Access to law school and the capital of native-brazilian students

Access to Law School and the Capital of Native-Brazilian students in Mato Grosso

From 2000 to 2010, 776,995 students in Brazil earned a bachelor’s degree in Law, of which 14,020 in the state of Mato Grosso, making it the third most sought  after undergraduate degree by Brazilian students. That universe includes distinct ethnic minorities, showing the cultural diversity present in the expansion of that level of education. This study focused on students coming from 13 native-Brazilian tribes from Mato Grosso, who benefited from affirmative policies. The starting point was the question: Is it possible to see the increase in the capital of those students? The aim was to examine the habitus and capital they inherited and acquired, based on their life stories and reasons to choose a legal profession under the light of Pierre Bourdieu’s theory. Empirical research was carried out by using semi-structured interviews and is part of the doctoral thesis The Process of Expansion of Legal Education.

Key-words: Law; Higher Education; Expansion; Brazil.