Análise da política de assistência estudantil do Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia de Goiás

Abstract

This study analyzes the Student Assistance Policy (PAE) of the Federal Institute of Goiás (IFG) for the period 2016–2023, within the context of Brazil’s Federal Network of Vocational, Scientific and Technological Education and recent social, economic, and political transformations. Its objectives were to analyze/evaluate the PAE/IFG in this context; understand the academic scientific production on student assistance within the Network; apprehend the configuration and scope of the PAE at IFG; and assess its financing and expenditure. Methodologically, it combines a systematic review (2009–2023) with documentary/quantitative analysis (Annual Management Reports—RAG, institutional transparency, and Fala.BR), grounded in Boschetti’s (2009) analysis and evaluation procedure—which examines policy across integrated axes from a historical dialectical perspective. The research shows that the PAE/IFG achieved normative and institutional consolidation from 2016 to 2023, with improvements in 2023 (tiers for the Permanence Allowance and distributive criteria via IDS/IDE), operating with financial resources from PNAES (Action 2994) complemented by the Annual Budget Law (LOA). In financing, there was a decline in per capita spending in 2021 and a partial recovery in 2022–2023; in spending allocation, permanence and food assistance predominated, with a temporary substitution of student cafeterias by monetary benefits during the pandemic and a partial reversal upon the return to in-person activities, alongside campus-level heterogeneity associated with cafeteria (RU) operations. In universal programs at the upper-secondary level and in Youth and Adult Education (EJA), all enrolled students were confirmed as eligible: differences between applicants and awardees stemmed from invalid applications rather than denials due to lack of funds, indicating potential gains from automatic granting and pre-validation. In sum, the PAE/IFG proved strategic for student persistence and mitigated constraints through the combined use of PNAES and LOA, but results point to structural limits (underfunding, volatility, and operational asymmetries across campuses) that condition the policy’s coverage, stability, and effectiveness.