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Graduate Education in Brazil. Simon Schwartzman Institute for Studies on Labour and Society, Rio de Janeiro. Students in Doctoral Programs. This is Brazil. Brazil: General Data. Area 8,511,965 sq km (slightly smaller than the US) Population 196,342,592 Ethnic composition:
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Graduate Education in Brazil
Simon Schwartzman
Institute for Studies on Labour and Society, Rio de Janeiro
simon@iets.org.br
simon@iets.org.brBrazil: General Data
- Area
- 8,511,965 sq km (slightly smaller than the US)
- Population
- 196,342,592
- Ethnic composition:
- white 53.7%, mulatto (mixed white and black) 38.5%, black 6.2%, other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 0.9%, unspecified 0.7% (2000 census)
- Organization:
- Federal Government, 27 states, about 6000 municipalities
- Per capita income:
- about US$ 7,000. High rates of social inequality, richer population in the Southern states, poorer population in the Northeast
- Urbanization:
- 80% Urban, several mega cities (São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro), Recife)
simon@iets.org.brThe context: basic education
- Universal access was achieved in the 1990s, but there are serious problems:
- Quality is low, many students never learn how to read and write properly
- Large number of students drop out at age 15;
- Most schools are public and free, but the best are private.
- There is a high correlation between SES and education achievement
simon@iets.org.brThe context: secondary education
- Only 50% of the age cohort is enrolled;
- Content is traditional and academic, based on the entrance exam requirements for higher education
- Very little professional or vocational education, no alternative tracking
- Many students who enter secondary schools never finish
- Most schools are public and free, but only students in the best private schools are admitted to the more prestigious higher education institutions
simon@iets.org.brThe context: higher education
- Organized according to the European (French, Italian) tradition of professional schools; first universities are from the 1930s
- Limited coverage: in spite of recent expansion, only about 11% of the age cohort is enrolled;
- Public higher education is free, but enrolls only 25% of the students
- Quality is very uneven both in public and private institutions
simon@iets.org.brGraduate Education
- Introduced in the early 1970s, under the assumption that universities should evolve towards the German / American model of “research universities”
- Supported by the National Research Council and CAPES, an agency within the Ministry of Education
- Adoption of the American-type graduate programs for MA and Ph.D. education
simon@iets.org.brSome features of Brazilian graduate education
- Most programs are in public universities and in a few government research institutes;
- Support is provided directly to the programs by National (CNPq and CAPES) and state (FAPESP) agencies, bypassing the university’s administration;
- Programs are evaluated by CAPES, and the best receive fellowships for their students and additional support;
- CNPq and FAPESP also provide support for research projects;
- Fellowships are also available for graduate education abroad
simon@iets.org.brAssessment of Graduate Education (CAPES)
- Peer review: assessment committees designated by CAPES after nominations from universities and academic associations;
- Quantitative indicators: academic publications, number of doctoral and MA degrees granted and other considerations (social relevance, solidarity)
- 7 points ranking system: 7 should mean high international quality
- Independent evaluations by CNPq and FAPESP, also based on peer review
simon@iets.org.brResults
- Achievements:
- Brazil has today the best and largest graduate education sector in the LA region
- Academic publications and research are growing steadily
- But:
- What is the impact on higher education in general?
- Which are the benefits to society?
simon@iets.org.brIssues
- Good quality, graduate education remains limited to selected public universities, but today 75% of the students are in mostly teaching, private institutions;
- The incentives associated with graduate education led to an inflation of graduate education degrees;
- The emphasis on academic achievement in the assessments limits applied, technical and interdisciplinary work;
- Generalized free, subsidized graduate education increases social inequity in Brazilian higher education
simon@iets.org.brConclusions
- The assumption that all Brazilian higher education should evolve towards the research university model did not consider the needs and characteristics of mass higher education;
- In spite of the quality control established by CAPES, there is a permanent problem of grade inflation, which is getting worse by globalization;
- It may have been better to deal with advanced research and doctoral education as a sector policy, and deal with higher education taking into account its need for differentiation
