undergraduate and graduate students.
• CONACyT oversees science, technology, and innovation policies in Mexico; provides scholarships to Mexican graduate students and postdoctoral fellows; administers research funding; and fosters university-industry collaborations in Mexico through a variety of programs.

Learn more:

• For information about Mitacs’ programs, see mitacs.ca/newsroom.
• Information about CONACyT may be found at www.CONACyT.mx/.
• For information about Canada’s International Education Strategy, see the Prime Minister Office’s backgrounder for Canada–Mexico Education Cooperation.