Job Discussion Forums

[Dwest15]

Hey, I have 4000 dollars and would like to go down to brazil and live for maybe 10 years (while the US fixes its fiscal problems). What would I have to do to get that done???? I already have a BS from a american university and I could possilby finish a MS in 2 years. Will I be able to find a good paying job down there with those credentials without knowing portuguese or will I have to learn it? Please discuss!

Any information will be of use to me.

[JZer]

Dwest15, It might help if you tell us what your BS and MS are in and what you want to do in Brazil? I mean do you want to teach English or get a job with a foreign company? If you have an MS in computer science you could probably find some independent contracts and live in Brazil while you work on some programs and stuff. There are many options, it just depends what your skills are. If you are living the US because of its fiscal problems I would be hesitant because Brazil has many fiscal problems as well. You would just be running from one problem to another.

[Dwest15]

I have a BS in natural science and am thinking about a MS in Information Science (telecomunications). I wouldn't mind teaching english at all. I really would just like some advice about what I should do. I really want to see/live in brazil (I have heard so many good things) I just don't know what is the best way to do it. I mean should I just take like an extended vacation down there for 2 or so years teaching english? should I attempt to get a more permanent job? Is this even a good Idea? Any help would be appreciated.

[JZer]

Dwest15, Brazil is a great country. In 2000 I spend 10 days in Salvador, Bahia. It was great and I have wanted to return ever since. I have applied to the IICA program and hopefully in February I will start teaching English in Brazil. With that said, I have heard that it is hard to secure a proper working visa in Brazil and this is a problem because Americans can only spend 180 days a year in Brazil. You cannot just leave and come back and get another 180 days. If you have been in Brazil for 180 days and leave, you cannot return until next year. People have said that if you stay over 180 days, you will have to pay a fine for each day over 180 when you leave the country.

Another problem is that you will probably only earn about $500-600 a month which is not a lot of money. Teaching English in Brazil is not that lucrative. That is what I know and I will tell you more when I finally make it to Brazil. I would suggest that maybe you should try working there for one year and if you decide that you want to live there for a long time you might want to explore other avenues in which you can earn a better income.

[sousa]

DWest15,

I'm heading to Brazil in June for the first time and with the same amount of cash. I too, have hopes of staying longer.

Although my background is in business; I have spent the last three years teaching English overseas in Asia.
I speak fluent Portuguese (Portugal) and feel pretty much open to doing anything including teaching for the next few years.

My plans are to check out the country first and get a feel for it. I have no doubts I'll fall in love with Brazil. The problem is just as JZer put it, in the last post: The pay is low and of course there's the visa issue. As far as crime is concerned; I'm a bit worried about it but what can you do other than not go at all.

Anyway, I'll be starting off in the North East (bumming around on the beaches) and fitting in some research on job opportunities in between.

Send me an email if you would like to keep in touch. I'll keep you updated as to my progress and relevant information. In the meantime, here are two links to which I found helpful regarding teaching English in Brazil.
(just copy and paste onto your browser).

peace and good luck.

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0503/teaching_english_in_brazil.shtml

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/3941/brsfaq.html#acc

[JZer]

sousa, make sure you go to Salvador. It is wonderful. Secondly I hope that I will be joing you in Brazil soon. I have considered looking for a university job while I am doing the IICA teacher training program. I thought that if I am already in Brazil I can apply for some university jobs for the following year.

[Dwest15]

I mean, could I just get on a flight from miami, land in any brazilian city get a job teaching english? Is that a foolish idea? Any advice on what I should do to get down there?

[JZer]

Like I said before, the problem with Brazil is that you can only stay 180 days a year. If I am wrong someone please correct me. In say Peru, you could just show up and if you got a job under the table which would mean that you would have to leave the country every three months. The difference with Brazil is that after 180 days you will be fined for everyday you remain in the country and there is no escaping because when you go to fly out of the country they will know how long you have been in Brazil and will force you to pay the fine.

Yes, you can show up and look around. Just be aware that many employers will not offer you a proper working permit and due to Brazilian law you can't really get around not having a proper visa. You might be better off going to Venezuela or Peru because you can work there illegally if you have to but I would recommend securing a proper working visa if it is possible.

You could also apply to IICA but the next starting date is February 2006.

[sousa]

Hey JZer,

I have heard great things about Salvador and look forward to checking it out. It will probably be my third stop from Rio following Vitoria along the coast; (That is if all goes according to plan).

Let me know how the IICA gig works out if you wouldn't mind. Perhaps we will meet up somewhere along the road for a few caprinhas!

[email protected]

peace,

sousa

[Tabish]

Sounds like the backpacking way. Listen Dwest, if yor actions bear fruit, please let me know. It will be inspirational. I want to live and work in Brazil/Spain for a # of years as well. Will it kill me if I don't speak Portuguese?

[existe1]

You can definitely live for a while off of 4000k. I went down there in 2003 and lived from late January to September comfortably off that money. I mean at one point I started to supplement with a job working under the table at an English school in Pituba, Bahia, a suburb of Salvador. But, 10 years??? Not real likely off that money obviously. And yes the visa is an issue. I overstayed and can expect some fees upon reentrance but as long as you don't irk a Brazilian to the point where they get immigracao on you, you should be straight. My homegirl lived there for 2.5 years all over Brasil with little to no problem. Have fun, but expect to probably desire to come back after you get a taste of the economy there. It's do-able but rough unless you have sources in other countries for receiving foreign, stronger currencies.

[andrzej]

just to counterbalance the thread, i've been to salvador and found it one of the worst cities in brazil, especially pelourinho, the old downtown and tourist center. it can be a disgusting place. luckily i met a native salvadoran and was told that no one in their right mind but the gringos go to the pelourinho. it's a great town, just make sure to see the whole thing. pelourinho represents the very worst of tourism.

my dear man, 4gs is plenty of money to get you started, but it won't get you far. teach english, and even with the 500 - 600 USD you make, you'll live a very comfortable life. you can go out all the time, meet beautiful women, live in a nice apartment, go out to eat all the time. but don't expect to buy electronics, automobiles, large appliances, or to travel by air outside of the country very often. it is enough money to live, but it is quite a living standard cut relative to what you're used to in the states.

don't worry about the 180 day restriction - why let that stop you from going? i was in a similar situation and finally managed to find out that there is an upper limit to the fine, and it isn't a bank breaker, definitely under 750 dollars, it being something like a dollar per day (that's more than two years over the visa limit). consider it a 'gringo tax'. stay low from the police and make sure not to get deported, and don't sweat overstaying your visa. no one really pays that much attention.

and YES, just go to a city, stay in a hostel, and start looking for an english-teaching job. with your BS, someone will hire you for sure. start talking to people, and something will come up. it isn't difficult at all. had a buddy who was teaching english in curitiba, a lovely city in the south, and got the job just like that. there's a market for english teachers. i thought it was a crazy idea myself, but it is just like that. you have enough to keep you afloat until something comes up, and something will.

as for ten years - you have no idea how long that is. try five months and see how you feel. living there can wear you down after a while. after the five months, you'll be over the 'wow i'm in brazil' stage, and start to see the real brazil. after living there for 13 months, i can tell you that i was glad to come back 'home' to the US.

[csenoner]

why were you so ready to leave brazil. where you not comfotable seeing the crime and poverty violence etc? where were you livng, and did you find work very easily? also you said you didnt like salvador, what city did you like and why? do you know anyone who got hung up out there after trying to teach english. it almost happened to me in rome. i got a job when i was on the verge of returning to chicago

[wayne_weed]

I've had the same thoughts of living in Brazil.

So I pose this question to the experienced and knowledgeable. What if you were to marry a Brazilian living there or abroad? Benefits? Consequences? I'm assuming then that you would not be subject to the 180-day visa for staying there.

[Tiger Beer]