Brazilian higher education is at a turning point. In 2024, the country reached the historic milestone of 10 million enrolled students, according to the Higher Education Census, while at the same time the debate over quality, regulation, innovation, and employability is intensifying.

With more than 2,500 public and private institutions, the sector now faces the challenge of preparing professionals for a constantly changing job market.

It is in this context that yet another edition of the Ahead CIEE Forum – Higher Education, a strategic initiative of Bett Brasil, Latin America’s largest event for Innovation and Technology in Education.

For the first time, the Forum will partner with the Center for Business-School Integration (CIEE), reinforcing its commitment to bridging the gap between academic education and employability. Bett Brasil will take place May 5–8 at Expo Center Norte in São Paulo. You can register here.

The CIEE Ahead Forum provides a high-quality environment for dialogue among university presidents, academic directors, program coordinators, and administrators in distance education, innovation, and professional and technological education (EPT), as well as researchers and industry experts.

For Rodrigo Dib, CIEE’s Institutional Superintendent, the partnership symbolizes more than just institutional cooperation. “The Ahead CIEE Higher Education Forum represents the definitive convergence between higher education and employability,” he says.

According to him, CIEE currently manages more than 250,000 active internship contracts and maintains relationships with thousands of institutions across the country, which allows the organization to closely monitor the challenges students face in entering the workforce.

“This partnership brings an essential question to the forefront of the debate: how can we turn a degree into a real opportunity?”Dib points out. In his view, we must go beyond simply expanding access and address retention, quality, practical experience, and entry into the workforce. “The Forum is the space to move beyond theory and make progress on concrete solutions that enhance the employability of young Brazilian college students.”

Rodrigo Dib, Institutional Superintendent at CIEE. Photo: Courtesy of CIEE.

Topics Under Discussion

Among the main topics of this year’s event are the impacts of regulatory changes, the expansion of hybrid and digital education, and the effects of new skills, technologies, and artificial intelligence on the job market. The auditorium will host speakers such as Rodrigo Capelato, executive director of Semesp; Andréa Paiva, director of graduate studies at FIAP; Leandro Prearo, president of Cruzeiro do Sul University; Michelle Schneider, visiting professor at Singularity University; and Romero Tori, academic director at Univesp, among others.

• Check out the schedule for the CIEE Ahead Forum here.

According to Dib, the event will explore three key areas in depth : aligning the curriculum with professional practice from the earliest years of undergraduate study; the strategic use of technology to enhance learning; and the integration of educational institutions, companies, and intermediary organizations into a more fluid and collaborative ecosystem.

“We need to stop treating vocational education and the job market as separate worlds. Young people don’t experience this division. They need an integrated path,” he says.

According to the CIEE superintendent, the role of higher education institutions is also undergoing a redefinition. “They are no longer merely transmitters of technical knowledge. Today, they need to foster a broad range of skills, critical thinking, adaptability, and the ability to solve complex problems.”

Organizations like CIEE, he says, serve as a structured bridge between theory and practice. “An internship isn’t just an opportunity to earn money or get a first job—it’s a real-world learning laboratory. When universities, companies, and intermediary institutions work together in an integrated way, students don’t just complete a degree; they build a career path, a professional network, and practical experience early on,” he concludes.

With more than 30 speakers, the Ahead CIEE Forum on Higher Education is an essential event for anyone who wants to understand, anticipate, and lead the transformations in higher education in Brazil.

How can I participate?

The CIEE Ahead Forum – Higher Education ticket grants access to the four-day program, with no need to register in advance for individual lectures. Complete information about the Forum pass and the program schedule is available HERE.

Share on social media: