EXPANSION OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND CAREER CONSTRUCTION: MULTI-CASE STUDY WITH UNDERGRADUATES

ABSTRACT The expansion of higher education in Brazil in recent decades has produced distinct and heterogeneous contexts, contributing to the change in the sociodemographic profile of students. Within the scope of studies on career construction in higher education and based on the Life Designing model, this investigation examined the process of career construction of undergraduates from public institutions in Alto Uruguai gaúcho, a region affected by the expansion and establishment of universities in the interior of the states of Brazil. This is a multiple case study with six undergraduates who showed different levels of career adaptability. Based on the emerging categories of analysis, the results indicated that the proximity of Higher Education institutions, the family context, the need to reconcile study and work and the perspective of social mobility associated with the transition to adulthood are relevant themes in the process of participants’ career construction, highlighting the importance of public policies for higher education.