Pros and Cons to Being an Au pair

So you’re wondering what an au pair is? Well it’s many things but to start off, the simple answer is that an au pair is someone who moves to another country, lives with a host family and gets a small pay in exchange for looking after the children all while being introduced to the country’s culture. 

Before I get started i’m going to give you a quick tip on being an au pair… JUST GO FOR IT! Being an au pair and living with another family in their country is truly a one of a kind experience. Yes, there are other options to experience new places and cultures like study abroad programs, working as an expat, and backpacking but I am telling you, being an au pair is the way to go! I may be a bit biased because I absolutely loved my host family and country so below are some honest pros and cons of life as an au pair.

Free Housing

Housing and utilities in other countries can be very expensive, especially if you want to live near a city center or in a nice house, having housing taken care of for you is huge! This also saves you the trouble of having to look for a place to stay and for roommates that you hope aren’t secretly crazies which I’m sure you can imagine would not be an easy task! The downside to free housing is that it takes a bit of a learning curve to live with another family in a different culture, who also happens to be your employer. Ideally as an au pair you will be welcomed into the home more as an extension to the family rather than an employee though. At times it can feel like you don’t have much of your own space but it gets easier the more comfortable you get with the family.

The Working Hours

When being an au pair the hours you work will be very different depending on the family that you choose. For example, I mostly worked mornings and then around 3pm until bedtime, 5 or 6 days a week. I did not have a contract with my host family so there weren’t really any “set hours”. On the other hand, my bestie in Australia who was an au pair worked from 7am until around 5pm, five days a week because one of her kids was not school age yet. With that being said, a pro to the hours is that when choosing a family, you can choose which kind of schedule you would prefer. I loved having my alone time during the day to go to the gym, have a quick hike, or just get the chores done in peace. Although, this schedule did prevent me from going to evening activities during the week with friends like dinners or sunset picnics. Another pro for me personally was that the hours were, for the most part, fun! Doing fun activities with kids you love is much better than working in an office or as a waitress if you ask me! The con to this is that if you like more of a structured 9-5 job, you will likely have the kid or kids for that full time with no breaks other than a nap. This is quite full on when trying to get chores done as well but its all up to your preference and when you would rather have your free time.

Free Food!

This point kind of goes along with the free housing. Most families will allow you to eat what you want from the house’s refrigerator and pantry. If you have ever gone grocery shopping and have been shocked when you see the final price, you know what a great expense this saves! A pro or con to this is the type of food they have. You might love it or you might hate it! Again, all au pair experiences are different so as weird as it may seem to ask a potential host family how much of their food you can eat, just ask! I luckily had such a kind and generous family that treated me like their own and encouraged me to have whatever I’d like. But I have heard of some horror stories from my au pairs friends of only being allowed to have a certain amount, being watched and criticized on what they ate, being accused of “stealing” food, and just feeling uncomfortable enough about the situation to end up going home early. I don’t want to scare you, but just to make sure you avoid this problem by simply clarifying beforehand!

The Au Pair Community 

Making friends in a foreign country may seem a bit daunting but au pair groups on Facebook make this much easier! There are au pair groups on Facebook that are specific to your city where you can meet people who are doing the same thing as you! Making friends this way is a great way to meet people from all over the world which will introduce you to even more cultures. While these people are from different parts of the world and may not exactly be your age, you always have something in common to talk about and trust me it is so fun learning about other au pair home situations and kids.The down side here is that it can get awkward. Sometimes you may be chatting with someone and hit it off so you plan to meet up, but once you meet, it is either hard to understand each other because of a language barrier or you just don’t have much in common. Another downside is that you may find some of your best friends here which sounds great but it will prevent you from reaching out and making friends who are actually locals from the country you are in. To prevent this, look into joining a club, class, or gym where you will be able to meet some local people your age!

The Experience as a Whole

Unless you have been an au pair before, it is an experience like nothing you’ve ever known. Throughout the process you learn so much about yourself, the country you’re in, people in general, and the amount of courage you had no idea you had. The experience can be tough, kids can be difficult, you will miss home but when the time comes for you to leave and go back home, you will surely miss that country and family just as much (given a good experience of course)!