During the 133rd Meeting of the Technical-Scientific Council for Higher Education (CTC-ES), held in Brasilia on February 28 and 29 of 2012, the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Capes/MEC) approved the Postgraduate Program (PPG) in Water Resources at the Federal University of Pelotas (UFPel), at the Master’s level. At the 163rd CTC-ES Meeting, held on April 11 to 15 of 2016, the Doctoral Program in Water Resources was also approved.

This is the first and only postgraduate program at UFPel approved in the area of ​​Engineering (Engineering I) by CAPES. The PPG in Water Resources at UFPel (Master’s and Doctorate), emerged at a time of great relevance for the water resources sector, since this theme has been considered as strategic both in regional and national terms, and has received incentives from the State Government of Rio Grande do Sul and from the Federal Government, as well as from UFPel itself.

The proposal coordinated by a group of professors from the undergraduate course in Water Resources Engineering at UFPel also includes the participation of professors/researchers from other academic areas at UFPel (Eliseu Maciel Faculty of Agronomy, Center for Engineering and Meteorology), as well as the participation of professors from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA) and Federal University of the Valleys of Jequitinhonha and Mucuri (UFVJM), totaling nine permanent members and four collaborators in the Program.

The PPG in Water Resources aims to empower human resources at the Master’s and Doctoral levels, generating and disseminating knowledge and technologies through postgraduate education and research, with specific interest on issues involving water and watershed management. To achieve this, the proposal involves research areas that point to water studies as an integrating element, allowing for the observation of social, political, and economic issues which underpin the necessity of environmental sustainability.

The PPG in Water Resources has “Water Systems” as the main concentration area. Within this, there are two main lines of research: “Water Resource Monitoring and Diagnosis” and “Watershed Management”.

The proposal of the program is to prepare its student body with an extensive education in the many different aspects of water resources. In this sense, the PPG will be attentive to the necessary adaptations that prospective admission applicants require, as it is not restricted to undergraduate students from the various engineering courses. The graduates from this program will be competent to act in water resources monitoring, using the appropriate tools and equipments for each situation and from there, be able to diagnose the different situations facing water resources management. In addition to this, graduates will have the ability to direct more appropriate, rational and sustainable management practices in the watershed, aiming especially at maintaining, improving and/or remedying the environment. Considering that water is an integrating element directly related to various natural resources, the successful graduate will be equipped with a systemic vision and be made aware of all the resources that interact with water. Use of this knowledge for monitoring will in turn establish a clear and diagnostic objective allowing for best management practices.

The PPG in Water Resources at UFPel received a score of “4” (Master’s and Doctorate) during the last four-year evaluation (2013-2016).

The Coordination of the Postgraduate Program in Water Resources at UFPel.