FUVEST
Encyclopedia
FUVEST is a Brazil
ian autonomous institution connected to the University of São Paulo
responsible for its "vestibular" examinations
. For that reason, USP's vestibular itself is usually called "Fuvest". The Fuvest examinations also apply for candidates willing to study at Santa Casa Medical School.
FUVEST's exam is considered the most competitive vestibular, and one of the most demanding. Every year, an average of 160,000 candidates take their exams, which usually last several days.
questions test, taken by all applicants (vestibulandos) in late November, or early December. They have 5 hours to answer the questions with the following subjects: Portuguese language
and Brazilian/Portuguese Literature
, Math, Physics
, Chemistry
, Biology
, Geography
, History
, and English language
. Also, according to the candidate's guide, up to 10% of these questions will bear interdisciplinary questions.
Following the first part, FUVEST publishes the Nota de Corte (from Portuguese
, meaning "Cutoff Mark" or "Cutoff Score"). The Cutoff Score is the result of a simple expression and its value is different for each major. Every candidate who has obtained a score equal to or higher than the Cutoff Mark automatically qualifies to advance to the second part. Candidates who score less than 22 points or score zero in any subject are automatically disqualified.
The second part is usually held in early January and consists of up to four exams. The Portuguese
exam is required of all candidates. The remaining required exams differ however depending on the candidate's intended major. For example, prospective Engineering
majors are tested in Math, Physics and Chemistry, while Law School
applicants have to take History and Geography exams, and Medical School
candidates are examined in Physics, Chemistry and Biology. No career requires a foreign-language exam in the second part. All exams in this part consist of ten write-in questions requiring an essay answer, with the exception of the Portuguese language exam which, in addition to the ten regular essay questions, also includes a student-written essay. Candidates have four hours to solve the Portuguese exam, while the other exams last three hours each. In the current format, candidates normally take only one exam per day over a period of three or four days. Some majors also require specific exams: applicants for Architecture
, Design
and Arts
must attend for such tests.
Moreover, candidates who only attended a public high-school receive an extra 12% on their final scores on the first and second parts, arguably in order to compensate for the general low quality of Brazilian public basic education.
For the second part, greater changes will be made. The examination will last for three consecutive days (from January 3 to 5). In the first day, candidates will do the Portuguese language test and the essay exam. On the second day, 18 write-in questions covering all subjects of high school, 6 being interdisciplinary. In the third day, specific questions will be asked for the candidate, depending on his career of choice. For example, students applying for any human science will be asked geography and/or history questions, candidates for exact sciences will answer mathematics and chemistry questions, etc.
Careers that require special tests (like Music and Architecture) will have their tests from October 11 to 16.
The same book list is required for the UNICAMP vestibular.
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian autonomous institution connected to the University of São Paulo
University of São Paulo
Universidade de São Paulo is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian university and one of the country's most prestigious...
responsible for its "vestibular" examinations
Vestibular
The Vestibular is a competitive examination and is the primary and widespread system used by Brazilian universities to select their students. The Vestibular usually takes place from November to January, right before the start of school year in February or March, although certain universities hold...
. For that reason, USP's vestibular itself is usually called "Fuvest". The Fuvest examinations also apply for candidates willing to study at Santa Casa Medical School.
FUVEST's exam is considered the most competitive vestibular, and one of the most demanding. Every year, an average of 160,000 candidates take their exams, which usually last several days.
Tests
FUVEST's exam is split into two parts. The first part consists of a 90 multiple–choiceMultiple choice
Multiple choice is a form of assessment in which respondents are asked to select the best possible answer out of the choices from a list. The multiple choice format is most frequently used in educational testing, in market research, and in elections-- when a person chooses between multiple...
questions test, taken by all applicants (vestibulandos) in late November, or early December. They have 5 hours to answer the questions with the following subjects: Portuguese language
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
and Brazilian/Portuguese Literature
Brazilian literature
Brazilian literature is written in the Portuguese language by Brazilians or in Brazil, even if prior to Brazil's independence from Portugal, in 1822...
, Math, Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, Geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
, History
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, and English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. Also, according to the candidate's guide, up to 10% of these questions will bear interdisciplinary questions.
Following the first part, FUVEST publishes the Nota de Corte (from Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, meaning "Cutoff Mark" or "Cutoff Score"). The Cutoff Score is the result of a simple expression and its value is different for each major. Every candidate who has obtained a score equal to or higher than the Cutoff Mark automatically qualifies to advance to the second part. Candidates who score less than 22 points or score zero in any subject are automatically disqualified.
The second part is usually held in early January and consists of up to four exams. The Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
exam is required of all candidates. The remaining required exams differ however depending on the candidate's intended major. For example, prospective Engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
majors are tested in Math, Physics and Chemistry, while Law School
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...
applicants have to take History and Geography exams, and Medical School
Medical school
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches medicine. Degree programs offered at medical schools often include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Philosophy, master's degree, or other post-secondary...
candidates are examined in Physics, Chemistry and Biology. No career requires a foreign-language exam in the second part. All exams in this part consist of ten write-in questions requiring an essay answer, with the exception of the Portuguese language exam which, in addition to the ten regular essay questions, also includes a student-written essay. Candidates have four hours to solve the Portuguese exam, while the other exams last three hours each. In the current format, candidates normally take only one exam per day over a period of three or four days. Some majors also require specific exams: applicants for Architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, Design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
and Arts
ARts
aRts, which stands for analog Real time synthesizer, is an audio framework that is no longer under development. It is best known for previously being used in KDE to simulate an analog synthesizer....
must attend for such tests.
Moreover, candidates who only attended a public high-school receive an extra 12% on their final scores on the first and second parts, arguably in order to compensate for the general low quality of Brazilian public basic education.
2010 changes
For the 2010 FUVEST, some significant changes are expected. The first part, scheduled for November 22, will be the same as before, but the points obtained by the candidate will no longer be taken into consideration for his final score. In other words, the first part will serve as an elimination test.For the second part, greater changes will be made. The examination will last for three consecutive days (from January 3 to 5). In the first day, candidates will do the Portuguese language test and the essay exam. On the second day, 18 write-in questions covering all subjects of high school, 6 being interdisciplinary. In the third day, specific questions will be asked for the candidate, depending on his career of choice. For example, students applying for any human science will be asked geography and/or history questions, candidates for exact sciences will answer mathematics and chemistry questions, etc.
Careers that require special tests (like Music and Architecture) will have their tests from October 11 to 16.
Required books
Candidates are requested to read a total of nine books, as questions are going to be asked about them. Not all of them are covered by the test, usually only three are mentioned throughout the test, but the student is unable to know which of them will be asked about. For the 2010 vestibular, the required books are:- Vidas SecasVidas SecasVidas Secas is a novel by twentieth-century Brazilian writer Graciliano Ramos, written in 1938...
, by Graciliano RamosGraciliano RamosGraciliano Ramos de Oliveira was a Brazilian Post-Modernist writer, politician and journalist. In most of his novels he depicts the precarious situation of the poor inhabitants of the Brazilian sertão.-Life:Graciliano Ramos de Oliveira was born in the city of Quebrangulo, in the Brazilian State...
; - Capitães da AreiaCapitães da AreiaCapitães de Areia is a Brazilian Modernist novel. It was written by Jorge Amado in 1936.His novel tells of the Captains of the Sands, a gang of one hundred orphans and abandoned children. They are seven to fifteen years old and live by stealing, abandoned in the streets of Bahia, Brazil....
, by Jorge AmadoJorge AmadoJorge Leal Amado de Faria was a Brazilian writer of the Modernist school. He was the best-known of modern Brazilian writers, his work having been translated into some 49 languages and popularized in film, notably Dona Flor and her Two Husbands in 1978...
; - O CortiçoO CortiçoO Cortiço is an influential Brazilian novel written in 1890 by Aluísio Azevedo. The novel depicts a part of Brazil's culture in the late Nineteenth century, represented by a variety of colorful characters living in a single Rio de Janeiro slum.Azevedo's The Slum tells the stories of Portuguese and...
, by Aluísio AzevedoAluísio AzevedoAluísio Tancredo Gonçalves de Azevedo was a Brazilian novelist, caricaturist, diplomat, playwright and short story writer. Initially a Romantic writer, he would later adhere to the Naturalist movement...
; - Antologia Poética, by Vinícius de MoraesVinicius de MoraesMarcus Vinicius de Moraes , known as Vinicius de Moraes and nicknamed O Poetinho , was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Son of Lydia Cruz de Moraes and Clodoaldo Pereira da Silva Moraes, he was a seminal figure in contemporary Brazilian music...
; - IracemaIracemaIracema is one of the three indigenous novels by José de Alencar. It was first published in 1865.-Plot introduction:The story revolves around the relationship between the Tabajara indigenous woman, Iracema; and the Portuguese colonist, Martim, who was allied with the Tabajara nation's enemies, the...
, by José de AlencarJosé de AlencarJosé Martiniano de Alencar was a Brazilian lawyer, politician, orator, novelist and dramatist. He is one of the most famous writers of the first generation of Brazilian Romanticism, writing historical, regionalist and Indianist romances — being the most famous The Guarani...
; - Auto da Barca do Inferno, by Gil VicenteGil VicenteGil Vicente , called the Trobadour, was a Portuguese playwright and poet who acted in and directed his own plays. Considered the chief dramatist of Portugal he is sometimes called the "Portuguese Plautus,"[3] often referred to as the "Father of Portuguese drama" and as one of Western literature's...
; - Memórias de um Sargento de Milícias, by Manuel Antônio de AlmeidaManuel Antônio de AlmeidaManuel Antônio de Almeida was a Brazilian writer, medician and teacher. He is famous for the book Memoirs of a Police Sergeant, written under the pen name Um Brasileiro...
; - Dom CasmurroDom CasmurroDom Casmurro, written by Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, was first published in Brazil in 1899. Like The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas and Quincas Borba, both by Machado de Assis, it is a masterpiece of realist literature. It is written as a fictional memoir by a distrusting, jealous husband...
, by Machado de Assis; - A Cidade e as Serras, by Eça de Queirós.
The same book list is required for the UNICAMP vestibular.