Secretaria de Relações Internacionais | Office of International Relations

The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC), through its Office of International Relations (SINTER), will hold the International Community Welcome Day on 6 March for international students who will be studying at the University in the first semester of 2026.

The event will begin at 8 a.m. in the Rectorate Building Auditorium and will feature a program of institutional presentations, specific orientation sessions, and cultural integration activities. Additional activities will take place during the month of March.

The day’s program will start with student registration, followed by a cultural presentation and the official opening ceremony, including a welcome speech by Rector Irineu Manoel de Souza. Next, there will be an institutional presentation of UFSC and SINTER, delivered by the Secretary for International Relations, Fernanda Leal, and the Director of International Relations, Guilherme Carlos da Costa.

In the morning, students will also participate in orientation sessions based on their affiliation with the University. These include undergraduate exchange students from the UFSC Incoming Program and the Escala Grado Program of the Association of Montevideo Group Universities (AUGM), undergraduate degree-seeking students enrolled through the Programa Estudantes-Convênio de Graduação (PEC-G), and undergraduate degree-seeking students admitted to UFSC through different pathways.

In the afternoon, the program will be dedicated to cultural integration activities, which require prior registration.

In addition to the activities scheduled for 6 March, a complementary program will be offered throughout the month, featuring guided tours and cultural visits, a conversation circle, and a sports tournament.

⚠️ To view the full schedule and access the registration links for the welcome ceremony and the cultural activities, click here.

The International Community Welcome Day is a strategic institutional initiative aimed at promoting the academic, social, and cultural integration of UFSC’s international community. In recent years, SINTER has worked to make the event increasingly comprehensive and inclusive, with the support of several university units, including the Office of Culture, Arts and Sports (SeCArtE), the School of Sports (CDS), the Department of Psychology at the School of Philosophy and Human Sciences (CFH), the Undergraduate Program in Performing Arts, as well as of the Association of Angolans in Florianópolis (ASSAF), the Association of Guinean Students in Santa Catarina (AEGUISI) and Cape Verdean students at UFSC.

The Office of International Relations (SINTER/UFSC) took part in the national meeting organized by the Ministry of Education (MEC) to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Programa de Estudantes-Convênio de Graduação (PEC-G). The event, held on 8 and 9 December, brought together approximately 150 PEC-G coordinators at the CAPES auditorium in Brasília (DF). UFSC was represented by Luana Priscilla Leite, staff member responsible for SINTER’s finance matters, who attended on behalf of the PEC-G coordinator at UFSC, Elisa Schemes, and followed  discussions on funding, scholarships, and the sustainability of the program.

The celebration comes at a historic moment for PEC-G, which has registered the highest number of international applications in six decades of existence. For the 2026 selection process, the program saw an increase of nearly 1,200%, reaching 3,291 applications from students of 55 nationalities interested in pursuing tuition-free undergraduate studies at Brazilian institutions. In total, the PEC-G currently includes 104 participating higher education institutions, receiving students from 52 countries, and maintains partnerships with 73 nations.

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UFSC was the second most requested university by applicants in the 2026 Programa de Estudantes-Convênio de Graduação (PEC-G) Selection Process. Therefore, if you were not selected for UFSC, it is because your score did not meet the minimum required according to the criteria listed in the Call for Applications. Your application may have been redirected to another university to fill available places or placed on a waiting list.

For further information, please contact the Brazilian diplomatic mission where you submitted your application.

There are no remaining places at UFSC. Although UFSC offered over 100 possible seats in undergraduate programs, only up to 20 could be filled, and all 20 places have already been filled according to the published results.

 Please note that UFSC is not accepting external transfers through PEC-G.

 If you have any questions, please contact us at: pecg.sinter@contato.ufsc.br

Photo: Ministry of Education (MEC)

Between 7 and 9 October, the selection committee for the Programa de Estudantes-Convênio (PEC), in its undergraduate (PEC-G) and Portuguese as a Foreign Language (PEC-PLE) modalities, met in Brasília, at the Rio Branco Institute, to evaluate applications from international students interested in pursuing undergraduate degrees or learning Portuguese at Brazilian higher education institutions starting in 2026.

The meeting brought together representatives from all regions across the country, including higher education institutions (HEIs), associations of institutions, and members of the Ministries of Education (MEC) and Foreign Affairs (MRE). The selection process followed the guidelines of Call for Applications No. 1/2025, published by the Higher Education Secretariat (Sesu/MEC) in July.

In this edition, the PEC-PG program offered 6,128 places across 340 undergraduate programs, distributed among 104 higher education institutions nationwide. The PEC-PLE program offered 789 places at 41 institutions located in 23 states.

Once again, the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) stood out as one of the most sought-after institutions by international applicants, ranking second in the selection process.

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This post is available in Brazilian Portuguese only. Please access the website in Portuguese to read it.

International Community Welcome Day marks start of semester for students from 20 countries

The Brazilian Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education (CAPES) has published a Call for Applications for the Programa de Estudantes-Convênio de Pós-Graduação (PEC-PG), a program developed in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) and the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq). PEC-PG offers foreign citizens the opportunity to pursue full graduate degrees or participate in short-term exchange programs (sandwich doctoral program) at educational and research institutions in Brazil.

In this edition, a total of 650 scholarships will be awarded:

• 100 full doctoral scholarships (up to 48 months);
• 350 sandwich doctoral scholarships (6 to 10 months);
• 200 full master’s scholarships (up to 24 months).

The total investment by CAPES is R$ 41 million. Monthly stipends will be R$2,100.00 for master’s students and R$3,100.00 for doctoral students. An additional R$400.00 monthly healthcare allowance will also be provided.

Selection schedule

The selection process begins with the Brazilian higher education institutions submitting their available places by 31 July 2025. CAPES will publish the list of places for full master’s and doctoral degrees by 13 August, and for doctoral sandwich programs by 30 September.

Applications will take place in two periods:

• From 14 August to 29 September 2025, for full master’s and doctoral programs;
• From 1 October to 30 December 2025, for the sandwich doctoral program.

Academic activities are schedule to being in the first semester of 2026 for full programs and in August 2026 for the doctoral sandwich program. Access the full schedule in the PEC-PG call for applications.

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