Brazil

The 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics have the world’s eyes on Brazil. At the same time, more Brazilians are looking out into the world and considering educational opportunities abroad. The United States has long been a top destination for Brazilian students, and since 2006, the number of Brazilian students attending US schools has been on the rise. In 2012/2013, Brazil was the 11th leading place of origin for students coming to the US, with a total of 10,868 students, up a significant 20.4% from the year before and comprising about 1 % of the total international student population in the country. The majority (43.1%) of Brazilian students in the US are undergraduate students, with graduate students at 27.5%. Non-degree students comprise 21.5% of the total Brazilian student population in the US, while the remaining 7.9% are enrolled in OPT.

The launch of the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program (BSMP) by the Brazilian Government has opened opportunities for an even larger segment of the population to study abroad in fully-funded PhD programs, year-long study abroad programs for undergraduates, and most recently for fully-funded professional Master’s candidates. Thus, interest in studying in the US at all levels continues to grow. The Brazilian economy has slowed over the past two years, but still, Brazil’s strong domestic market is less vulnerable to external crises, and Brazilians are benefiting from stable economic growth, relatively low inflation rates, and improvements in social well-being. The upcoming international events, added to the government funded study abroad programs, have made it urgent for Brazilians to acquire or improve English language skills.

The first stop in the circuit is Brasilia, the capital city of Brazil. Brasilia is the seat of all international organizations and the highest levels of government, making it the city with the highest income per capita in the country. Next, the circuit will travel to Rio de Janeiro, a city booming with investment proceedings from the oil industry and rushing to prepare itself to host the 2016 Olympic Games. Finally, the group will travel to São Paulo, which is located in the richest region of the nation, and will host one of the opening events to the 2014 World Cup. Drawing students from all over the country, the city of São Paulo has the most schools ranked in the top 30 in the National Student Performance Evaluation (ENEM).

EducationUSA has over 30 centers around Brazil, which will also help guide and prepare prospective students throughout their application process.