Gender Differences in the Leaders of Tomorrow Program: A Comparative Analysis within the Framework of the Sustainable Development Goals for Quality Education

Background/purpose. Access to higher education promotes development, equity, and innovation. The Leaders of Tomorrow program at Tecnologico de Monterrey offers full scholarships to outstanding low-income students. The objective of this paper is to explore whether there are gender differences in a series of academic and sociodemographic variables among the beneficiaries of the Leaders of Tomorrow program at a higher education institution in Mexico. Materials/methods. This quantitative study uses a descriptive-correlational approach to examine gender differences in academic and sociodemographic variables among 1,466 program beneficiaries over nine years, exploring their impact on student performance and participation. Data were sourced from the Data Hub–Living Lab, an Institute for the Future of Education initiative at Tecnologico de Monterrey. The analysis involved descriptive statistics, mean comparisons, and Pearson correlations. Results. Key findings include a) no significant differences between men and women in academic averages upon entering university, indicating similar capabilities across genders, b) significant differences were found in the DISC personality model dimensions, with women scoring higher, suggesting the need for more research on cultural and gender influences on personality. Conclusion. Further research is needed on gender and academic performance. Women scored higher in DISC dimensions, underscoring the need to examine cultural and gender influences on personality.