Social inequality and graduate studies in Business Administration in Brazil: The role of evaluations [Translated version]

There are numerous approaches that relate graduate programs in business administration to social inequality. Generally associated with poverty and concentration of people’s wealth (Díaz, 2007), social inequality may be addressed through opportunities of access to master's and Ph.D. courses (Kliksberg, 2010; Murillo, 2007) and studies on social impact on the life of the congresses and community (Kliksberg, 2010). It may also be approached from a diversity standpoint (Sen, 2001), considering ethnic and gender differences, as well as regional disparities in Brazil. In this article, I address the role of the evaluation system of the graduate program in business administration, managed by the Coordination of Superior Level Staff Improvement (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior [CAPES]), in reducing social inequality. In addition to focusing on the debate in my study and research area, examining social inequality from the assessment perspective directs this reflection toward something that affects the entire academic community, enabling dialog with other possible approaches.