Profile

Professor María Eugenia Valdés holds a PhD in Sociology from UNAM (1992), a Master's in Social Sciences from FLACSO (1986), and a Bachelor's in Sociology from the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Iztapalapa Campus (1984). Since 1991, she served as a full-time tenured professor in the Bachelor's in Political Science program, and since its inception in 1998, in the Graduate Program in Social Studies (Political Processes Line) in the Division of Social Sciences and Humanities at UAM, Iztapalapa Campus. During her career, she taught courses on research methodology in social sciences, methodology for studying political processes, and political theory.

Her commitment to academia is reflected in her continuous membership in the National System of Researchers (SNI), Level I, since 1999, extended until 2032. An alumna of UAM, she has been an advisor to various committees tasked with allocating resources for research projects and has participated in reviewing committees, such as the General Committee (1994-1995 and 2018-2019) and the committee that awards the annual teaching prize. She also coordinated the Political Processes Line of the Master's and Doctorate Program in Social Studies in two terms (2001-2004 and 2011-2013). Throughout her career, she has served as a committee member in numerous thesis defenses and organized academic events that positioned UAM in a prominent role.

Throughout her academic career, Professor Valdés successfully balanced her teaching and research responsibilities, finding that both activities mutually enriched each other. Despite the inherent challenges of time dedicated to teaching and research, she concluded that these combined tasks contribute positively to both her professional development and that of her students, many of whom are now university professors and researchers.

With her retirement, Professor María Eugenia Valdés closes a chapter filled with accomplishments and satisfactions in the academic field. While acknowledging the challenges faced by teachers and researchers, she also highlights the privilege of having worked in an environment of freedom, job security, and with society's recognition of academic institutions. Reflecting on her career, Professor Valdés emphasizes the importance of continuing to give back to our country with academic excellence, fully aware of the responsibility this entails.