When parents, Laura and Dan Johnson, decided an au pair might be the right childcare solution for their family of five in the summer of 2024, they immediately got to work perusing Au Pair USA’s database of au pairs. They wondered who would be the...
Cultural exchange is the root of the Au Pair program. When you decide to become an au pair in the U.S., you’re signing up to take care of children full time and live with an American family, adapting to a new culture and way of...
Twenty-year-old Charika, also known as Rika, knew the Swerlands were the right family for her from the getgo. Although it was the first family Rika interviewed with, she felt there was a great vibe between them. After just two days of interviews, they had matched....
Since her first interview with the Cassidy family, Dani felt a connection. She’d had other interviews prior, but it didn’t feel the same. “When I was talking with them, I really felt that they were interested in me and my experience as an au pair....
Any au pair would probably feel a little nervous about joining a family with five kids. But for Carla, a 26-year-old au pair from Mexico, those fears didn’t last long. From the interview process with the Sharkey family in March 2023, Carla knew right away...
This post was originally published in December 2015 and revised by other contributors in December 2024. The holiday season is upon us! Here’s a quick overview of holidays celebrated in the U.S. to to get you acclimated to some of fall’s main celebrations, American style:...
This post was originally published in November 2021 and was revised by other contributors in November 2024. Experiencing American holidays is one of the best parts of being on the Au Pair cultural exchange program. On the fourth Thursday of November most people in the...
Most au pairs decide to join the program for a number of reasons: they want to improve their English, they are excited to live in a new country and learn about a new culture, and they enjoy taking care of kids. When Layla graduated college...
Exchange Day is a worldwide celebration of the power of international exchange. International exchange participants (including au pairs), community stakeholders, and organizations who administer exchange programs share cultural diversity and American customs, give back to their communities, and have some fun! Exchange Day is also...
Did you know that when you join the Au Pair program, you don’t just become part of an American family, you are also welcomed into a community of au pairs from all over the world? Each Local Coordinator is responsible for a ‘cluster’ or group...