Ordorika obtained Master in Arts degrees in education (1993) and sociology (1998) as well as a Ph.D degree in social sciences and education from the Stanford Graduate School of Education (1999). He has been a full professor at UNAM since 2002. Ordorika is a faculty member and higher education specialist in Mexico and abroad. He has written extensively on power relations and politics within postsecondary institutions, faculty and student movements, higher education policy and on the impact of globalization on colleges and universities. In 2004 Ordorika received the "Frank Talbott Jr. Visiting University Chair" from the University of Virginia and in 2006 he was awarded the "Alfonso Reyes Chaire des Etudes Mexicaines" by the University of Paris III (Sorbonne Nouvelle). He is a member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences and attained the highest level (III) of the National Researchers System (Sistema Nacional de Investigadores).