Introduction/objective:

Social networks allow the self-declaration of emotions that would hardly be observed in the physical environment. In this context, this study seeks to ana lyze the relationship between postgraduate experiences and self-declared emotions in social media. In addition, we seek to identify differences in the perception of respond ents according to personal characteristics.

Methodology:

Data obtained from stricto sensu students totaled 1,173 participants. The analysis was performed with the help statistical techniques of differences between groups and structural equation modeling.

Results:

The results reveal that positive emotions are influenced by the course organiza tion, interpersonal relations and support for academic development, in the general mod el. while negative emotions are affected by the course organization and interpersonal relations, in the general model, and the institutional structure and course organization, for the model restricted to the area of applied social sciences.

Conclusions:

The research demonstrates that the emotions that Brazilian students share on social networks are affected by their experiences during postgraduate studies and are subject to variations according to the unique characteristics of each student. Addition ally, the study highlights the relevance of closely monitoring the emotions expressed by students in virtual environments, as this data can offer valuable insights for the admin istration of postgraduate programs.