Jerry N. from Utah emailed us this question about
Educare Au Pairs:
"My children are now 10 & 12. We really don't need a full time au pair. She doesn't have enough to do all day, and we cannot expect her to do the family's laundry and housecleaning. She often sits home all day until 3:00 pm, waiting for the kids to get home from the bus. I am thinking about the Educare program - do you recommend this program?"Yes Jerry, of course. Let me print out my new article on
Educare that I was planning to add on the website by end of this week! Here it is:
Educare Au Pairs Are Great for School-Aged Children
Educare au pairs are just the thing for families with older children! School-aged children, who are in school all day, do not need full-time childcare.
If you have school-aged children and you don't need a full 45 hours of childcare per week, perhaps you can get by
with 30 hours of childcare. If this is the case, the good news is,
you pay less!What are the Benefits of an Educare au pair?
- Au pairs participating in the Educare component receive 75 percent of the weekly rate paid to non-Educare participants. You save money with Educare au pairs. For 45 hours of childcare, the stipend for standard au pairs is $195.75 and for Educare au pairs, the stipend is only $146.81.
- Educare au pairs, who provide care for school-aged children, up to 18-years-old, are often more mature, older and academically oriented compared to younger, less mature au pairs.
- Au pairs from the Educare program are ideal for families that require childcare before and after school.
What are the Caveats of the Educare Program?
- Educare au pairs may not be placed with families that have preschool childcare (unless other childcare plans have been made).
- They cannot work more than 10 hours a day and only a maximum of 30 hours per week.
- Au pairs must attend 12 academic credits during the program year (compared to only 6 credits standard au pairs take).
- Educare host families are required to pay the first $1,000 toward the cost of the 12 academic credits during the program year (compared to only $500 education allotment for a standard au pair).
Between 20-30% of all au pairs in the cultural exchange program sign up for the Educare program. Au pairs who enjoy taking college courses appreciate the Educare program - these au pairs are often older and can be characterized as more mature and are more motivated to stay and finish their 12 month program.
Not all au pair agencies have Educare au pairs. Check out our Au Pair Agency Reviews & Ratings to see which agencies qualify.
Read more about Educare au pairs on the new J1Visa Dept. of State website
