Os caminhos e desafios do Mestrado Profissional MP-EgeD/IbqM/UFRJ: relatório de gestão educacional

Abstract

Research conducted on Professional Master’s programs can enhance these courses’ dynamic, development, and sustainability. Identifying commonalities and counterpoints in the ideas, beliefs, and codes shared by graduates and current students is crucial. It is also important to outline the challenges and opportunities in their academic pursuits. This work is organized around three methodological pillars: (i) Documentary analysis; (ii) Content analysis (Bardin, 2011); and (iii) Support from the Theory of Social Representations (Moscovici, 1978). The policy of Professional Master’s programs and the specific organizational structure of the Professional Master’s Program in Education, Management, and Dissemination in Biosciences of the Institute of Biochemistry Leopoldo de Meis, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (MP-EGeD/IBqM/UFRJ); and the regulatory and evaluative process conducted by the Brazilian Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education (CAPES), documentary analysis was carried out. The Content Analysis methodology consisted of evaluating the online questionnaire to characterize the 39 students (referred to as ‘in progress’) and obtain their opinions and beliefs about the professional master’s program. Issues concerning the curriculum structure and final dissertations, as well as their impact on scientific training and, especially, professional practice, were explored. The third methodological pillar is based on the Theory of Social Representations, using the Free Word Association Test (TALP), with analyses of salience (Central Core) and lexical collocability (Co occurrence) by Abric (2003). This analysis was done to uncover the normative and counter normative social representations of both graduates and current students. Given the significant role of public management, the main goal of this research was to contribute to address specific features, requirements, and needs of the MP-EgeD Program, with outcomes potentially useful for CAPES evaluation. The main product of this Master’s is an Educational Management Report.