Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina

The UFSC Materials Engineering Program was established in 1998 and has graduated more than 600 Materials Engineers until today.

The first group of students graduated in February 2004, with the recognition of the Ministry of Education and the Regional Council of Engineering, Architecture and Agriculture of the state of Santa Catarina (Crea-SC), in partnership with national companies from the state of Santa Catarina and the cities of Caxias do Sul (RS), Curitiba (PR), Jundiaí (SP) and international companies and institutes from countries such as Germany, France and Portugal.

Innovative since its beginning, the program has invested on differentiated solutions for the teaching and learning process, such as the cooperative curriculum – in which students alternate periods of study in the University with periods of training in companies where they carry out supervised internships.

The Materials Engineer graduated from UFSC will be qualified to research, develop and produce functional materials. This means that they will have the ability to develop parts or components for specific applications which will represent solutions for: manufacturing cost reduction and productivity improvement; component life enhancement; and development of new materials, techniques and innovative manufacturing processes with less environmental impact.

Throughout the degree, students engage in two compulsory internships and they can also engage in one optional internship, of 18 weeks each. The companies offer positions in the three major areas of Materials Engineering (ceramics, metals and polymers) and the student may opt to do internship in the areas of marketing and business management too. All internships are remunerated.

This practice, however, does not affect the length of the five-year program. At UFSC, Materials Engineering students spend the first five semesters in the university and in the sixth semester they take the first compulsory internship. Then, they return to UFSC for another semester of studies and in the next one they move to the second internship. Finally, in the last semester – which is made up of elective courses –, they can take a third internship in an industrial setting. This early contact with the job market provides students with the equivalent of one and a half year of professional training and experience. In addition to learning the tasks they will perform in their future career, the students gain knowledge on work relationships, discipline, hierarchy and on how to behave in the professional world.