Becoming an au pair overseas is very easy – and safe – especially when you use a specialist agency. Being an au pair gives you the opportunity to spend some time abroad without spending a lot of money.

For example, after finishing high school, before continuing your studies, you could spend a year abroad as an au pair and improve your language skills in a foreign country.

• Thorough planning is very important in order to become an au pair
• Make sure that you meet the au pair requirements
• You should be willing to spend a long time abroad without seeing your friends and family

Childcare experience including babysitting

The first thing is to make sure you have the right amount of childcare experience.  Of course, you should also enjoy working with children.

Parents want to be sure to leave their children with an experienced person. Therefore, it is important to have some work references and include them in your resume to show how important it is for you to become an au pair. If you don’t have any childcare experience, yet, don’t worry.

There are lots of ways to get the required hours:

• Babysitting for a non-family member
• Coaching a sport team
• Helping out with a youth camp

Plan ahead 

The more time you leave the better prepared you can be and the better your chances of securing an amazing host family. We have many applicants start their journey a year in advance!

What country?

Choosing a country is usually pretty easy for most au pairs. They have held a life-long goal to visit France or they have relatives overseas. Or they have a favourite language. If you are having trouble choosing a country, we can help you narrow it down. We’ll look at what you like doing, your goals for your time away, and share the countries we think would suit you based on years of experience.

City or a regional area?

Where do you want to be an au pair, in the country, in a small town or in a big city? You need to decide this before you start looking for a host family abroad. Your work as an au pair in the countryside is very local, very embedded. What is the nearest town? Will there be other au piars near you? How easy is it to travel around? Is there good public transport? The first step to becoming an au pair is to think of the country where you would like to work. My best advice for this is just to really listen to your gut on what you find interesting. Do you go crazy for Flemish architecture? Or do you just love the cadences of the Italian language? Search for a job in a country where you have always wanted to live and with a language you would like to learn.

When to head off?

The best dates for starting your work as an au pair are generally August/September and January/February. As the host families come back from their vacations for the new school year, the late summer is a good time to start your au pair work abroad. The demand for au pairs during this period is especially high.

Find a host family

Get an agency to screen and find a family for you – which is definitely the best – and safest idea.

There are a lot of au pair scams out there, so be careful. Google “au pair scams” if you are not sure what is lurking out there. We’d encourage everyone to be very careful when exchanging personal details.