How did I get my job as an au pair?

So what’s an au pair? I describe it as a live in nanny who is compensated with a home, food, and a small weekly allowance, although every family does it a little differently and has their own expectations. I don’t know a ton yet about all of my duties, but I do know I will be watching the girls for a few hours everyday and I will be speaking to them in English so they can learn and practice.

Back in October I was starting to stress about what to do the summer after I “graduated” but before I student teach this fall. Yes, I wanted to make a little money but my one goal was to keep practicing my Spanish. I remembered that one of my friends in Spain had mentioned that he had been an au pair so I reached out and asked him a bit more about what it was like. Later that day, I made a profile on aupairworld.com and was messaging families throughout Spain.

I didn’t have many expectations while looking for a family because I didn’t know what I should be looking for. I knew I wanted a decent sized city somewhere that I had not traveled to when I studied abroad. I messaged a ton of families stating what I was looking for and my background with children and teaching.

One day, I got a very sincere message from a family that lives in Zaragoza with two little girls. We kept talking and the mom gave me the phone number of their previous au pair to ask about her experience and ask any questions. I reached out to the girl and she did not have one bad thing to say about the family. I decided they were the ones that I wanted to spend my summer with.

I found the process of getting the job to be pretty simple! It’s similar to an online dating application in terms of pictures, preferences, and sending messages. The match between family and au pair has to be mutual of course. I found it interesting that there is nothing that commits the families and au pairs to each other besides trust and constant open communication.

I feel lucky to have had such a great experience throughout the process and am open to answer any questions about it!