Why did I decide to become an au pair instead of a student?

The quick answer should be money, yes money, evidently many women like me who decided to become an au pair, chose this way because it is cheaper than to go to United states as a student. In this post I want to include some additional reasons and compare them. Let's go!

1. Money to invest

While money is the main reason we leave our countries to become au pairs in the United States, it doesn’t mean it's free or cheap.  We all invest in the au pair program. Let's take a look at the cost. In 2017, the agency charged me $1,050 US dollars for the complete process.  Of course I ended up spending more getting the requirements for the trip which included a passport, visa, national e international driver's license, medical report, transportation to Bogotá several times, documents, etcetera.  I calculate I invested a total of $1,500 US dollars.

As a student, the price varies even more.  You may not know the exact cost differences between studying at a university, a college, or a private language school. I have been able to find very cheap English courses in New York (from $3,000 usd a year, which is incredible) and the schools can help you get together the documents needed to request a student visa.  While at a community college in California, I found out about a business program which costs about $17,000 a year. At a university, the price increases considerably. It can range from $25,000 to $35,000 depending on the area of study.

2. English level

To become an au pair you have to have a conversational English level B1.   The agency will conduct an interview and a level test to verify that you meet this requirement.  On the other hand, to be a student, you must demonstrate an approximate score of 60 -70 on the TOEFL for colleges and a 90 for universities.  If you are going to study English you don't have to take this test.

3. Travel and vacations

An au pair has 2 paid weeks for travel and when you finish your program can take a travel month without being paid.  As a student, you have summer vacations, that is unless you decide to study during your summer break. In your first year as an au pair you can travel outside of the country but in your second year you are restricted to travel inside the United States, Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico and some islands.  As a student you can travel with special permission.

4. Work

As soon as we arrive as au pairs, we have work taking care of the children of our host families. We work up to 45 hours per weekend, which is a lot!  Most au pairs have a split work schedule. In the mornings, we work to get the children ready for school. Then, we have a break in the day and come back to work when the kids finish school.  We work through the afternoon and evening and get the children ready for bed.

When you are a student, you can not work legally outside the campus.  This leads to students working illegally and part time. Getting a job on campus is very competitive and there aren’t enough jobs for everyone. You would  have to go out to look for a job willing to pay you in cash. Usually this is not really difficult if you move. Also when you finish your studies you can take a OPT.

Please note that you can only be an au pair for 2 years, being a student depends on your financial ability.

5. Money to earn

As an au pair, we do not even earn the minimum wage. The families are required to pay us $200 usd weekly for 45 working hours.  That ends up being less than $4.50 usd per hour. I’d say that is unfair! Usually, the families don't pay more than that, but if they want to, they can.

As a student, you aren’t supposed to make money, but many students work as babysitters, waiters, cashiers, and other similar jobs.  The rate of pay varies from state to state but most pay the minimum. Here in California for example, they pay a minimum wage of $11 an hour.  I’ve found babysitting jobs where they pay $15 or $20 per hour. You do the math!

6. Amenities, housing, food

Clearly, it doesn’t pay to be an au pair for the salary!  So, we have the right to a private room, access to a bathroom inside the house, three meals a day and a telephone with active service. Students, on the other hand, need enough money to pay for room and board, or they find a sponsor who is going to provide a room.  Students are responsible for their own meals.

7. Free time

As an au pair you work 9 hours daily.   You are supposed to have the rest of the time free but many families have curfew in their houses.  That means that some au pairs need to be in bed sleeping 8 hours before starting work. That means you would have only 5 hours a day of free time depending on how many hours you work per day.  Other families do not have this stupid rule and realize that we are adults. If your host family gets this, you’ll have 15 hours to go out, sleep or do whatever you want.

As an au pairs, your free time depends on the family.  As a student, your free time depends on your class schedule and the time it takes to complete assignments.  In a language school, you usually study 4 or 5 hours a day and the rest is your free time.

8. Studies

As a student, you come to learn, to work toward your future goals, to get a better job, or to get a handle on a language.  By the time you finish your studies, you will have better opportunities in your country or abroad. Being an au pair, your English will improve if you make friends who don’t speak your native language all the time.

As au pairs, we have a study bonus of $500 usd per year given by the host family.  Honestly, it is not much money to study something other than English. You can take weekend classes.  In Texas I found 80 hour English courses for $100 dollars and free English classes in churches. However, if you want classes for college credit that may help you in a career, those classes are worth 3 times as much. In California, I found free and high quality English classes at adult education schools, but they didn’t offer college credits.  So if your goal is to study for a career, you must submit the TOEFL or IELTS. It is a lie that you can study all year as an pair. There is not enough time in your schedule because it changes according to when the children you care for are in school.

9. Cultural exchange

In the United States you will find a variety of cultures everywhere, not only Americans. It is a great country to interact with people of all nationalities. Whichever way you choose.

10. Freedom

From my own experience, after living with two families, I can say that as an au pair, there is not much freedom.  Even with my second family that does not give me a curfew, I do not have free time. Without a doubt, I think that being a student gives you more freedom to manage your free time, whether for work or for travel.

To conclude, I didn't have enough knowledge about studying abroad, my English level was really low and I didn't have the money, even for the au pair program, so I had to work a lot to get the start-up money. If you feel like that, try the au pair program  But if you have money, you meet the english level and already know what you would like to study, don't hesitate take the student route!

Feel free to ask me any question in the comments below.

Au Pair Video 🎬

I worked really hard in my au pair application video. Remember the most important is be yourself, try to record the video with a high quality camera or cellphone, be careful with the audio if it is necessary record the audio with an extra device such as a cell phone.

I edited my video with Adobe Premiere CC, Photoscape for collages pictures and I recorded it with my Xperia cellphone in that time, I also used a tripod to hold my cellphone while recording. 

I took advantage of the beautiful Christmas backgrounds in my city for record, I woke up really early to get those places empty and no noise from people and traffic since they were outdoors on a main road in the city.

The video has to include:

• Introduce yourself.
• Who is your family and what studies do you have. 
• Your childcare experience (preferably with pics and videos)
• Why do you want to become an au pair, what are your expectations.
• What do you like to do for fun in your spare time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE1XN7AlgHs

Questions for host families in the interviews 📝

When I was interviewing families, I knew that choosing the right family that will fit my personality and tastes was the key to having a good experience in the United States. Here below I leave the questions, which will be very helpful.

1. Have you had an au pair? where do they from?
2. What are your expectations with the next au pair?
3. What are the personalities of each member of the family?
4. As parents how you educate your children when they are wrong, how do you act?
5. What is your job? Do they work at home or out?
6. How is a normal day in your family?
7. I should cook? how often? what do children eat?
8. Do children have any medical prescription?
9. What kind of light errands do you need your au pair do?
10. How is the kid’s laundry? how often?
11. How often do the cleaners go home?
12. Does the au pair have curfew? 
13. Do you need your au pair to work on weekends? How many weekends will I have free?
14. How long in advance do you plan the au pair's schedule?
15. When you traveling as a family, do you take the au pair?
16. What restrictions do I have to use the car?
17. Does the au pair share the car with someone?
18. Where and how is the au pair's room? Could you show me? Do I have to share the bathroom?
19. Could I talk to your current au pair? Can you give me her email?
20. Could I get the handbook that you have given to your au pair? I would like to know to know the rules, schedules, tasks, etc.
21.  What are your feelings about religion?

Host families, where and how were my experiences? California or Texas?

Today I’d like to share my experiences living with the two families with whom I worked for as an au pair.  Finding the right family for you is the key to have an amazing au pair experience. check questions for the host families in the interviews.


My First year as an official au pair started in April 20th when I took a flight from New york to Dallas, Texas.  There, I lived for a year with a family of four; a mother, father, and two girls ages 5 and 2. The host dad, who was 42 years old at the time, had an important position as a vice president for an oil company in the city, so he was usually out of town once a month for 2 to 4 days. The host mom was 40 years old and she worked more than her husband. she worked for a financial company by checking in and contacting people who kept accounts with her company. The oldest daughter was going to first grade at an elementary school close to home. She also went to swimming lessons and soccer practice. The baby went to daycare while the oldest one was at school, so I was free every morning from 7.40 am until 2:40 pm.  Then I would return to work once the kids got out from school.

The house was located in a suburban area, the neighborhood looked nice and fancy yet terrifyingly lonely. In the year that I was there, I only met 4 or 5 neighbors. My room was on the second floor. It was large and comfortable with a queen bed, desk, closet and a private bathroom. Honestly, it was really nice. This family had 3 cars; each parent had their own vehicle and I used a Nissan SUV with 5 seats to transport the children.  The Nissan was also used by the grandparents when they were traveling. I wasn’t allowed to use this car to travel.

My experience with this family was good.  We got along well and our relationship was always respectful.  I was free every weekend and I usually woke up at 10 or 11 in the morning.  I didn't like to go to the kitchen and have breakfast with the family on the weekend since I was there all day during the week.   I enjoyed having my weekends free to have some alone time or to hang out with my friends. I found an amazing Colombian group and joined them while I was in Dallas.  They were the most fun part of my au pair year. I made a best friend, who was also an au pair and Colombian too! We shared many moments together, we traveled and hung out with the group almost every weekend.  We usually organized barbecues and dance parties. I was never interested in having a boyfriend so my time was dedicated to myself, travel, and friendships.

For my second year, I changed families. I moved to California!!! I arrived in Sacramento and this host family was completely different than the first, I mean literally night and day.  It’s a family of 6. A dad, mom, a 15 year old teenager, 11 year old twins (a boy and girl), and a 9 year old. I was responsible for the 3 youngest kids. The host dad was 52 years old and ran his own family business selling houses.  He was always very busy. The mom was 50 years old. She was an immigration lawyer but she didn't work while I was there. She had OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder, but this isn’t why she did not work. In fact she was taking care of her eldest daughter who had ADHD, so they were usually at doctor’s appointments, shopping or at therapy sessions.  I had a good relationship with my host mom. She was lenient, comprehensive and helped me meet my goals. How couldn’t I love her! I never had a good communication with my host dad because he was always busy and wasn’t interested in talking about children.

The teenager was in 9th grade.  Sometimes I would pick her up and bring her home or I would take her to appointments when her mom was busy. The twins, a girl and a boy were so cute.  They were blonde and in 5th grade. He liked soccer and playing with legos (he was really good at building legos), and the girl loved drawing and music. The youngest boy was in 3rd grade.  He was into sports and liked soccer, football and basketball. These children were more difficult to take care than the girls in Texas, but there were still advantages working with the second family. I had my own apartment next to their house.  It was a pool house, so I had my own independent space. It was completely amazing, with a queen size bed, closet, tv, dining room, sofa-bed, fridge, microwave and a private bathroom. I was really happy living there for a year. It was a pretty house with a pool.  Since it was in the city, I was close to everything. I didn't have curfew, my friends were able to spend time with me at the pool house, and my parents even came to visit me for a month. They stayed there in the pool house with me. Also the host family had 3 cars. The car I usually drove was a Suburban SUV, a big one with 7 seats.  If I wanted to take a car for weekend, they would lend me a old Mercedes.

I had a strong relationship with my host mom, we were very close.  Sadly, I can't say the same about my host dad. He was away all time and we were never close.  I had more privacy and independence the second year, not as many friends as my first year. I got a boyfriend and spent almost all of my free time with him, but our relationship ended two months before a I left. I went many times to San Francisco, the bahia area, and many parks in California. Also, the second year I was able to work extra hours, not just with my host family, but also with other families, so I was able to make extra money . Another positive thing is that my host mom was at home, so if one of the children didn't go to school I didn't have to change my plans to take care of them, she usually did.  Also, I found several nearby adult education centers where I study english for free every day. The educational level of these programs seem great to me!

In general, I had two great experiences as an au pair. I've never had to rematch and I had the opportunity to save most of my salary. look at a post dedicated to give you tips to save your money being an au pair and I hope you can save the same as me or even more!