The Graduate Program in Administration and Development (PPAD) at the Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE) officially began its activities in January 2003 with the establishment of the Academic Master’s Degree in Administration. Throughout its history, the Program has established itself as a leading graduate program in the education of researchers and professionals, continuously expanding its academic and scientific presence. In recent years, PPAD has undergone a process of institutional renewal, redefining its area of concentration, research lines, and curriculum. In 2025, the Academic Doctoral Program in Administration and Development was approved by the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES), with its first cohort beginning in 2026. This milestone further strengthens PPAD’s role in educating highly qualified researchers and professionals and advancing scientific excellence.
PPAD has a single area of concentration, Administration and Development, and is organized into two research lines: Competitiveness and Management and Public Policies, Development, and Sustainability. Its teaching, research, and extension activities encompass topics such as strategy, innovation, technology, information systems, operations management, supply chains, agribusiness, circular economy, sustainability, regional development, public policies, entrepreneurship, quality management, logistics, and organizational transformation, always aligned with contemporary societal and market demands. The Program aims to educate faculty members, researchers, and professionals capable of contributing to scientific, technological, economic, and socio-environmental development at the regional, national, and international levels.
PPAD continuously invests in improving its academic infrastructure, enhancing the qualifications of its faculty and technical staff, promoting internationalization, and strengthening research networks and interinstitutional cooperation. The Program also fosters a culture of strategic planning, self-assessment, and continuous improvement, seeking to enhance the quality of its teaching, research, and innovation activities, expand its scientific output, and increase its academic and societal impact. Today, PPAD attracts students from different Brazilian states and from abroad, reinforcing its national and international presence.
The Program offers on-campus Academic Master’s and Academic Doctoral degrees. The Master’s program has a standard duration of 24 months, while the Doctoral program has a standard duration of 48 months, providing solid scientific and methodological training integrated with research aimed at generating knowledge, fostering innovation, and addressing relevant challenges faced by public and private organizations and society as a whole.
Each year, PPAD conducts a public admission process for new students, offering positions distributed across its two research lines. The Program adopts policies that promote inclusion and internationalization, attracting students from different regions of Brazil and abroad while encouraging academic mobility, scientific cooperation, and participation in national and international research networks.
In summary, PPAD’s mission is to educate outstanding researchers and professionals while producing scientific knowledge and promoting innovation in the field of Administration and Development. The Program is strongly committed to academic excellence, sustainability, institutional cooperation, and the generation of economic, social, and environmental impacts. Its activities are guided by the continuous pursuit of excellence, the strengthening of applied research, and meaningful contributions to regional, national, and international development.