The federal and state universities here in Brazil have always been free. In fact, most people here use the terms "public" as a synonym for "free of charge", whe

The federal and state universities here in Brazil have always been free. In fact, most people here use the terms "public" as a synonym for "free of charge", when talking about education. I think this is great, but it is not "education for everyone" as sometimes it's touted to be. The problem we have is not about paying for college education, but in being able to pass the entry exams. Even though the public higher-education institutions are free of any tuition fees, an enormous part of their students is still composed of upper-middle-class kids, whose parents could afford the high-priced private middle and high schools. It's great we have free public schools, but the inclusion they should provide is still a long ways of becoming true.