Acceso, permanencia y egreso en la universidad de colectivos vulnerables en Latinoamérica. Intervenir y cambiar la realidad

Access to and permanence in university does not currently offer the same opportunities to all citizens who are able to undertake higher education. Economic, cultural, social or gender reasons significantly penalise certain groups, who see their possibilities of personal and social achievement and promotion diminished. This contribution, complementary to another previously published one (http://accelera.uab.cat/documents_edo/biblio/Accedes_libro2012.pdf), summarises guidelines and resources for planning and managing intervention with vulnerable groups at university. Organised by pamphlets, it contains, on the one hand, general guidelines on the processes of change and the way in which they can be tackled; On the other hand, it provides, in eight different pamphlets, specific guidelines and strategies for intervention with the groups most present in universities: indigenous people, women, the disabled, minorities, non-regular students, students from rural areas, migrants and groups with a very low Human Development Index (HDI). In short, it is about supporting the development of a university whose mission and objectives are oriented towards promoting the inclusion of all students and, especially, those who are in a vulnerable situation and who can highlight the capacity or incapacity of the university system to achieve a balance between quality and equity. The ACCEDES Project (http://edo.uab.cat/accedes), financed by the European Union, thus contributes to achieving the second of its specific objectives: “Contribute to the organizational development of higher education institutions in the application of actions to improve access, academic excellence and the graduation phase.” It is, in some way, one of its contributions to improving inclusion in higher education in Latin America. We hope that its content will serve the goals set by the Project and contribute to improving the situation of vulnerable groups in these institutions.