BRAZILIAN POLICY OF EXPANSION IN HIGHER EDUCATION UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF EUROPEAN AND NORTH-AMERICAN MODELS
BRAZILIAN POLICY OF EXPANSION IN HIGHER EDUCATION UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF EUROPEAN AND NORTH-AMERICAN MODELS

Summary/Abstract: This study reviews the setting of the upper courses in technology within the democratization processes of access to higher education and analyses whether the reasons listed in the legal documents for the selection of these courses are actually pointed by the students attending them. The exploratory research has found that the peculiarities of each institution, determined by several variables, be they human or material, are key elements for the understanding of a particular educational policy. The proposal of higher courses in technology cannot be considered good or bad, a priori. The contribution of this study, though modest, is to clarify the new contradictions, tensions, demands and contributions, showing features of one of the protagonists of expansion of higher education in Brazil. From the literature review and reports of graduates and students, the survey concludes that the higher education courses of technology today little resemble the 1960s and 1970s. Furthermore, by affording those who were excluded from the higher level of education, higher wages, greater employability and new perspectives of life, these courses can contribute to overcoming social, cultural and economic limitations. Regarding the profile of students, the study attests the symmetry between the profile listed in legal documents and the profile of dozens of students and technologists who contributed to this research by answering the questionnaires.

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