ADMISSION TO AND RETENTION IN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THE FIELD OF SOCIAL WORK

Abstract

This paper presents partial findings from the research project University for Whom? The Challenges of Student Retention in Evening Health Programs at UFRGS. The study aimed to analyze the main difficulties and strategies related to the admission and retention of students enrolled between 2019/1 and 2022/2 in the evening programs of Psychology, Dentistry, Social Work, and Public Health at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. The research sought to support the university’s deliberative bodies in the (re)formulation, strengthening, and expansion of student assistance and retention policies. The study was conducted by the PET Conexões de Saberes Group: Practice Settings and Evening Curricular Internships at UFRGS, which includes the programs of Dentistry, Psychology, Public Health, and Social Work. The data presented here focus specifically on the field of Social Work and aim to highlight the challenges experienced by students, as well as possible strategies to support their permanence in higher education. Such strategies require access to a range of public policies and institutional measures aimed at promoting student retention and academic success in higher education.