Abstract
This paper analyzes inequalities in the transitions to adulthood in Brazil between the 1990's and the 2000's. Three status exchanges are studied: transition from school to work, transition from parents' household to marriage and own household, and transition into motherhood. The analysis presented reveal that there was a diminishment of socioeconomic inequality in patterns of transition, that is, the difference in patterns of transition among youths whose parents had different socioeconomic conditions diminished. The main equalizing force was the educational expansion during the decades of the 1980's, 1990's and 2000's. Gender differences also diminished. Despite all these changes strong inequalities related to the moment in the life cycle in which youth make the transitions remain significant.
Keywords Social inequality; Transitions to adulthood; School and work; Marriage; Fertility