Interviews with Host Families

And how to deal with rejection?

At Smartaupairs, we provide each prospective au pair with an interview and search guide.

We know also how the interviewing process with families can be a bit daunting to begin with!

Sometimes it clicks and works out with the very first family you speak with.. and other times, for one reason or another, the interviews simply do not lead to an offer.

We wanted to share a few words of encouragement with those au pairs who are still looking for positions FROM other au pairs who were in exactly the same position recently, interviewing and at times, experiencing rejection. It is important to learn from the past interviews and to not to give up!

Wishing the very best of luck to all au pairs still interviewing and looking for their host family! And thank you for all the wodnerful au pairs who contributed to this, we are very proud to have such a helpful and supportive au pair community!

"There’s still hope that you will find a family that is a good fit for you. It’s really understandable if you’re frustrated, feel sad or stressed about it, though.  Sometimes it can be worthwile to try and just take a break, do something you enjoy that takes your mind off it all and then try again. And if you start to doubt yourself just know that the agency think you are fit for the task and believes in you!" Emilia, Au Pair 

"I've had a a few families who even said no to have a skype call, cause I didn't matched with their expectations (I don't have siblings, I follow a vegan diet...). And now I found the perfect family and I am more than happy with them.
Xx" Tabea, Au Pair

"When speaking with a potential host family, it is super important to be honest and yourself (but I bet you know that already). 
When I was looking for host-families, I spoke with a lot of host-mums and host-dads, but we simply weren't a match. Then I found a family I thought to be perfect for me and they thought so too. They offered me the position and all we had to do was to sign the invitation letter. One month later I 'lost' that family because uncertainties due to Covid arose (in that time, it turned out that we weren't the perfect match after all) and the search began again. It took me losing what I thought to be the perfect match to find the family I will live with from September on and we are an even better match!
So don't lose hope - you will find your perfect family!:) Wishing you the best, 
Amelie x "

"I'm Alli, I'm 20 years old, from Germany and I've been an aupair since January. 
Finding my host family was anything but easy and took time. Like most people, I wanted to start my aupair year in August 2019 after graduating from high school. Unfortunately, something personal came up and I had to postpone my family search until early November. Most of them already had their families then already, but I didn't care. A few days later I already had the first offer from a nice family and 2 days later I had my first skype appointment. I liked the family  and everything seemed to fit, but 4 days later I got an email from them that they have decided for someone else. I was pretty down, but I kept looking. The whole "searching for a host family" thing lasted until the 20th of December and I told myself that if I didn't find the right family till the 1st of January I would give up. However, one family contacted me again on Christmas morning and said that they had decided in favour of me, and if I was still interested. The family was perfect and I was overjoyed!
Only 3 weeks later I already took the plane to London. I spent the whole Corona time here and I can say that in the end it couldn't have been better for me with the host family. 
So what I want to say to every aupair who is still looking for a host family is, don't give up! The cancellations hurt, but the perfect family will come! Before you lies a wonderful new experience including amazing new friendships that you will never forget!" Alli, Au Pair

Hi! ☺️
I had quite a hard time finding the right family and was devastated when my (what I thought) dream family told me they decided to have another girl join them as their Aupair...

I didn’t think I would find my perfect match after the the other family cancelled on me.
But now I have found the perfect family,
they are the sweetest people and I am so excited to join them! 
I really couldn’t be happier! 

So keep your head up and listen to your heart! 
And everything will work out! x Rebekka, Au Pair

"At first I was worried about not finding a host family that would suit too but it turns out that it sometimes only takes weeks or even DAYS from the first message to a match!
Don’t give up if some families don’t reply, YOUR host family might be behind the next corner.
Last but not least it is important to trust your guts, if it doesn’t feel right, then it may not be the ONE, but at the same time don’t wait too long if you feel comfortable with the family. I recommend to rethink/ let it sink for about 2-3 days and then make a decision, the perfect time to not rush things but also not overthink ;)
I wish you good luck and hope you find a wonderful family ♡" Fabienne, Au Pair

Hi Tuuli, please tell the au pairs that it's definitely worth it to take some time to really look for a family. I found a family that seemed perfect for me and I was really sad when they said no to me. But I didn't give up, I kept on looking and I found such a lovely family that really wanted me to be their au pair and they are literally perfect. I love living with them and working with them so much, I stayed over the whole lockdown with them and now I even wanna stay with them for another year. I am so happy that the other family said no to me because it was actually the best thing that could happen so please don't give up, it takes some time to find the perfect family but when you find them you will see that it's way better than being with people who don't really want you! ♥️ Meret, Au Pair

"For those aupairs who don't have a family yet🙈

When I started this whole thing with finding a family that fits perfect to me, I was super excited and nervous at the same time because it was completely new for me. One family don't even texted me that they don't want me.😅
It is very strange to talk to all this people and then to choose the right ones but of course its important to be yourself and to mention everything that comes to your mind while you are talking to a family. And if you get a no from them, keep your head up...then you can focus on the other ones that will love you like you are.😊

Now I can't wait to finally see my family in September and I am very excited." Lea, Au Pair

Hi! 
Thought I could give some words of encouragement as well to the future au pairs who haven’t found their family yet! 
First and foremost – You will! I truly believe there is a family out there for everybody and although it may take some time to find the perfect one, in time you will. And also, try to remember that au pairing is a two-way partnership. The families are interviewing you, but you’re also interviewing them! To me at least, it’s very easy to forget that and see it so that the family has chosen me and I have to live up to their expectations. And whereas that’s true in some regard, it’s also I who have chosen them! So don’t try to “settle for less” just because you haven’t found your perfect family yet, and instead allow it to take time even though it might be a bit frustrating. I believe in you all and hope we can all meet up when you arrive in London! xx Selma, Au Pair

"Hey guys!
Don’t think it is because of you that you haven’t found a family yet. The right one is just waiting there, somewhere, for you. Sometimes it’s hard to find a family and takes a long time but when you find someone after this time you can’t be happier, believe me!
Be yourself. Videochat with as many families as you can even if they don’t Seem like your number one when you’re emailing. A lot are very different in a personal video chat. 

The most important thing is stay true to yourself and don’t act like you’re a different person. The family must want YOU and no one else. 

I believe in you all and wish you ALL the best xx " Anna, Au Pair

I also wanted to tell you guys something about that, but didn’t see this message until now. 🤗
I skyped with 2 or 3 families and the last one was the one I decided to go to. It somehow just didn’t ‚click‘ with the others - but that’s normal! Never give up and be true to yourself. Good things take time and it’s very important that both sides, you and the family are the perfect fit perfectly to one another. Just imagine to live in a family you don’t really like or living with a family that doesn’t like you/appreciate your work for them enough.. Trust your guts and you’ll find a nice family at some point x
Oh and what I always liked to think about was if I’d be in the same situation as your potential host parents are, I’d be so critical about who I’d trust to take care of my children - do you know what I mean? And some host parents may have had some bad experiences with au pairs so they’re even more selective when it comes to choosing a new one (that was the case with the family I luckily ended up going to)🙈 Bare that in mind, don’t give up, stay yourself and I’m sure you’ll all end up somewhere that just fits you right. Good luck!! ❤️ Laura, Au Pair

Well I think the best is to be yourself in the interviews because thats the best way to find the family that suits you best. If a family might say no to you it might be  better than facing  problems while your stay there.  I found my family kinda quickly i guess. I  looked at their profile, messaged them had 2 skypes and  thats it. Maybe the next one will be THE ONE. Keep your head up 💪🏼☺️ Marius, Au Pair

"Before I met my hostfam I was about to match with another family and they suddenly didn’t answer any of my texts or calls anymore without giving me a reason .... sometimes that happens but in the end it all worked out and I found my hostfamily and couldn’t be happier" Emma, Au Pair