Introduction
CAPES Rating 5
Courses Recognized by CAPES
The Postgraduate Program in Animal Science (PPGCA) is a pioneering program offering stricto sensu courses in the Midwest region of Brazil. This region has a notably low number of postgraduate programs, especially when compared to other Brazilian regions. The PPGCA emerged from the joint effort of several professors from the School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science at the Federal University of Goiás (EVZ/UFG) to generate more knowledge and scientific progress for the region.
It was established in 1995 under the name Master’s Program in Veterinary Medicine, initially with a single area of concentration: Animal Health. Two years later, in 1997, the first cohort of nine students completed their defenses. In 1999, a second area of concentration, Animal Production, was created to meet the high regional demand related to agribusiness. In 2002, the program was renamed the Postgraduate Program in Animal Science, with the doctoral course starting that same year. It is worth noting the scarcity of doctoral programs in this part of Brazil, an imbalance that persists to this day.
With the program's growth, in 2003, a third area of concentration—Pathology, Clinical Medicine, and Surgery—was created, followed by a fourth area, Food Hygiene and Technology, in 2005. To enhance integration and cooperation among areas, in 2007, Animal Health and Food Hygiene and Technology were merged into a single area of concentration called Animal Health, Hygiene, and Food Technology.
The PPGCA’s significant expansion has positioned it as one of the largest programs in its field in Brazil. This growth, coupled with particularities in the evaluation of the animal production field, sparked discussions at EVZ/UFG about creating a new program associated with another CAPES field: Animal Science. By the end of 2012, the proposal was presented and approved by CAPES, leading to the creation of the Postgraduate Program in Animal Science with a rating of 4. In the 2013 selection process, the PPGCA Coordination decided not to open new spots in the Animal Production concentration area. Given this new reality, the program has focused on concluding projects related to Animal Production initiated in 2010, 2011, and 2012, with the last doctoral defenses in this area scheduled for 2016. By 2016, all professors in the Animal Production area will have completed their advisories within the PPGCA. Consequently, the gradual phasing out of the Animal Production area has led to course redefinitions and restructuring at the master’s and doctoral levels, with a new format involving changes in concentration areas and research lines to be consolidated at the start of the next evaluation cycle.
Guided by a realistic yet innovative, entrepreneurial, and diversified vision, the PPGCA has had various coordinators throughout its history, each striving to enhance the course quality: Prof. Guido Fontgallad Coelho Linhares (1995-1996), Prof. Maria Lúcia Gambarini (1997-2000), Prof. Maria Clorinda Soares Fioravanti (2001-2003), Prof. José Henrique Stringhini (2004), Prof. Luiz Augusto Brito (2005-2008), Prof. Maria Clorinda Soares Fioravanti (2009-2010), Prof. Eugênio Gonçalves de Araújo (2011-2012), Prof. Cíntia Silva Minafra e Rezende (2013-2014), Prof. Naida Cristina Borges (2014-2018), and Prof. Danieli Brolo Martins (2019-2022). During this period, the PPGCA achieved the following CAPES ratings: 3 in its first evaluation in 1997, 4 in 2000, 5 in 2003 and 2006, 4 in 2009, and 5 in 2012, a rating it continues to hold to this day.
Throughout its history, its faculty and students have innovated and enhanced research practices and methods, aiming for higher qualifications, better scientific contextualization, and greater national and international integration. Faculty internationalization began in 1997 with Auburn University in the United States, and since then, PPGCA has encouraged faculty members to pursue continuous updates and establish connections with foreign researchers from relevant universities and research centers. Similarly, the PPGCA strives to offer its students opportunities for international training, frequently utilizing all available sandwich doctoral scholarships and applying for additional ones. The first student to pursue a sandwich doctorate abroad did so in 2004 at the University of California (Davis). In 2017, five students received scholarships to pursue sandwich doctorates at universities or research institutes in the United States (Ana Maria Almeida and Samantha Verdi at the University of Athens, Georgia), Spain (Thais Miranda Silva Freitas at Universidad de Córdoba), and Portugal (Maria Izabel Amaral Souza at Universidade de Lisboa). In 2018, Karla Braga went to the United States (Brown University), while in 2019, Ellen Regozino went to Italy (University of Bari) and Sarah Chagas to Spain (Universidad de Murcia).
In 2020, then-permanent PPGCA professor Fabiano José Sant’Anna completed postdoctoral studies at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona in Spain. In 2021, the PPGCA organized the first International Symposium on Toxicological Diagnosis, featuring Brazilian researchers from various universities alongside American, French, Uruguayan, and Moroccan counterparts. Since 2020, the PPGCA website has been fully available in seven languages: English, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin, French, German, and Brazilian Sign Language (Libras).
(Translations for other requested languages will follow.)