How to Become an Au Pair

1. Choose a relevant country 

It isn't actually necessary to know the language of the country that you want to au pair in as you can au pair only speaking English (if you choose an English-speaking country or choose a family who only speak English, albeit their second language).

Do your research on:

  • The cost of living 
  • Things to do that interest you in the city/town/country that you want to go to

2. Use a website to find a host family 

It's possible to use an agency to find a host family but it can cost a hefty sum for this when you could do it all for free yourself.  I used the most popular au pair websites worldwide, www.aupairworld.com.

You set up a profile by adding your specifications and requirements for a family and a bit about yourself so a family can review you as well. You are given an extensive list of all the families who have signed up and you can browse to see which families catch your eye.


3. Interview process 

After you've narrowed the selection of families down, you can arrange correspondence with them. It's best to have a Skype interview as it allows you to gauge the vibe and also test the waters to see if you would get along face-to-face. It also gives you an opportunity to actually see the children and introduce yourself and clarify if they are definitely the kids that you want to look after.


Key questions to ask about 


  • What will the daily schedule be like? (What days will you work? What shift patterns?) 
  • When would your free time be? 
  • What are the responsibilities that you will be undertaking? (e.g. Will you have to cook meals?) 
  • How much allowance will you receive? 
  • Is there anything of importance about the children/family/home that you need to know about?
  • What is the current level of the children's English? 
  • Have they previously had an au pair? (If so, ask for their contact details so you can discuss what their experience with the family was like)  

4. Preparing for possible problems

1. They want you to do more than you bargained for

If this happens, speak to the parents and try to negotiate. For example, in my experience (which I will go into detail about in my next post), my host family tried to take my free time away from me. I stood my ground as I believed this was extremely unfair and ended up managing to get almost all my weekends off. 

2. Don't be scared to swap families 

If you really are not getting along with the family and believe that they aren't the right ones for you once you have already arrived there, do not be afraid to change. It might seem extremely awkward but you cannot be forced to stay with them.

Depending on the area that you are au pairing in, it can be pretty easy to find a replacement family quickly. Obviously, if you are staying in a big city there will be more opportunities than if you were to stay in a village in the middle of nowhere. There are au pair Facebook groups in most cities where listings are posted constantly with people looking for an au pair. For example, in Madrid, there was Au-Pair in Madrid/Spain or Au-Pairs in Madrid which, combined, have over 11,000 members.

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