This study focuses on the analysis of individuals with higher education who have migrated in the state of Rio Grande do Norte (RN), a northeastern Brazilian state that has undergone a notable process of expansion and internalization of public higher education in recent decades. Brain drain, or "fuga de cérebros" in Portuguese, is a complex phenomenon that occurs when qualified individuals migrate in search of better opportunities. In the case of RN, the internalization of higher education and the establishment of university campuses in interior cities have played a significant role in population mobility and regional development. The research uses data from the IBGE Demographic Censuses from 1980 to 2010 to investigate whether there are impacts of this internalization on the migration of individuals with higher education or their retention in the state. The study focuses on the period from 1980 to 2010, allowing for the identification of trends and patterns over these four census decades. The results of this study are relevant not only to RN but also to other regions seeking to understand how the expansion of higher education can affect the mobility of the qualified population.