University of São Paulo: Contest encourages public school students to occupy their space at the university
Applications for the Econoteen essay contest are open until August 31st. The FEA-USP project is aimed at students from public schools in the State of São Paulo and has as its theme the bicentennial of the proclamation of Independence. The winners receive cash prizes and the first place winner receives a full course scholarship. In an interview with Jornal da USP in the 1st Edition , Antônio Carlos Coelho Campino, project coordinator and professor at USP’s Faculty of Economics, Administration, Accounting and Actuarial Science (FEA), presents the initiative.
Economen has been a project by the FEA department of Economics since 2007 and is reaching its 16th edition. According to Campino, every year a group of economics department teachers defines a specific theme for students to write rehearsals from five to ten pages.
The teacher informs: “The target audience are students from high school public schools, the first, second and third year.” With this, the delivery of the rehearsals should happen approximately in October, with the objective of not disturbing the preparation of students during the entrance exams.
Impartiality
The evaluation of the tests is carried out based on a model that aims to guarantee the impartiality of the tender. “A judgment is made without us knowing who the student is or who the school is. We don’t have any information to guarantee the best correction and judgment”, says Campino.
The five best ranked receive a cash prize, ranging from R$400 to R$1,500, in addition to winning books. The delivery of the awards usually takes place in the inaugural class of FEA-USP and the awarded students do not have to travel and stay in the city of São Paulo.
The Econoteen project website is important and constantly supplied with materials and content that can serve to guide young people in the contest. The initiative is also essential to encourage students to enter and occupy the University’s space. According to Campino, several winners and participants of the award joined the Faculty of Economics, Administration, Accounting and Actuarial Science or other departments and institutes at the University of São Paulo.