CELPE-BRAS for International Students: University, PEC-G & Scholarships

CELPE-BRAS for University Admission in Brazil

Brazilian federal universities require international students who wish to study through official exchange or scholarship programs to hold a valid CELPE-BRAS certificate. The exam serves as Brazil's official evidence of Portuguese language proficiency and replaces individual language tests that each university might otherwise administer. This standardization means your CELPE-BRAS certificate is recognized by every federal university in the country.

Private universities and state universities in Brazil increasingly accept or require CELPE-BRAS as part of their international student admissions process as well. Even in programs where the certificate is not formally mandatory, holding a CELPE-BRAS certification at Intermediário Superior level or above significantly strengthens your application and demonstrates to faculty that you can follow lectures, participate in seminars, and write academic work in Portuguese.

The PEC-G Program: Undergraduate Studies in Brazil

PEC-G (Programa de Estudantes-Convênio de Graduação) is Brazil's flagship undergraduate scholarship and exchange program for students from developing countries. Managed jointly by the Ministry of Education (MEC) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Itamaraty), PEC-G offers places at Brazilian federal universities to students from partner countries in Africa, Asia, and the Americas. CELPE-BRAS is a core eligibility requirement. Key facts about PEC-G:

• Eligibility: Open to citizens of countries with bilateral agreements with Brazil (over 50 countries, primarily in Africa, Latin America, and Asia). Candidates must hold a complete secondary school certificate and meet the minimum proficiency requirement.
• CELPE-BRAS requirement: Candidates must present a valid CELPE-BRAS certificate at the Intermediário level or above. Some universities and courses require Intermediário Superior. The certificate must be obtained before submitting the PEC-G application.
• Application process: Applications are submitted through Brazilian embassies or consulates in the candidate's home country. The selection process includes document review and may include an interview conducted by consular staff.
• Benefits: PEC-G students are enrolled as regular students at Brazilian federal universities and pay no tuition fees. Some universities offer additional support such as accommodation stipends, though a full scholarship covering living costs is not guaranteed — students are expected to have means of financial support.

The PEC-PG Program: Graduate Studies in Brazil

PEC-PG (Programa de Estudantes-Convênio de Pós-Graduação) is the graduate counterpart to PEC-G, offering places at Brazilian federal universities for master's and doctoral students from partner developing countries. PEC-PG students receive a monthly stipend from CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior) or CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico), making it one of the most financially accessible pathways to graduate study in Brazil.

The CELPE-BRAS requirement for PEC-PG is higher than for PEC-G. Candidates must typically hold a certificate at the Intermediário Superior or Avançado level. This reflects the greater academic demands of postgraduate coursework and research, where students must read specialized literature, write academic papers, and present research findings in Portuguese.

Required Proficiency Levels

Different programs and institutions set different minimum CELPE-BRAS levels. Here is a general guide to what is expected:

Which Universities Accept CELPE-BRAS?

All Brazilian federal universities accept CELPE-BRAS as proof of Portuguese proficiency for international students. This includes USP (Universidade de São Paulo), UNICAMP, UFRJ, UFMG, UnB, UFRGS, UNIFESP, UFC, UFBA, and all other institutions in the federal network — more than 60 federal universities in total. State universities such as UERJ (Rio de Janeiro) and UNESP (São Paulo) also accept CELPE-BRAS.

For PEC-G and PEC-PG specifically, placement is done through a central matching process coordinated by MEC and Itamaraty, so students do not apply directly to individual universities. For students applying outside these programs, check the specific admissions requirements of your target university and program, as some may set their own minimum level thresholds above the national minimum.

How to Apply as an International Student

The process for international students seeking to use CELPE-BRAS for Brazilian university admission varies depending on whether you are applying through PEC-G/PEC-PG or independently. Here are the key steps that apply broadly:

• Obtain your CELPE-BRAS certificate at the required level. If you do not yet hold a certificate, register for the next available exam session through the INEP portal.
• Contact the Brazilian embassy or consulate in your home country. For PEC-G and PEC-PG, they are the primary application point. They will provide the official application calendar and document requirements.
• Gather all required documents: secondary school or university diploma (notarized and translated into Portuguese), birth certificate, passport, CELPE-BRAS certificate, and any additional documents specified in the program notice.
• Submit your application within the published window. For PEC-G, applications are typically submitted between July and September for the following academic year. PEC-PG applications follow a separate calendar — check the official notices published by CAPES and CNPq.
• After selection, complete enrollment procedures with your assigned university. This typically involves presenting original documents, obtaining a student visa (visto de estudante), and completing health insurance requirements.

Scholarship Opportunities for Student Candidates

Beyond PEC-G and PEC-PG, several other scholarship programs are available to international students seeking to study in Brazil. CAPES offers the PDSE (Programa de Doutorado Sanduíche no Exterior) for doctoral students. CNPq offers individual research scholarships. The Brazilian government's Science Without Borders (Ciência Sem Fronteiras) program, though currently inactive as a large-scale initiative, has historically provided thousands of scholarships and may resume in future iterations.

Many individual Brazilian universities also offer merit scholarships and fee waivers for outstanding international students. It is worth contacting the International Relations office (Assessoria de Relações Internacionais) of your target institution directly to ask about opportunities. In all cases, a strong CELPE-BRAS result at Avançado or Avançado Superior level will be a competitive advantage in scholarship applications.

Study Tips for Student Candidates

Student candidates often have the advantage of being younger and still in intensive academic study habits, but they may have had less exposure to formal Brazilian Portuguese than adult professionals. Here is how to maximize your preparation:

• Engage with Brazilian academic and journalistic language: read university newspapers, science journalism sites like Agência FAPESP, and opinion columns in Folha de S.Paulo or O Globo. CELPE-BRAS favors formal registers used in public discourse, which are different from everyday conversational Portuguese.
• Build vocabulary in thematic clusters: CELPE-BRAS topics recur across themes such as public health, environmental policy, education, technology, and social inequality. Build thematic vocabulary banks and practice using those words in written and spoken responses.
• Practice academic writing genres: even if you have strong general Portuguese, practice the specific text types the exam requires. A carta de solicitação, artigo de opinião, and resumo each have distinct structural and register requirements that take dedicated practice to master.
• Develop your oral discussion skills: the oral interview requires you to sustain a coherent, register-appropriate conversation for 20 minutes with a trained evaluator. Practice discussing complex topics in Portuguese aloud, alone or with a language partner, to build fluency and reduce reliance on translation.
• Plan ahead for application deadlines: PEC-G and PEC-PG have annual application cycles with fixed deadlines. Make sure to sit CELPE-BRAS in time to receive your certificate before the scholarship application window opens. Missing a cycle means waiting another full year.

Related Guides

• What Is CELPE-BRAS?
• How to Prepare for CELPE-BRAS
• CELPE-BRAS Exam Dates 2026