Abstract

The article investigates the recent dynamics of postgraduate doctoral programs in Argentina and Brazil, and thus it is situated in the thematic field of regional studies on higher education. The purpose of the work is to analyze and compare the main trends in the configuration and development of doctoral programs in both countries in the period 2007-2018. For this, four dimensions of analysis are selected: the historical configuration and regulation of the level; the characteristics of the offer and its expansion; enrollment, graduation and professional insertion; and state promotion of doctoral training. The theoretical territory includes studies on higher education, with an emphasis on the postgraduate level and the training of qualified resources. The methodological approach is part of comparative studies in education and focuses mainly on quantitative data. The results support a convergent trend in the dynamics of recent expansion of doctoral programs and enrollments in both countries, although significant contrasts are observed in the level of regulation of the level, the modality of the offer and its interaction with other subsystems, a related issue closely with the historical configuration of the level and its policies.

Keywords: doctoral degrees; postgraduate education; Argentina; Brazil