Why Au Pair in America Was the Best Decision for My Daughter’s Gap Year

You must be aged between 18-26 to participate in Au Pair in America. We recommend applicants apply at least 6 months prior to their 27th birthday to have sufficient time to complete the application and arrive in the USA. You can also start your application when you are 17 provided you are 18 by the time your placement begins.

You must have a minimum of 200 referenced hours of childcare, but this can cover basically anything related to children! For example, internships or work in daycare centres, schools, nurseries, children's nurses, camp counsellors, sports coaches, babysitting or tutoring. Caring for family members is also great experience and should be included on your application, however it won’t be counted as childcare hours.

Au Pair in America is a minimum 12-month commitment. This may seem like a long time but trust us when we say the year will fly by. 

As most families require an Au pair who can drive, it is a requirement that you have a driving license. We accept P-Plate drivers, as this is the equivalent of a full license in the US. If you are a Learner driver you can still begin your application, but you'll need to pass your driving test before starting your placement.

All Au pairs join a local 'cluster', which is a group of other Au Pair in America participants in your local area. Each cluster is managed by a local Community Counsellor who plans monthly meetings and events for your cluster group to get together and participate in a fun activity such as movie nights, sporting events or cultural activities. Attending these meetings and events is expected of our Au Pairs and is the easiest way to meet other Au Pairs and make lots of new friends.

We recommend that you apply as soon as you have made the decision to participate. It's good to try to get your application finished about 6 months before you'd like to travel to America. On average, it takes roughly 4 weeks to complete an application from start to finish, including attending an interview.

Yes, this is possible - we call it a "pre-match." Both you and the family must still meet the requirements for the program. You should contact the Sydney office with information on the family and the family will need to apply through our US office and go through the normal screening process. You will also still need to submit a full application and be interviewed.

Our aim is that both the Au Pair and Host Family have a happy, successful year. Should a conflict occur between you and your Host Family, the Community Counsellor will assist to resolve any issues as quickly as possible. If the issues cannot be resolved, you will go into ‘rematch’ where you will be able to find a new family.

Remember that it's perfectly natural to feel a bit homesick when you arrive in the USA. You should be able to overcome this through the help of your Host Family, your Community Counsellor and your new Au Pair friends. If you do really want to return home then you will forfeit your return flight and you may not be able to participate on another US cultural exchange program in the future, so please think carefully about your decision to leave early.

Yes! We have a returnee program available, providing that you:

• Have successfully completed your first stay in America
• Have completed the educational component of the program
• Can provide a copy of your completion certificate and reference from your previous Host Family
• Have lived outside of the USA for at least 2 years

If you want to return to the same family as before, we can help arrange this if you qualify as a ‘returnee Au Pair’ and your Host Family are happy to have you back again.