This article presents the main results of a study that examined the connections between inequalities in access and permanence in higher education, the student aid and employability for a sample of graduates from UFMG. The comparative analysis of the socio-economic status of the graduates, composed both by students who received aid as well as by those who did not, shows that, in the case of the sample in this study, the remuneration of graduates who received aid is in equal terms and affected by the same factors that influence the composition of the income of the others graduates. The present data revealed that income is strongly related to career. According to research on the relationship between schooling and access to the labor market, professionals with high levels of education receive on average higher incomes than received by workers with little or no education. The analysis revealed that by helping poor students obtain a higher education diploma, the student assistance programs help them become skilled and join the labor market carrying valued credentials, increasing their chances of upward social mobility.
Higher education; Support to the student; Labor market