Cadernos de Pesquisa
Print version ISSN 0100-1574On-line version ISSN 1980-5314
Abstract
SENKEVICS, Adriano S.; CARVALHAES, Flávio and RIBEIRO, Carlos A. C.. MERIT OR BIRTH? SOCIAL ORIGIN AND PERFORMANCE IN ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION. Cad. Pesqui. [online]. 2022, vol.52, e09528. Epub Sep 01, 2022. ISSN 1980-5314. https://doi.org/10.1590/198053149528.
This paper discusses the association between social origins and academic performance on the probability of access to higher education in Brazil. The data derives from a sample of high school graduates in 2012, followed for five years after completing basic education, from cross-checks with Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas Educacionais Anísio Teixeira data. It was observed that, for access to the public sector, performance is the most important predictor, regardless of the socioeconomic level of the applicant, reinforcing a merit dimension in access. The same cannot be said in relation to the private sector which, besides having a strong socioeconomic gap, allows the most privileged social strata to have higher chances of accessing it, even if their school performance is worse.
Keywords : SCHOOL PERFORMANCE; MERITOCRACY; SOCIOECONOMIC LEVEL; SOCIAL REPRODUCTION.