Perfil dos ingressantes do curso de Ciências Contábeis: determinantes na escolha do curso

Abstract

For some time now, higher education has not been restricted to a specific audience as it used to be. Through government actions, people who had no prospects of entering this education level now have the opportunity to earn a graduate degree. However, these newcomers bring with them characteristics, demands and expectations resulting from their social environment and educational institutions need to deal with this. Thus, it is essential that these institutions know their student body in order to promote the best and thus contribute to reaffirm the commitment of these students to this new stage of the academic journey. In this sense, this work aims to identify the socioeconomic profile of Accounting Science students at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) and the variables that influenced them in choosing this course. Methodologically, this work was classified as descriptive regarding the objectives, case study and survey regarding the procedures and quantitative-qualitative regarding the approach. Data collection took place through a questionnaire for the new students from 2020 and 2021, whose sample was based on accessibility and/or convenience, comprising 48 respondents. As a result, it was possible to observe that the students are mostly female, between 21 and 25 years old, graduated from public education, with family income between 1 and 3 minimum wages and who are already working in the labor market, whether in accounting or not. The reasons for this choice were mainly the job market and aspects relevant to it, such as the diversity of areas of activity and the possibility of public examinations, in addition to the identification of these students with the course and with the area. Most also claim not to have received influence from third parties in choosing the course. Their expectations are related to learning, becoming quality professionals and having a practical course. 37.5% of them intend to take a public examination. The main reason for choosing UFRN was the quality of teaching. As for financial assistance, only 4.2% claimed to have received this support. 69% of this group claimed to experience difficulties with remote education and in reconciling studies and work. When asked about the difficulties in the learning process, students agree that part of the difficulties in the first period are consequences of the way some teachers teach.