The profile of migrants from Puebla is no longer limited to the traditional pattern of rural communities—primarily from the Mixteca region—who permanently relocate to the United States. Increasingly, young people who have completed university studies are seeking employment opportunities abroad through temporary work programs, circular migration, or legal visa pathways, according to Arturo Augusto Villaseñor García, director of the Citizen Observatory on Public Policies for Migrants in Puebla.
The specialist in human mobility attributed this shift to the lack of employment opportunities that match graduates’ professional qualifications, as well as insecurity and other structural challenges. These factors align with trends identified by Gallup, which indicate that people who now wish to leave Mexico generally have higher levels of education and are more likely to live in urban areas.
The report Mexico Today: Current Conditions and Migration Sentiment, prepared by Gallup and distributed by Organización Editorial Mexicana (OEM), found that individuals who want to emigrate tend to have higher educational attainment: 33% hold a bachelor’s degree, while 54% have completed or partially completed upper secondary or higher education. By comparison, 14% have only primary education or less. The report also notes that, beyond economic concerns, insecurity, institutional distrust, and perceptions of a weak rule of law are significant factors influencing migration decisions.
“Earning a university degree or postgraduate education used to be synonymous with a better quality of life. Today that is no longer the case because economic growth and employment have become increasingly precarious and no longer meet the expectations of young people with higher levels of education,” Villaseñor García said.
The researcher—co-author of the report Agenda Migrante, published by the observatory in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (BUAP)—emphasized that migration patterns within the state have evolved. Three decades ago, most migration originated from the Mixteca region, but today municipalities such as Atlixco, San Andrés Cholula, San Pedro Cholula, and Puebla City are playing a much larger role in these migration flows.
At both the state and national levels, the labor market has not expanded at the same pace as higher education. Available jobs often fail to offer salaries that match graduates’ qualifications. According to the National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions (ANUIES), 917,604 professionals graduated in Puebla between 2000 and 2025. However, data from the Labor Observatory of the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (STPS) indicate that, during the first quarter of 2026, only 346,851 professionals were employed in fields directly related to their academic training.
This situation is compounded by concerns over public safety. According to the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), 81.3% of residents in Puebla City considered the city unsafe during the first half of the year. Additionally, the National Urban Public Security Survey (ENSU) found that public confidence in the municipal police stands at 49%, while confidence in the state police is 54.8%. Meanwhile, 77.4% of respondents believe that crime conditions will remain the same or worsen over the next 12 months.
From Permanent Migration to Circular Mobility
Under these conditions, an increasing number of young people are choosing circular migration. They travel abroad using tourist visas or temporary work programs, work for several months, return to Mexico, and later repeat the process.
“Many young people no longer see irregular migration as they did years ago. Instead, they seek legal mechanisms that allow them to work temporarily and then return,” Villaseñor García explained, noting that Canada has become an important destination because of its temporary employment programs for Mexican workers.
Risk of Losing Skilled Talent
The specialist warned that one of the greatest risks facing Puebla is the continued loss of highly qualified professionals. Families and educational institutions invest years of resources into training graduates who ultimately strengthen foreign economies because they cannot find competitive employment opportunities in their home state.
To reverse this trend, he proposed rethinking regional economic development strategies by prioritizing high-value industries such as robotics, semiconductors, and technological innovation, sectors capable of employing highly skilled workers before advances in automation and artificial intelligence accelerate the ongoing talent drain.
“State authorities must invest in high-value industries. If opportunities are not created for highly specialized professionals, automation and artificial intelligence will make it even more attractive for them to seek opportunities abroad,” he concluded.
Source: oem
