Urban network and polarization over degree courses in the metropolitan Region of The Maranhense Southwest

Abstract

This research aims to understand the polarization of the city of Imperatriz, through the Universidade Estadual da Região Tocantina do Maranhão (UEMASUL, State University of the Tocantina Region of Maranhão) on municipalities of the Metropolitan Region of the Maranhense Southwest (RMSM). For that, it is used as a scope, students of four undergraduate courses: Geography, History, Pedagogy and Portuguese Language and Literature. Methodologically, this is an empirical spatial analysis, anchored in the systematization of secondary and non-nominal data, followed by qualitative examination. In addition to the review of the relevant literature, which supported the research theoretically-methodologically, it included the systematization of data from the Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE, Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics), Regiões de Influência das Cidades (REGIC, Regions of Influence of the Cities), Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas Anísio Teixeira (INEP, Anísio Teixeira National Institute of Studies and Research), and the database of UEMASUL itself. The data produced were systematized in the form of maps, charts and tables and after analysis, suggest that the polarization of Imperatriz through UEMASUL, although goes far beyond the municipalities that make up the RMSM, crossing states such as Pará and Tocantins, does not reach all centers of the metropolitan region.