How Do Host Families Interview Au Pairs?

So you’ve decided to finally host an Au Pair. Horray! We couldn’t be any happier for you and we’re so glad you’ve chosen us to be your partner on this journey. Now that you’re ready, the next step to take is learning about the Au Pair recruitment process.

• Screening – this is when you chat with the Au Pair through messenger or Whatsapp.
• Interview – this is when you speak with the Au Pair via Skype or other types of app and ask relevant questions to get to know her/him.
• Reference Check – this is when you’ve chosen the potential Au Pair who you think is a good match and make calls to her/his references or previous Host Family
• Confirmation – this is when you’ve finally found the perfect Au Pair and you let her know what’s next.

In this blog, we are going to learn about the Au Pair screening, interview questions you need to ask, and the warning signs you need to watch out for.

Au Pair Screening

The objective of this part of the Au Pair recruitment process is to eliminate those who do not fit your requirements or who are not a good match. If for example, you need someone who can drive, you of course need an Au Pair with a drivers licence. Therefore you must only consider Au Pairs who fit this criteria. Other questions you may want to ask during the screening stage are:

• When can you start?
• How long can you stay?
• What type of Visa do you have? – remember your Au Pair must have either a Working Holiday Visa or a student visa
• What languages do you speak?
• What country are you from? – this will help you validate the type of visa she’s holding
• Do you have experience looking after children?
• Why do you want to be an Au Pair?
• Why are you interested in our family?

Asking these questions during the very early stage of the Au Pair recruitment process will greatly help you save time and effort dealing with the wrong Au Pair down the line. They are also crucial in finding the right match for your family. 

Warning Signs to Watch Out For

1. Not asking enough questions about your family and children.
2. Asking for pocket money and hours before asking about your family and children.
3. Repetitively asking for hours.
4. Wanting to see the room.
5. Asking for additional benefits – will you pay for phone, car, etc.
6. Can you pay for my flights?
7. Can you pay for my medical insurance?

These questions from the Au Pair will tell you that they are not IN for the experience but more on looking for a job and taking advantage of what you offer rather than in establishing a good, lasting relationship with you and your family.

Sample Interview Questions for Au Pairs

You survived the Au Pair screening, found potential Au Pairs, everything sounds suitable, now it’s time for an interview. Ideally, this should be done face to face and in person but sometimes it just doesn’t work out that way. However, a quick Skype or Facetime interview should give you a chance to get to know the Au Pair more. Here are some interview questions for Au Pairs that we highly recommend you ask:

1. Tell us about yourself, your life back home, your family. What do your parents do? What do your siblings do?
2. What did you do today? What did you have for breakfast? 
3. What would your perfect host family be like?
4. Have you lived away from home before? If so, how long? How do you handle being so far away from family and friends?
5. What’s the longest you’ve been away from your parents? Have you ever traveled without your parents or family?
6. What length of placement are you looking for? How much longer do you intend to stay in Australia?
7. Do you expect anyone to come and visit you in Australia? If so, who? when?

Screening and interviewing will take some time and effort but as long as it is done right, it will be worth it. 

If you lack time and need help with searching and screening for Au Pairs, send us an e-mail at support@99aupairs.com. We will help find the perfect Au Pair match for your family.