If you want to work as a babysitter, making a good first impression is essential. For a family, choosing a babysitter is a crucial and potentially stressful time. The dream of every parent is to find the perfect person to entrust the children to in all serenity.
As you can imagine, it is a decision that is not taken lightly and here comes the difficulty: to break through the heart of a family, you will have to prepare yourself to show off not only your best smile but also determination, reliability and empathy.

In this article we will see together what are the most common questions that parents ask when interviewing babysitters; we will suggest how to prepare to make a great impression and win their sympathy.

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How to prepare the babysitter interview

Before moving on to the interview questions, it is good to make a general introduction.

As with any job interview, the babysitter one must also be prepared with accuracy and professionalism. Whether you are a novice babysitter or an expert, the interview with your future employers cannot catch you unprepared.

Before you go to the interview, make sure you:

  • Choosing clothing that represents you. Trying to look like someone other than you are won’t help you. Babysitting work is based on trust and understanding with the family. Since you will work in a private home, it is not necessary to be formal at all costs: it is much better to focus on sincerity . If you are chosen by the family, you will know that they will also appreciate you for your individuality.
  • Take care of your appearance and hygiene. If the habit does not make the monk, the personal care yes. Make sure you come to the interview with the family looking neat and clean. Scruffy and poor hygiene are not business cards that will work in your favour – it may sound trivial, but it’s a basic rule worth remembering.
  • Organise yourself to be on time. Reliability is one of the main qualities that families look for in a babysitter. Being punctual at the interview is the first opportunity to show how trustworthy you are, who respects the time of others: a person you can count on.

The most frequently asked questions about the babysitter interview

With these general recommendations, let’s move on to the practical part: the questions.

We at Jopla have talked to several parents who have been struggling with the search for their first babysitter, and have compiled a list of the most frequently asked questions. We propose them below:

1. How many families have you already babysat for? How old were the children?
With this question parents are trying to understand your level of experience; they want to know if you have already looked after children of their children’s age or if it would be the first time. Answer with sincerity, there is no right answer.

2. Why do you like working with children?

The reason for this question is obvious: A good babysitter loves spending time with children and dealing with the challenges that this brings. Experience can count, but here it is first of all a question of personal attitude.

3. Do you do any other work or part-time activities?

This question usually serves to introduce the topic of your time availability and the organization of your times with those of the family. Don’t hide your schedule or any vacation time you’ve already planned.

4. Do you smoke?

What the family wants to make sure of is that you won’t smoke when you’re around the kids. If you smoke, reassure them that you will not do it while on duty.

5. What activities do you like to do with children during babysitting hours?

With this answer you can show your creativity and your experience in entertaining children. Families love babysitters who know how to make children happy with new initiatives and games.

6. What do you like least about babysitting?

The family here expects an honest answer: there are so many aspects of managing children that they may not like and it is normal (and parents know this because they experience it firsthand!). Of course, if you answer something like “I don’t like children” or “it’s hard work”, you are not proving to be the right person.

7. Do you have a first aid certification? If you don’t have it, would you know what to do if a baby is choking?

Knowing how to handle emergencies is one of the things that worries parents the most. You can then imagine how difficult it is to think of entrusting their children to a stranger. If you don’t have a first aid certification, at least try to learn the main maneuvers to do in case of suffocation: there are many free courses available, take advantage of them.

8. Do you have a driver’s license? Do you feel like driving your car in an emergency?

An autonomous baby-sitter on the move and who knows how to drive in an emergency is certainly an extra element of tranquility for families. If you don’t know how to drive, however, don’t be discouraged: show the family that you know how to act in an emergency, for example by explaining how you would react and who you would call in case of need (even if the parents were not reachable for some reason).

9. What is your approach to the discipline? How do you react when children have a tantrum?

With this question, the family wants to make sure that you are on the same wavelength as they manage their children’s challenging behaviors. For parents, it is important that the babysitter does not upset their educational method and helps the children to respect the rules of the house already decided.

Whether you have previous experience or not, try to explain how you would react to very insistent tantrums: if the first answer that comes to your mind has to do with spanking, maybe you should reconsider your job!

10. Tell us about an occasion in which you found yourself managing several activities at the same time: how did you organize yourself? Which ones did you prioritize?

Dealing with children is very challenging and often requires multitasking skills. With this question, parents want to learn more about your thinking and understand how you manage priorities. If you already have experience as a babysitter, you probably already have anecdotes to tell about it; If, on the other hand, you are a beginner and have never found yourself in a complicated situation with children, think about other areas of your life where you have had to use all your organization and priority management skills.

In conclusion

Like any job interview, the babysitter one must be prepared in advance and dealt with professionally. In this article we have seen what are the ten most frequently asked questions parents ask when interviewing a future babysitter. Knowing in advance what questions to expect will definitely give your application an extra boost!

Have a nice job!