Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: DANYELLE MESTRE DE SOUZA

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : DANYELLE MESTRE DE SOUZA
DATE: 24/02/2026
TIME: 10:00
LOCAL: VIDEOCONFERÊNCIA (Link a ser publicado no Forum do Sigaa)
TITLE:

Essays on University Admission Systems

KEY WORDS:

Sisu; Enem; admissions systems; student mobility; student diversity; dropout; graduation.

PAGES: 132
BIG AREA: Ciências Sociais Aplicadas
AREA: Administração
SUMMARY:

Selection systems structure competition for university places and can shape how educational opportunities are distributed across programs and institutions. In Brazil, the consolidation of Sisu and the growing use of Enem scores in admissions have strengthened national coordination in access, albeit through different arrangements in the public and private sectors. This doctoral thesis examines how this coordination relates to entrants’ profiles, student mobility, and academic trajectories, with emphasis on dropout and graduation outcomes. The first essay analyzes whether Sisu adoption is associated with changes in entrants’ profiles and with patterns of mobility, dropout, and graduation in on-campus public programs. Using data from the Higher Education Census and Sisu for 2010–2023 and estimating difference-in-differences models in dialogue with Machado and Szerman (2021), the results show a decline in women’s participation and an increase in admissions through reserved-quota categories, with no systematic changes in mobility. Relative to admission through institution-specific entrance exams, Sisu is also associated with higher dropout and lower graduation. The second essay extends the same empirical approach to on-campus private higher education, focusing on the use of Enem scores at admission. Based on Higher Education Census microdata for 2010–2023 and difference-in-differences estimates, the results indicate a higher share of women and a lower share of white students, along with fewer younger entrants, fewer graduates from public upper-secondary schools, and lower incidence of student loans and social assistance. Mobility again shows no systematic shifts. In contrast to the public sector, however, Enem-based admission in the private sector is associated with lower dropout and higher graduation when compared with entrance-exam admission. The third essay adds a timing perspective by examining time to dropout and time to graduation. Using Higher Education Census microdata for 2012–2017, the analysis combines propensity score methods and survival analysis to compare federal universities and private institutions. In the federal sector, entrants admitted through Sisu and Enem tend to drop out earlier and graduate later than those admitted through entrance exams. In the private sector, Enem entrants display longer persistence and longer time to graduation, also relative to entrance-exam entrants. Overall, the thesis suggests that changes in admission mechanisms may be associated with entrants’ diversity, mobility patterns, and academic progression, and that these associations vary across institutional contexts.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 1510488 - LUCIANO MENEZES BEZERRA SAMPAIO
Interna - 2413052 - ANNE EMILIA COSTA CARVALHO
Interna - 1894891 - RAQUEL MENEZES BEZERRA SAMPAIO
Externo à Instituição - MARCO TÚLIO ANICETO FRANCA - PUCRS