Abstract
In the context of the expansion and diversification of Brazilian Higher Education, this paper approaches a theme that has been poorly explored in the national literature: the relationship between the expansion of this educational level and the construction and strengthening of the scientific communities in the states of the country. We analyzed the case of Alagoas aiming to understand the development of its scientific community in the last two decades. We work with data compiled and disseminated by the Directory of Research Groups of Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, based on which we elaborated a characterization capable of providing a support for the objectification of research practice and the training of new researchers. Therefore, the Alagoas experience concomitantly expresses national and local issues, so its study implies a relational look at the recent reconfigurations of the development of science in the country.
Keywords scientific community; expansion; Higher Education; Alagoas