Graduate Program

The AEC currently promotes, supports or hosts the following Graduate activities (for BSc holders):

  • Professional Master’s Program in Automotive Engineering: “strictu senso” program, established in 2000, aiming to form leaders of technological development within the organization – from 2000 to 2010, 194 professionals were granted a Master’s degree. In September 2015, CEA launched a new edition of the Master’s Program, which had 14 candidates approved in the selection process for the 2016 class.
  • Specialization in Automotive Engineering: “lato senso”, formal USP program, with national and international acknowledgement, which aims to form, to update and to qualify higher level professionals as regards products, services and industrial processes, providing comprehensive vision and competence to face the different technical and management problems, characteristic in the sector.
  • Other courses: several courses correlated with the automotive sector are conducted, both in the Poli-USP ambit, by means of PECE, and in partnership with other entities – AEASAE Brasil, etc.

 

Differences among the different Graduate Programs – AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING
For developing its Automotive Engineering graduate programs, the AEC proposes and uses the following conceptualization:

Nature
Academic MSc and PhD Programs Professional Master’s Program Specialization Professional Development
“Stricto sensu” graduate program, with acknowledged assessment and recommendation by CAPES-MEC (Higher Education Personnel of the Ministry of Education and Culture). Grants a degree valid all over Brazil. “Stricto sensu” graduate program, with acknowledged assessment and recommendation by CAPES-MEC (Higher Education Personnel of the Ministry of Education and Culture). Grants a degree valid all over Brazil. “Lato sensu” graduate program, with acknowledged assessment and recommendation by CAPES-MEC (Higher Education Personnel of the Ministry of Education and Culture). Grants a degree valid all over Brazil. Free courses, with or without frequency or assessment certificates, granted by the very organizing entity. There is no pertinent federal regulation. There is a specific USP resolution for extension programs, including Professional Development ones.
Objective
Academic MSc and PhD Programs Professional Master’s Program Specialization Professional Development
Forming Engineering professors or researchers, with a scientific nature. Qualifying professionals to stimulate and to lead technological development and innovation processes within an organization. Improving a professional’s competence, knowledge and skills in a certain area of actuation, in terms of its respective “state of the art”. Providing, updating or improving knowledge about more or less specific topics.
Characteristics
Academic MSc and PhD Programs Professional Master’s Program Specialization Professional Development
Focus on supervised research activities. The disciplines taken by the student have a secondary and complementary character. Concentration per knowledge area (Engineering sciences), and not per application area (products and processes). Focus on supervised research activities, aiming at innovative problem solving. The disciplines taken by the student have a certain importance, but the research work takes major place. Concentration per application area (products and processes), and not per knowledge area (Engineering sciences). Focus on disciplines and studies by the student into suggested activities. Minimum of 360 hours in lesson hour load. Development of a Monograph in a theme related to the program. Concentration per application area (products and processes). Varied focus, format and duration, from some hours to several months. Theoretical or practical focus, depending on the subject.
Performance
Academic MSc and PhD Programs Professional Master’s Program Specialization Professional Development
The assessment of the student’s is mainly based on the elaboration and presentation of a Thesis (for the MSc) or Dissertation (for the PhD), before an external board, and also on the production of papers published in qualified scientific periodicals.
MSc: the Thesis does not have to be innovative, but it has to demonstrate the MSc candidate’s ability in research and scientific critical analysis. The production of technical papers is desirable albeit not indispensable.
PhD: the Dissertation must be original and innovative, demonstrating the PhD candidate’s maturity and autonomy in research. The publication of technical papers is mandatory.
The assessment of the student’s performance  includes the grades attained in the disciplines, but the major item is the elaboration and presentation of an end-of-program project, before an external board. It also includes the publication of technical papers in qualified periodicals.
the End-of-Program Project has to approach a problem of the student’s organization, regarding product, process or organization management, and has to present an original and innovative solution (in the ambit of the company) that contributes to increasing the organization competitiveness, at both local and global levels.
The assessment of the student’s performance  is based on exams and essays. The Monograph is individual and has to be presented to an assessing board. The student has to demonstrate autonomy to deal with given themes, and critical capacity of analysis and synthesis in these themes. There may or not be student’s performance assessment. Some courses only grant a frequency certificate.
Duration and dedication
Academic MSc and PhD Programs Professional Master’s Program Specialization Professional Development
A maximum of two years is foreseen for the student to complete the MSc, and four years to complete the PhD programs. If the doctoral applicant already holds a MSc, the respective requirements and deadlines may be reduced. Full dedication to the program is presupposed. Lessons are offered at daytime (business hours), and the research activities, as well as the program, are expected to take a substantial part of the student’s time. A maximum of two years is foreseen for the student to complete the program.
Intensive dedication is presupposed; yet, as the research concerns a problem of the student’s organization, it can be considered part of the student’s duties at the organization. Lessons are usually offered at daytime (business hours), and may occur in concentrated blocks.
A maximum of two years is foreseen for the student to complete the program. There is no full-time dedication presupposition. Lessons are usually taught in the evening or in concentrated blocks, so as to allow the student to perform professional duties or to develop other activities. Varied, established case by case by the organizing entity.
Requirements
Academic MSc and PhD Programs Professional Master’s Program Specialization Professional Development
  • Higher education degree in a related area;
  • Approval in the selection process;
  • Advisor and a theme proposal;
  • Availability and willingness to be intensely dedicated to the program.
  • Higher education degree in a related area;
  • Approval in the selection process;
  • Advisor and a theme proposal, with the organization agreement;
  • Availability and willingness to be intensely dedicated to the program.
  • Higher education degree in a related area;
  • Approval in the selection process.
Varied, established case by case by the organizing entity.