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Au Pair positions, most commonly obtained through French agencies, are traditionally reserved for young women who provide childcare and do light housework in exchange for room and board, and the experience of living with a French family.Under the terms of the European Agreement on Au Pair placement, an Au Pair
in France must meet the following requirements:
• 18 to 30 years of age
• unmarried
• minimum stay of 3 to 6 months and a maximum of 18 months
• high school graduate and a minimum of high school-level French
• enrollment in a French language classes during the stay
The rights and responsibilities of the Au Pair are defined by the French Ministry of Labor. The Au Pair is responsible for looking after children and doing light housework. But his/her primary duty is child care. She/he works up to five hours a day, (30 hours/week), but the work schedule must allow sufficient time for French classes.
In return for her work, the Au Pair receives:
• a private bedroom in the family's home or a chambre de bonne (a small,
independent room located in the same building as the family's apartment) and
board (breakfast, lunch and dinner).
• a monthly allowance to cover the cost of French classes and a city
transportation pass.
•coverage by the French social insurance
The Au Pair is entitled to one day off per week, but she may also be expected to baby-sit two to three evenings a week.
Even though the Au Pair is expected to have a working knowledge of French upon arrival, she/he is required to take French classes. The Studies Office at the French embassy can provide a free catalogue of French language schools
The procedure to be Au Pair is extensive, and should be started at least three to four months before departing. The Au Pair placement agencies should be first contacted for applications forms.
Once the agency has assigned the candidate to a family, she will apply for an Au Pair contract for the Au Pair at the Direction Départementale du Travail et de l'Emploi DDTE (service de la main d'oeuvre étrangère).
Only after receiving this contract can the Au Pair applying for the appropriate visa at the French consulate nearest to his/her place
Au Pair positions may also be obtained informally through personal connections or newspaper advertisements. Howewer, the French family must still obtain an Au Pair contract from the DDTMOE.
Many agencies also offer part-time Au Pair stays (called "demi-pair") whereby the Au Pair works just 10 to 15 hours per week in exchange of lodging. She does not receive an allowance.
The student experience is very different to being an au-pair. To be an au-pair in France, the girl must be mentally prepared to work in a totally different culture and adjust to a totally new way of life quickly. It involves very different pressures to being a student. As a student, the girl can live in her own room and surround herself with Chinese students, however as an au-pair, she must live with a French family and therefore must quickly learn and cope with a different culture and habits. She will be totally immersed in French surroundings. It is therefore very important that ll she
can adapt quickly to her new surroundings.
The outcome of both experiences is very different. Living one or two years with a French family will give the girl maturity and independence, good speaking and listening skills in French as well as experience working in a foreign culture. In contrast the student experience in France will give a girl good academic knowledge of the language, however the girl will still lack first hand cultural experience.
