The Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF) in Brazil is offering 165 seats for international students from 74 countries in 55 undergraduate courses, with potential scholarship opportunities.

Students, will have the chance to pursue a full, tuition-free undergraduate degree at the institution, provided they are proficient in Portuguese.

For those who are not, UFJF offers a new preparatory program with 15 seats, that includes a one-year couse about Portuguese language and Brazilian culture classes, after which students can apply for an undergraduate course.

Applications are open until August 23rd and must be submitted through Brazilian embassies or consulates in participating countries.

The seats are distributed between UFJF’s two campuses, located in the countryside: the main one in Juiz de Fora, with 121 seats across 46 courses, and the Governador Valadares campus, which offers 29 seats across nine courses. Most of the opportunities are for enrollment in the first semester of 2025, starting in March. Additionally, the proficiency preparation course will admit 15 students at the Juiz de Fora campus.

Among the 55 programs with open slots are Cinema, Law, Production Engineering, Medicine, Psychology, Chemistry, and Tourism. Physical Education and Mathematics Education offer the most seats, with ten available in each.  Nationwide, over 8,100 seats are available in 108 universities and institutes.

The opportunities are available through two national programs: the Program for Exchange Students – Undergraduate Level, which offers complete undergraduate studies in Brazil, and the Portuguese as a Foreign Language Program, a one-year linguistic and cultural program aimed at achieving proficiency in the Portuguese language, after which students can begin their undergraduate studies.

These initiatives are managed nationally by the Ministry of Education (MEC) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is the first time UFJF has participated in the PEC-PLE.

Applications

Candidates from 29 African countries, such as Angola, Egypt, and Guinea-Bissau; 28 from Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Jamaica, and Mexico; nine from Asia, such as China, India, and South Korea; and seven from Europe, including France, Poland, and Turkey, are eligible to apply. The full list of participating countries is available online.

Eligibility requirements include the following: international applicants must not have dual Brazilian nationality or the right to Brazilian nationality at the time of application; they must reside abroad and be at least 18 years old by January 1, 2025.

Applicants must also demonstrate proficiency in Portuguese through the Certificate of Proficiency in Portuguese for Foreigners (Celpe-Bras) or other means listed in the public notice. Check all the conditions on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website. However, for those without proficiency, it is possible to enroll in the PEC-PLE program to learn the language at UFJF and then begin their undergraduate studies.

Applications are free and can be submitted until August 23rd at Brazilian embassies or consulates in participating countries. Candidates from the Caribbean can also apply at the Brazilian Delegation to the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington, D.C., USA. The selection process involves document analysis by the ministries. Preliminary results will be announced starting October 25th.

PEC-PLE applications are also submitted through Brazilian embassies and consulates. The same public notice applies to both PEC-G and PEC-PLE.

PEC-G students may receive scholarships from the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in specific cases, such as the Merit Scholarship, which provides R$ 622 (USD 113) monthly for six months, with the possibility of renewal. At UFJF, candidates will have access to the University Restaurant, which offers subsidized meals. Breakfast costs only R$ 0.50 (USD 0,09), while lunch and dinner are R$ 1.40 (USD 0,26) each.

Other Cultures and Peoples

 A student in the program for two years, Belphon Kiminu came from the Republic of the Congo to study Electronic Systems Engineering at UFJF. He holds a degree in Networks and Telecommunications from his home country. Before arriving at UFJF, Kiminu had to pass a Portuguese language proficiency test in the city of Chapecó, Santa Catarina, Brazil.

“Studying at one of the best universities in the world has been an incredible experience. The university is well-organized, and I found the connection between students and professors very interesting, as the teaching methodology is quite different from that in my country. However, it was very challenging at first because my Portuguese proficiency was quite low.”

For the student, PEC-G is one of the best programs in the world, and he was unaware of its existence for a long time. “When I learned about PEC-G, I was very impressed because it offers many benefits. UFJF represents, for me, a place to achieve my goals and where I can realize one of my dreams. Here, I have the opportunity to experience a new culture and a very welcoming community.”

Adaptation
UFJF has been participating in the PEC-G since its implementation in Brazil 60 years ago, with the first students coming from Nicaragua in Central America to study Medicine. For the first time, the institution is joining the Portuguese as a Foreign Language Program (PEC-PLE), selecting 15 international students to take Portuguese language and Brazilian culture classes over one year.

“With this significant investment in PEC-PLE at UFJF, we will have the opportunity to expand the range of internationalization activities. That is, to provide opportunities for students coming to Brazil to share their languages, cultures, and practices as a form of internationalization at home,” says UFJF’s Director of International Relations, Alexandre Cadilhe.

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