Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina

The Brazilian Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) has released the final results of the Quadrennial Evaluation (2017-2020) of 4,512 graduate programs in Brazil, whose preliminary results were released in September. The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) has improved in performance: according to the official result, the university now has 27 programs graded 6 or 7 (maximum grade is 7), representing 40% of its programs and a growth of 35% in relation to the last evaluation.

The Graduate Programs in Electrical Engineering, Food Engineering, Knowledge Engineering and Management, Philosophy and Physical Education achieved grade 7, joining the Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, and Materials Science and Engineering  programs, which already had this grade. The Graduate Programs in Biochemistry, Civil Engineering, Collective Health, Design, Neurosciences, Production Engineering, and Social Anthropology also achieved excellence. They obtained grade 6, joining the Graduate Programs in Aquaculture, Automation and Systems Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Food Science, Law, Linguistics, Mechanical Engineering, Nursing, Pharmacology, Plant Genetic Resources, Science and Technology Education, and Translation Studies, which obtained this grade in 2017.

Of the 67 academic programs evaluated at UFSC, 42 maintained the grades obtained in the last evaluation, 22 obtained higher grades compared to 2017 and 3 were assessed for the first time. It is worth mentioning that no academic programs at UFSC had a grade drop or were disqualified by CAPES in the current evaluation. The University has other 22 programs graded 5 and 11 programs graded 4. Only seven programs were graded 3, and three programs (Geology, Nanoscience, Processes and Advanced Materials, and Textile Engineering) were evaluated for the first time, as they were created in the past few years.

The Capes Quadrennial Evaluation takes into account quantitative and qualitative aspects of Graduate Programs in terms of faculty, student education, scientific production, and infrastructure, assigning grades from 1 to 7, where 3 is the minimum grade for a program to operate. Grades 6 and 7 place Programs at the level of academic excellence.

The Prorector for Graduate Studies at UFSC, Professor Werner Kraus Junior, highlighted the growth in the number of programs graded 6 and 7, taking into account that 12 programs have obtained higher grades than in the last evaluation. According to him, the results confirm UFSC’s academic excellence, which is already demonstrated by other indicators, placing UFSC in the sixth position among Brazilian universities in terms of number of excellence graduate programs. “Although Capes evaluates graduate programs only, the close relationship of this evaluation with the quality of undergraduate studies, research, outreach and management at the University is undeniable. The growth of graduate studies at UFSC in a period when major challenges were faced, such as the pandemic and the budget cuts for science and education, reflects the dedication and talent of the people who work and study here. It is, therefore, an achievement of the entire University Community”.

Translated by SINTER/UFSC.

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The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina is studying partnerships in specialized areas with seven universities, three from Japan and four from Singapore. The networking began during an international mission that lasted 15 days and ended on 26 November.  The Prorector for Research and Innovation, Jacques Mick, was part of the group led by the Support Foundation for Research and Innovation of the State of Santa Catarina (Fapesc) and by the Santa Catarina Association of Educational Foundations (Acafe). The visit was sponsored by the Santa Catarina government, interested in expanding the mechanisms of cooperation between the state, universities, and the private sector to promote development.

According to the Prorector, both Japan and Singapore have similar priorities to those that mobilize much of the community of scientists at UFSC, with emphasis on issues such as understanding, mitigating, and coping with climate change; sustainability, including the development of new materials, renewable energy, circular economy, etc.; the promotion of health, including biomedicine and medicines; and also the reduction of exposure to disasters. “The countries have very unique political systems and very high HDI’s, so the issues related to the rise of authoritarianism, quality in education, and fighting hunger and poverty are no longer present,” he said.

Some of the approaches pointed out by Mick as possible partnership activities, strengthened by the embassies, are the Brazil-Japan and Brazil-Singapore academic collaboration programs for visiting professors exchange; dissemination of advanced research portfolios of UFSC and other universities from Santa Catarina in those countries and the dissemination of funding sources for international research collaboration available in Japan and Singapore. “In terms of bilateral cooperation, the mission had contact with research structures of six universities and one polytechnic institute. Three out of the three Japanese and four Singaporean institutions are among the best in the world,” he added.

The Prorector also pointed out other positive aspects of the international mission for UFSC. Based on the results, the Prorectorate for Research and Innovation (PROPESQ) intends to collaborate with Sinter in the preparation of a portfolio of advanced research at UFSC, in various areas of knowledge, to be published in English and other languages. Moreover, as the mission was made up of several state institutions, Mick also perceives a scenario of possible inter-institutional approach with the network of community universities in Santa Catarina.

Fapesc’s mission brought together the institutions of the federal system (UFSC, UFFS, IFSC, and IFC), the community universities of the Acafe system, a private non-profit institution (SATC) and Unisenai, of the Fiesc system. “The extended interaction of the managers over 16 days promoted dialogues towards an inter-institutional connection. The topic is of interest to UFSC”, reinforces the professor.

For Fábio Zabot Holthausen, Fapesc’s president, the results of the contacts established, the information exchanged and the knowledge acquired are already visible in the integration among the academic leaderships from Santa Catarina. “We were able to have a close look at something that until then was an obstacle to international partnerships and to study ways to enable new possibilities for knowledge exchange. We were received with enthusiasm and in many of the institutions we visited we have planted the seeds for the future. We have a lot of work ahead of us based on the contacts made in Asia. We are convinced that the future of these relations will be very prosperous,” he added.

Information: PROPESQ and FAPESC.

Translated by SINTER/UFSC.

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On 5 December, members of the Central Administration had a meeting with the Consul General at the U.S. Consulate General in Porto Alegre, Shane Christensen, and the Cultural Attaché, Beata Angelica, at the Rector´s Office. The meeting aimed at discussing the resource feasibility for the implementation of the indigenous student residence project at the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC), Florianópolis Campus.

In addition to the Rector Irineu Manoel de Souza and the vice-rector Joana Célia dos Passos, the meeting was also attended by the Prorector for Affirmative Action and Equity (Proafe), Leslie Sedrez Chaves, the Director of the Rector´s Office, João Luiz Martins, and the International Programs Coordinator at the Office of International Relations (Sinter), Guilherme Carlos da Costa.

They discussed possibilities of cooperation to promote economy, social inclusion, education and culture in the state of Santa Catarina, specially the implementation of actions that allow for the consolidation of the residence for the students from the “Ocupação Maloca”.

“We are prioritizing the diversity and social inclusion, equity and accessibility, because our democracies are facing a high risk due to inequality and social exclusion” stated Shane when highlighting that the American government representatives in Brazil seek to promote partnerships with American companies from the private sector to offer support.

De Souza pointed out that the University’s current administration has social inclusion as one of its main priorities and the lack of housing for indigenous people is a big problem at the university.  “In the last few years, the University has been receiving people who are being neglected by the State policies. The fact that they are admitted to the university does not guarantee their retention and successful completion of their program.  Nowadays, our main concern is to ensure the retention of the students who are facing new challenges every single day in this country”, said the vice-rector, Joana, recollecting the 150 days of this administration and the actions taken regarding the theme.

The U.S diplomats proposed to have representatives of UFSC indigenous students to join the group of young leaders promoted by the State Department of the United States. Moreover, they discussed organizing events and seminars involving the academic community in order to show them the mobility programs and opportunities available in American companies.

The Prorector for Affirmative Actions and Equity, Leslie Sedrez Chaves, reinforced the importance of having a close relationship with the United States, which is a strong country in the fight for the Civil Rights. “We are following the United States footsteps regarding affirmative actions adapted to the Brazilian reality. Recently we had the Policy for Confronting Institutional Racism approved in the institution, which shows that we have clear guidelines towards equity promotion actions.”

Indigenous students hand in the Residence Project to the U.S. Consul General

At the end of the meeting, a group of indigenous students along with their leaders presented themselves at the Rector´s Office to hand in the architectural project of the Residence. The project was designed in partnership with the Department of Architecture and Urbanism of UFSC.

Thairaa Priprá, a psychology student, who is a member of the movement “Ocupação Maloca UFSC”, emphasized that indigenous students’ struggle for housing has been happening since 2016. “Every piece of this project was designed jointly with the students of the ‘Ocupação Maloca’. We have been working for five years and today we seek partnerships to make this project feasible, because UFSC also has a lot to gain with it,” she said.

Brasílio Priprá, the representative of the Xokleng people, mentioned in his speech that the diversity of indigenous peoples at UFSC makes the institution a transparent and inclusive place. “The indigenous peoples protect the environment and the U.S. has supported the Brazilian people. Therefore, we ask you to help us: help the students build the ‘Maloca’ again”, he said.

The representative of the U.S Consulate General in Brazil has been able to create connections and strengthen bonds between peoples. The Cultural Attaché, Beata Angélica, emphasized the strength of the indigenous peoples and asked the students not to give up on completing their studies. “Remain in the university and complete your degrees, because this is a great opportunity for your lives. We are here to open doors for collaboration, we want to support you in the fight for equality and this is the role of the diplomatic contribution”.

Translated by SINTER/UFSC.

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