Nyc in sp.

Hi Mariana,

Born in the USA or not, you have Brazilian citizenship if you've applied for it. This is your right.

If you've already got your citizenship then you can enter into any of the public concursos for the very well-paid and secure public sector jobs. Worth checking into!!!

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

I have heard of these wherre do I look? Would you know by any chance?

Concurso Publico is what you should be looking for, they are often announced in the news so keep an eye on www.g1.globo.com they announce them from time to time. I also believe that they're listed in the Diário Oficial de União (DOU) which is the Official Gazette of the Federal Government. You might even be able to find out through the Ministry of Labor CAT (Centro de Apoio ao Trabalhador) Centers.

You do have to formalize your citizenship in order to qualify, if you haven't already done so.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

William is spot on with his advice; he always is. There are also courses available to prepare people for the concursos. Check the newspaper classifieds and ask friends. Once you've decided what type of work you are qualified for, you should definitely look into it. You can also find magazines at newsstands to get you started and give you an idea of what a test entails. Btw, I'm also a New Yorker by birth. Good luck.

Working for the Government, via "concursos" is far from being the only option.
There are plenty of jobs in Brazil. But it will depend on the qualifications you have. Engineers can get well-paid jobs quickly. Especially in the shipyards located in Rio, Itajaí and Recife. Maybe in Santos as well. Civil engineers are highly demanded as well.  Technicians (Electrical, mechanical etc) that provide services to drillships and platforms never get unemployed. Another interesting field is TI. Are you a programer of sth alike?

Hi, I have been working with HR for some years now... if you need any help on finding jobs please send me your cv that I can share with some headhunters I know. Hope you can start enjoying your life here!

I agree with Carioca10. There are plenty of jobs in Sao Paulo, specially for bilingual professionals. Some of my friends who lived in the US for a while, when they came back, they went after a specialized agency. She paid in advance, but they got her a job at a nice place. ThatŽs the way to go if you donŽt have network connections.
In regards to concurso, itŽs one of the ways, but concursos are highly competitive and you need to study more than as if you were trying to study at a public university. You need to take special courses and study non-stop. In my town, for city jobs, university undergraduates are applying for janitorial services. All for low paying jobs, but stabitity. Even if you get a good score, it may take months or years until they actually hire you. So, donŽt count on it. You will also need a good level of the Portuguese language.
Another option, if you didnŽt get a college degree, is to get one here. Hotel management is a two-year course, and you would be hired quickly as you can speak English. There are even shorter courses that in the US would take 2 years: Cosmetology, Nurse Aid, Baker, Dental Assistant, etc
Good luck