Os egressos dos cursos de licenciatura em Ciências Biológicas e Letras da UFTM com acesso à Educação Superior pelo REUNI (2011-2016)

Abstract

The research objective of this thesis is to reflect on the role of REUNI in the access to higher education and the career paths of students graduating from the undergraduate programs in Biological Sciences and Literature at the Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), nighttime, between 2011 and 2016. The REUNI program enabled the creation of more than 15,000 places in the federal higher education system. In the case of UFTM, which joined the program in 2007, it resulted in a 476% increase in the number of places available, according to the Reuni/UFTM Monitoring Summary Report (2010). Thus, the research sought to understand whether REUNI influenced the educational trajectory of students graduating from the Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro, especially from the Languages and Literature and Biological Sciences programs, between 2011 and 2016, theoretically grounded in Bourdieu’s perspective on the relationship between social inequalities and school/academic success as an effect of parental cultural and social heritage, this study utilizes concepts such as capital, habitus and social trajectory, among others. The methodology used was qualitative, utilizing bibliographic research, document analysis, and a questionnaire. The online questionnaire was created using Google Docs and sent to alumni online through the Department of Academic Registration and Control (DRCA). Of the 60 expected alumni, only 34 responded. The data revealed a demographic and socioeconomic profile in which the majority of alumni are female (76.5%) and belong to the lower-middle class, with 36.4% reporting belonging to classes D and C at the time of graduation. Most alumni respondents reported having literate parents (64.7%), while 32.4% of their parents had higher education. Half (50%) of the alumni respondents attended public high schools, and 79.4% entered UFTM through the university entrance exam. Those who entered via ENEM/SiSU reported that the process was a facilitator compared to the university entrance exam. During their undergraduate studies, most reported having access to some type of financial grant, such as PIBID, PIBIC, and tutoring, as well as receiving student assistance, with the food grant being the most prevalent (52.9%). Regarding professional trajectories, the majority of graduates (61.76%) reported working in areas other than teaching, such as editing, translation, public administration, and nursing. The main deterrent factor is the low teacher remuneration, leading professionals to migrate to areas that offer greater financial stability and better income. This devaluation of teaching work (which concentrates significant cultural capital, from Bourdieu's perspective) does not translate satisfactorily into economic capital. The research revealed that REUNI, indirectly, provided greater access to higher education by increasing existing places and creating new courses, while the analysis of the impact of SiSU proved limited for this group, since the majority of graduating students (79.4%) revealed that they entered UFTM through the traditional entrance exam.