Origin and stages of development

Since the 1950s, within the former Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences and Letters, and up until 1973, already under the Faculty of Letters -created in 1968-, there were public competitions for the titles of 'Livre-Docência' (a type of professorial habilitation) and doctorate in the chairs of Portuguese Language, Latin Language, Brazilian Literature, and Latin Literature. Through these competitions, prominent figures such as Ângela Vaz Leão in 1959 and Affonso Romano de Sant'ana in 1969 received their doctoral titles. The awarding of these degrees to these and other professors at UFMG was essential for the creation of formal graduate programs, both at the University itself and at other institutions in Brazil.

The origin of the current Graduate Program in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics (POSLIN) dates back to 1973, with the creation of the Graduate Program in Letters (click here to access the Minutes of the Meeting for the Establishment of the Program Committee on 03/22/1973 and the Minutes of the First Committee Meeting on 04/16/1973). Six areas of concentration composed the academic structure of the Master's in Letters: Linguistics, Literary Theory, Portuguese Language, Brazilian Literature, English Language, and French Language (not implemented). The first master's thesis defense took place in 1977, in the field of Linguistics, by Francisco de Filippo, advised by Prof. Mário Alberto Perini (see details in the 'Theses/dissertations' menu on this webpage). The first Committee included the following members, all faculty from the program: Ângela Vaz Leão, Eunice Souza Lima Pontes, José Henrique Santos, and Rubens Costa Romanelli (Chair).

Later, in 1994, the Graduate Program in Letters was divided into two new programs: the Graduate Program in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics and the Graduate Program in Letters - Literary Studies. The Linguistics and Applied Linguistics program was thus formed from the areas of Linguistics, Portuguese Language, and part of English Language from the former program (click here to access the Minutes of the First Meeting of the Organizing Committee of the Graduate Program in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics on 06/24/1994). The Organizing Committee included the following members: Else Ribeiro Pires Vieira, Gladys de Souza Magalhães (student representative), Lorenzo Teixeira Vitral, Marco Antônio Oliveira, Milton do Nascimento, Mike Dillinger (Coordinator), and Vera Lúcia Menezes de Oliveira e Paiva (Deputy Coordinator). With the creation of the new program, two areas of concentration were established: Linguistics and Applied Linguistics. On 09/30/1996, the first doctoral defense in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics took place, by Maria Elizabeth Fonseca Saraiva, advised by Prof. Mário Alberto Perini (see details in the 'Theses/dissertations' menu on this webpage).

In 2007, the Program was experiencing strong growth and transformation. There was an expansion of theoretical approaches as a result of the increasing value placed on research and improvements in researcher training within the Program. From an institutional perspective, this development was consolidated through professional training policies and investments from governmental agencies. Thus, the Assembly of faculty recommended to the Committee that the Linguistics area be divided into two: (a) Theoretical and Descriptive Linguistics and (b) Text and Discourse Linguistics. From that point on, the Program was reorganized into three areas of concentration: (i) Theoretical and Descriptive Linguistics; (ii) Text and Discourse Linguistics; and (iii) Applied Linguistics. The changes in the division of areas, creation/reorganization of research lines, and curricular structure proposal were not implemented immediately. Implementation was postponed until 2009, aiming at the beginning of a new evaluation cycle in 2010. Since then, POSLIN has been seeking to improve its entire structure in pursuit of excellence in all areas.
In the second semester of 2011, a study presenting a new organizational proposal for the program's pedagogical structure was approved by the Program Committee. In the same year, UFMG's Office of Graduate Studies gave its approval for the changes to be implemented starting in 2012. In the new proposal, each area of concentration has a curriculum composed of foundational academic activities (aimed at addressing basic knowledge of the areas) and variable-topic activities (designed to meet the specificities of research lines). All academic activities are elective, but foundational activities are offered annually and are strongly recommended to all students. This new restructuring has allowed for greater interconnection between research projects, research lines, and areas of concentration.

Contextualization

Here are some of the public institutions in Minas Gerais that have a significant number of faculty-researchers holding degrees from Poslin, demonstrating its regional prominence: Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto (UFOP), Universidade Federal do Vale do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri (UFVJM), Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Universidade Federal de São João del-Rei (UFSJ), Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU), Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM), Universidade Federal de Lavras (UFLA), Universidade Federal de Alfenas (UNIFAL), Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Universidade Estadual de Minas Gerais (UEMG), Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica de Minas Gerais (CEFET-MG), Instituto Federal de Minas Gerais (IFMG), Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros (UNIMONTES), State Department of Education, Municipal Department of Education of Belo Horizonte, Belo Horizonte Municipal Education Network, Municipal Department of Education of Betim, among others.

In addition to its prominence within the state, Poslin also trains its own faculty, with 22 current professors having obtained their doctorates from the Program. Furthermore, professors who earned their doctorates at Poslin are present in other units and departments at UFMG, such as: the School of Education (FaE), School of Fine Arts (EBA), Technical College (COLTEC), Pedagogical Center (CP), Department of Speech-Language Pathology in the School of Medicine, School of Architecture, among others.

In the case of private institutions in Minas Gerais, Poslin has contributed to faculty training at schools such as: Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais (PUC-MG), Centro Universitário de Belo Horizonte (UniBH), Izabela Hendrix Methodist Institute, Universidade FUMEC, Centro Universitário UNA-BH, Faculdade Senac-Minas, Fundação Torino, Ciências Médicas de Minas Gerais (CMMG), Instituto de Ensino Superior Presidente Tancredo de Almeida Neves (IPTAN), Universidade Presidente Antônio Carlos (UNIPAC), Faculdade Tecsoma, Centro Universitário de Patos de Minas (UNIPAM), Universidade de Itaúna, Faculdade Pitágoras, Colégio Maximus, Colégio Santa Marcelina, Colégio Santa Doroteia, Number One, among others.

Nationally, Poslin-trained faculty and researchers are found at various public and private universities, including: Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR), Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Universidade Veiga da Almeida (RJ), Instituto Federal do Espírito Santo (IFES), Instituto Vale do Cricaré (ES), Universidade Federal de Alagoas (UFAL), Universidade Federal de Sergipe (UFS), Universidade Federal do Piauí (UFPI), Faculdade Integrada do Brasil (FAIBRA-PI), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA), Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana (UEFS), Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia (UESB), Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz (UESC), Universidade Estadual do Ceará (UECE), Universidade Federal da Paraíba (UFPB), Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia da Paraíba (IFPB), Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Department of Education of Amazonas, Universidade Federal de Goiás (UFG), Universidade Federal do Tocantins (UFTO), Universidade Federal do Mato Grosso (UFMT), Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste (UNICENTRO), Universidade de Brasília (UnB), Centro Universitário de Brasília (UniCEUB), Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC), Centro Universitário Facvest (UNIFACVEST-SC), Universidade Federal da Integração Latino-Americana (UNILA), Universidade Federal de Pelotas (UFPEL), Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS).
There are also alumni working abroad during the given year, such as at the Colegio de España and at Universitat Rovira i Virgili, both in Spain; as well as one graduate at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera (ABAB) in Milan, Italy.

It is worth noting that the majority of program alumni work in public institutions, which serves as an indicator of both the quality of education provided by the Program and the strong employability of its teacher-researchers.

Many alumni, when joining other institutions, became engaged in graduate programs or, in the absence of such programs, went on to create new ones. In the case of master's programs, we can cite UFSJ, UFV, and UFOP as examples. At CEFET-MG, both master's and doctoral programs were established.
Many of the laboratories, centers, and research groups associated with Poslin include the participation and collaboration of alumni-now active at various institutions-as collaborators, maintaining very close and cooperative relationships that benefit both sides. Thus, the role played by Poslin's laboratories, centers, and research groups is one of leadership-but also of collaboration-in relation to national and state groups. There is significant cooperation among researchers, which occurs through partnerships and associations. This collaborative work is not limited only to alumni relationships; many researchers from other universities also participate in projects within the program.
Poslin's role in the field of Linguistics is also highly significant, as demonstrated by numerous publications by program members in books and thematic volumes; the organization of area-specific events by accredited professors; participation on master's and doctoral committees; involvement in national projects such as the National Textbook Program (PNLD), among others. As the program covers multiple research lines, it allows for a broad range of perspectives within the larger field of Linguistics and Applied Linguistics.

In terms of scientific dissemination, Poslin has 5 journals, namely:

(i) Revista de Estudos da Linguagem (RELIN) (Qualis A1); year of creation: 1991
Website: http://periodicos.letras.ufmg.br/index.php/relin
The Revista de Estudos da Linguagem is published semiannually, peer-reviewed, and managed by the Graduate Program in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics of FALE-UFMG. It publishes scientific articles and reviews, written in Portuguese, English, Spanish, or French, within the broad field of Linguistic Theory and Analysis. RELIN is currently sponsored by FAPEMIG but also receives funding from Poslin through PROEX resources.

(ii) Revista Brasileira de Linguística Aplicada (RBLA) (Qualis A1); year of creation: 2001
Website: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_serial&pid=1984-6398&lng=pt&nrm=iso
The Revista Brasileira de Linguística Aplicada, a non-profit publication, is a quarterly, peer-reviewed journal whose mission is to promote research in the field of Applied Linguistics. It accepts original articles by scholars holding master's or doctoral degrees, addressing various phenomena related to real-life language problems involving language use in diverse contexts or learning. The journal also publishes reviews, interviews, and two thematic issues per year. Supported financially by CNPq and FAPEMIG, it is managed by the Graduate Program in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics, in the area of Applied Linguistics, and is distributed free of charge to ALAB members.

(iii) Caligrama: Revista de Estudos Românicos (Qualis B2); year of creation: 1981
Website: http://www.periodicos.letras.ufmg.br/index.php/caligrama/index
Caligrama: Revista de Estudos Românicos aims to disseminate Romance studies (both linguistic and literary) by researchers from various institutions in Brazil and abroad. It is published semiannually and is peer-reviewed. It is a partnership between POSLIT and POSLIN.

(iv) Revista Texto Livre (Qualis B5); year of creation: 2008
Website: http://www.periodicos.letras.ufmg.br/index.php/textolivre
The journal Texto Livre is a semiannual publication with an interdisciplinary approach combining Language Studies and Information Systems, focusing on text production and documentation for free software. It accepts publications in Portuguese, Spanish, English, French, and Italian. The journal follows a peer-review policy.

(v) Revista Virtual dos Estudantes de Letras (ReVeLe)
Website: http://www.letras.ufmg.br/cpqNovo
This is an annual journal published exclusively in electronic format, aiming to promote the dissemination of research carried out by graduate (master's and doctoral) and undergraduate (scientific initiation) students from the School of Letters/UFMG. The journal encourages the development of complete and unpublished articles, without necessarily adhering to any specific theoretical orientation.

These journals contribute-some at an excellent level-to the dissemination of knowledge at national and international levels.