Yesenia Lara Mayorga, Gabriela Murguía Cánovas, Antonio Eugenio Rivera-Cisneros
Introduction: Student mobility is a strategic component of university internationalization, recognition of learning, and global competence development. Objective: To analyze its historical evolution, international and Mexican development, regulatory framework, role in educational quality management systems, modalities, duration, benefits, limitations, experiences across educational levels, dual degrees, and frontier practices. Methods: An integrative review with a systematic orientation was conducted following PRISMA 2020. Academic publications and regulatory documents from 2016–2026 in English and Spanish were considered. Results: Mobility includes credit and degree mobility, traineeships, research visits, short-term programs, virtual and blended mobility, and COIL. Evidence links participation with intercultural competence, autonomy, networks, language development, and employability, although outcomes depend on pedagogical design, support, and inclusion. Mexico has a legal basis for internationalization, but financial inequality, weak credit portability, fragmented data, and institutional concentration persist. Conclusions: High-quality mobility is not synonymous with travel; it is a planned, assessable, inclusive, and recursive learning process. Universities should combine physical and virtual mobility, establish well-governed dual-degree partnerships, and implement institutional outcome dashboards.