The crisis and the search for autonomy in Brazilian federal universities

Abstract

This paper analyzes the multifaceted aspect of the crisis situation in the Brazilian federal universities, as a rich and varied social phenomenon that exists inside and outside these institutions. The paper identifies the different kinds of crises affecting these institutions, stressing the identity crisis related to our world and the management crisis of the Brazilian State. This crisis
involves deep and essential components of the development of science and technology in Brazil, compromising the future of the next generation. Therefore, it demands mechanisms allowing the university to face, in a totally renewed dynamics, the challenge of being the guardian and the retainer of knowledge, as well as responsible for breakthrough discoveries. The paper especially analyzes the issue of self-government, pointing out the
growing need for adopting state-of-the-art management parameters which may provide for the system's survival. This paper also presents the insights of deans of federal universities in Rio de Janeiro.