O ambiente educacional do Curso de Zootecnia da UFPel na percepção do egresso

Abstract

Research and monitoring of graduates of higher education courses are important tools for evaluating the courses offered, linking them with the reality of work scenarios, performance and professional profile, therefore, constant adjustments can be made to improve courses and adapt to different realities. The educational environment (AE) provided by the educational institution interferes with the performance, training and satisfaction of students in relation to the course. According to Troncon (2014), EA is the set of material and affective elements present in the learning environment and it influences the quality of teaching and affect students in the teaching-learning processes. In this work, the elements of the AE were grouped, through a factor analysis, in three dimensions, the first merged variables referring to the perception of the graduates regarding the teaching process, the adequacy of the curriculum, the subjects and the evaluation being named "Process of Teaching", the second gathered variables related to the offer of internships, monitors, scientific initiation projects and teachers in sufficient quantity and was called "Support to Learning", and the third dimension gathered the variables of the educational environment related to physical conditions (facilities and library) and staff (availability of teachers), which is why it was named “Educational Infrastructure”. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyze the perception of the graduates of the Animal Science course at UFPel about the educational environment and its relations with professional performance, employability and satisfaction with the course. In this way, a self-application questionnaire was prepared through the Google Forms platform, with variables related to socioeconomic profile, professional profile, perceptions about training and perceptions of the AE dimensions. It was applied to UFPel graduates from November 2021 to January 2022. One hundred and eight responses were obtained, and the whole data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The results showed that the educational environment of the Animal Science course presented a more positive than negative evaluation in the perception of the graduates. The evaluation of the AE by the graduates did not vary according to whether they were working or not, as well as, the graduates whose professional activity is directly related to the area of animal science, demonstrating more critically evaluation of the different dimensions of the AE. The graduates who considered their training expectations met rated the AE dimensions with significantly higher averages (P<0.05) than those who said they did not consider or considered their expectations partially met. A portion of 44.4% of graduates indicated that they perceived a discrepancy between the skills required by the professional market and those acquired in the Animal Science course. A considerable number of graduates indicated in essay answers to different questions the perception of lack or deficiency of activities and practical experiences provided by the course. However, most graduates indicated they were satisfied with their academic training at the personal, professional and financial levels. Therefore, it is concluded that the perception of the graduates of the Animal Science Course at UFPel has a positive evaluation about the educational environment and its relations with professional performance, employability and satisfaction with the course.