Degrees
Sep 17, 2010
There are three levels of Higher Education in Brazil: sequential courses; graduation and post graduation courses.
Sequential Courses (Cursos Sequenciais)
Sequential courses are Higher Education courses in which the students are prepared to act in a certain field of the labour market. These courses are two or three years long and are not as dense as a graduation course. The students get certificates of completion and are declared able to perform in a certain field. Sequential courses Alumni do not have access to post graduation courses. There are two types o Sequential Courses in Brazil:
§ Specific Formation Sequential Courses (Cursos Sequenciais de Formação Específica): these sequential courses have a minimum of 1,600 classroom hours and 400 school days. Students of these courses must have finished Secondary Education. The main objective of these courses is to form students to the labour market.
§ Study Complementation Sequential Courses (Cursos Sequenciais de Complementação de Estudos): This type of sequential course is destined to students with a graduation diploma or attending graduation. The students attend classes in a chosen field of knowledge and, at the end of the course, they receive a certificate saying that they acquired knowledge in that field.
Graduation Courses (Cursos de Graduação)
Graduation Courses are the first level of a complete Higher Education Formation. Alumni have access to Post Graduation Courses and are considered formed in a certain field of knowledge. There are three types of Graduation titles:
§ Technologist (Tecnólogo): This is a technical title in which the bearer is considered a specialized worker in a certain field. For example: a Logistics Technologist, Civil Engineering Technologist, and so on. The courses have two or three year duration.
§ Bachelor Degree (Bacharelado): The Bachelor degree is a four to six years duration course. The main characteristic of the Bachelor Degree Courses in Brazil is the preparation for research and/or the professional formation.
§ License (Licenciatura): The License degree habilitates the licentiate to teach in Primary or Secondary Education Institutions. In these courses, the students attend to the regular disciplines of the course and disciplines of Pedagogy. The courses last four or five years.
Post Graduation Courses (Cursos de Pós-graduação)
Post Graduation Courses are destined only for students with a Graduation diploma. They are divided in two types of courses:
§ Lato Sensu Post Graduation Courses (Pós-graduação Lato Sensu): These courses are for students with a graduation diploma (Technologists, Bachelors or Licentiates) and grant the students with a ‘Specialist’ title. MBA´s are considered lato sensu Post Graduation Courses in Brazil. There is a minimum of 360 classroom hours for this type of Courses in the Brazilian law.
§ Strictu Sensu Post Graduation Courses (Pós-graduação Srictu Sensu): The Strictu Censu courses are designated to students who wish to enhance their academic research formation. This type of Post Graduation Course includes two different degrees: Master´s and Doctor´s.
Master´s degree (Mestrado)
The main purpose of Master´s Degree Courses is to initiate the student in academic research. During the course it is required that the student publishes scientific articles in specialized magazines and at the end of the course, a Master´s dissertation must be presented. In order to enter in a Master´s Course, students must pass in specific examination, according to the area of the research.
Doctorate degree (Doutorado)
To obtain a Doctor´s degree, students must have a Master´s degree, except in specific cases. A doctorate research has to be original and a thesis must be defended at the end of the course.