Admission to PROCAM is through a Selection Process that occurs once a year or every six months in accordance with the deliberations of the PROCAM Coordination Committee (CCP PROCAM) and the Graduate Commission (CPG) of the Institute of Energy and Environment.
Currently, students can be admitted on the Masters' Course once a year, during the second semester. Ph.D. students are admitted every six months. Selection occurs during both semesters. However, there may be changes to these schedules depending on the number of students entering and enrolled on the courses.
Masters` Selection Process
Selection for enrollment on the Masters' Course takes place once a year by means of a Public Announcement published in the State of São Paulo Official Journal, also available on this site. The CCP (Program Coordination Committee) appoints a special commission for this selection process.
Enrollment on the Masters' Course occurs every year during the second semester. The Public Announcement provides information on relevant dates and documents required.
There are two stages to the selection process: a written examination and an analysis of the applicant’s project, including an interview where applicants must defend their proposal. Successful students must pass both stages.
First Stage
Consists of a written test. Date and content are published in the Public Announcement. The following aspects will be analyzed by the examination commission:
- Written communication skills in Portuguese;
- Ability to dialogue with different authors on interdisciplinarity.
Applicants scoring an average of 7 or higher (to the nearest 1/100 of the mark) at this point will proceed to the next stage.
Second Stage
Consists of an analysis of the project and its defense. The exam commission will consider the following aspects of the project:
- The project's theoretical backgrounde and literature review on the topic addressed;
- Academic questions arising spontaneously from the literature review conducted during the theoretical background stage;
- Hypothesis formulation;
- Methods and techniques that support the data collection required for testing the hypothesis;
- Project's compatibility with the Program's lines of research.
Applicants’ knowledge of the topic proposed will be assessed during the interview, as well as their skills in defending their proposal.
The final mark is obtained by averaging the scores for each stage of the selection process: the written test and the analysis of the research project/defense. Both these stages carry equal weight.
Approved applicants will have obtained a final mark equal or above 7.0.
PhD Selection Process
The selection process for the PhD Course takes place every semester by means of a Public Announcement published in the State of São Paulo Official Journal, also available on this site. The CCP (Program Coordination Committee) appoints a special commission for this procedure. There are two stages to the selection process: an analysis of the applicant’s project and an interview where applicants will have to defend their proposal. Successful students must pass both stages.
The selection process is divided into 2 qualifying stages:
1st stage: Analysis of the Research Project.
Applicants obtaining a minimum mark of 5.0 during this stage will be considered for the second stage.
The Research Project will be analyzed on the following aspects:
a)The Project’s theoretical background and the literature review on the topic of the project;
b)Academic Question(s) arising from the Project;
c)Hypothesis formulation;
d)The suitability of the methods and techniques proposed;
e)The project’s compatibility with PROCAM's lines of research.
f)The originality and consistency of the conceptual proposals of the research.
2nd stage: The defense of the Project
The following aspects will be analyzed during the defense:
a)Domain of the topic proposed and;
b)Applicants’ ability to defend their project proposal.
The final mark is obtained by averaging the marks given for each stage of the selection process: Analysis of the Research Project and its defense. Both stages carry equal weight. Approved applicants will have obtained a final mark equal or above 7.0.
Foreign Language Proficiency
To enroll on both the Masters' and PhD, applicants must demonstrate proficiency in English.
During registration for the Selection Process, applicants are required to prove their proficiency in English. A specific exam is set, for this purpose, by the União Cultural Brasil-Estados Unidos. The minimum pass mark is 60% for the Masters and 70% for the PhD.
Applicants holding the following certificates: TOEFL (IBT); TOEFL (PBT); TOEFL (CBT); IELTS; Cambridge (CPE); Cambridge (CAE) are exempt from sitting the proficiency exam. The minimum score required for these certificates are set out in the Public Announcement published in the São Paulo State Official Journal, available on this site.
Foreign students will be required to prove their proficiency in Portuguese, in addition to their proficiency in English. The Certificate of Proficiency in Portuguese for Foreigners (CELPE-BRAS), intermediary or higher levels, must be provided during enrollment. Alternatively, the candidate can sit the Portuguese proficiency exam at The Language Centre, Faculty of Philosophy, Languages and Human Sciences, University of São Paulo (FFLCH/USP).
Foreign applicants who have demonstrated proficiency in Portuguese for the Masters will not be required to provide evidence of their proficiency in Portuguese for admission to the PhD.
