Dear Friends,

I come from Thailand. Now, I am planning to do PhD in lusophone world. That is because there more scholarships are available for a person from a developing country.

However, I still need your advices for my future situations.

1. Will it make sense?, if I study Portuguese language in Portugal in order to do PhD in Brazil. (Portugal has scholarship for foreign students to study Portuguese languages.)

I am worrying about the language difference between the European Portuguese and the Brazilian Portuguese. In your mind, will this become a big problem?



2. Can anyone tell me the difference in the quality of the higher education between Portugal and Brazil?

To be honest, I have a little knowledge about quality of higher education in Brazil and Portugal. I cannot tell which one is better. Or who produces more researches than another one?



3. If you finish PhD in Brazil, will it be easy for you to find an academic position in Brazil?



4. Where has a tough policy on PhD student recruitment?



5. Do you know anyone having a long plan of PhD study, like me?



6. If you already completed your PhD in Brazil or Portugal, please can you share your experiences with me?



I hope that my question will not insult Brazil or Portugal.

Feel free to give me comments here. All answers and feedback are very welcomed.

Thank you very much in advance.

Sincerely yours,

Fernando,

hi Fernando sawadee-ka welcome to the forum! Thanks for sharing your ambitions with us.

1. Let's say you study Portuguese in Portugal and after such-and-such a time, you have an excellent command of the Portuguese language. If so, you will be more likely to recognise differences between European Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese. There will not be much problem about language difference if you are already good in Portuguese in Portugal (when you go to Brazil).

But it will only be a BIG problem if your portuguese is weak.

2. To be honest, I would not do a phd in Portugal or Brazil. I guess to go there, you'd also have to consider the university and who you'll be working with, what project etc. It's hard to say which is good without relating to any particular topic.

3. Don't know this one. But I can say that it is hard to get a job in the UK with a phd. Having a PhD does not guarantee us a job.

4. What exactly do you mean by tough policy? Is it immigration? I think it will be almost the same anywhere in the world. I can say though-- that in the UK, it is tough because the border agency changes its rules/policy/whatever-it-is-called very often. For example, if you're applying to extend a student visa, you need to check back at the website to download the latest form, why because they keep changing it. Then they make you go back to the university and sign attendance all because you are an international student.

5. I think most of us have experienced a long plan of study like you, or have gone through it.

6. Did my phd in UK.

I've tried to answer your questions, now I have one to ask you :-)

How passionate do you feel about learning the Portuguese language? It is difficult to learn a new language--and if you do a phd in a foreign language you might be expected to write a thesis in that language. I once met a Japanese phd student who did his phd in MALAYSIA in the Malay language. It took him 7 years to write the thesis because he had to study the language before he could write it.

The choice is yours--and the world is at your feet! If you go to Portugal, post here and let us know! happy new year :-)

love satchi

Dear Satchi, Thank you very much / Muito obrigado! / Kobkhun-krab,

To extend my QUESTION No.4, I mean the University's Policy. I know about the British system because I finished my master degree there. I heard about the U.S. But, I am not sure about Brazil / Portugal.

Are you sure your PhD would be in Portuguese, even if you were studying in either Portugal or Brazil? Many European universities just use English as a first language for a thesis (I don't know about Brazil).

It's probably better to do a PhD in English... it's a more universal language so there will be more opportunities. Also, it's hard enough doing a PhD in a language you know very well, let alone doing it in another one!

I imagine their student acceptance policies are all similar to the UK: you need to meet minimum grade criteria and language levels.

Dear TREEOFLIFE,

Thank you very much for your advices. But, to be honest, my English is not my mother tongue. But, I can finish my two master theses in English language. I can imagine, if I have to write in Portuguese for my thesis or I have to negotiate with my future university.

However, still, I am very grateful to your advice.

To be honest, I came up with this solution, because I am not confident that I can get IELTS band 7.0 or not, although I completed my master degree in UK. IELTS is a tricky test for me.

Most of my targeted universities require me to redo the test, because I finish MA in 2010. They do not trust my proficiency anymore. But, I will not give up my dreams.

But, I am planning to do it in order to open my PhD opportunities.

Thank you very much

Sincerely yours,

Fernando

hi Fernando
so one of the reasons you want to study Portuguese is because the university in Portugal will not ask you to do an IELTS again? I mean, there won't be an English requirement if you study Portuguese?

treeofLife is right about doing phd in English -- but Portuguese is also not your first language, wow it will be a challenge for you either way I guess.

just out of curiosity -- what about a phd in Thailand?

When there is a will there is a way :-)

love satchi

Dear Satchi,

Thank you very much for your generosity and supportive advices. Yes, I have no doubts about my first language.

Maybe, I just go for IELTS. I am discussing about it with several universities, because the deadline is coming. I make a wrong plan for my PhD in this year.

But, it is not only about language. Of course, Portuguese or Brazilian universities will ask me to do any language test. I may try my new destiny.

1. In the viewpoint of the Thailand's quality of higher education, it is not comparable to the western world or the standard of East Asia.

2. Work opportunities after graduation is one of my decisive factor. Brazil and China have the increasing demands of PhD graduates for their academic world.

So, that is why I ask you about the employment opportunities after my future graduation day.

3. I am very worried about scholarship. Due to the world economy, many governments cut their scholarship for education sectors, esp. scholarship for international students. But, as I follow the news, some countries do not have the policy about budget cut for their own education sector.

Or, maybe I have negative images about the global education sector. Who knows that I could be wrong?

4. I want something new. New experiences and new areas of researches. It will be useful for my students in the coming future. I even think about universities in India and South Africa.

Anyway, do you have any advices? I am very welcomed to your advices.

Thank you very much again.

Sincerely yours,

Fernando

hi fernando
my advice is to look for opportunities that are available NOW. I chose my phd based on the research -- and then I found out which university it was. Just start looking and you may find something you like.

best of luck

love satchi

Not all UK universities need a 7 in IELTS - there are many where you just need a 6 or 6.5.