Teenage girl (19) planning to be Au pair in China.......worried

[mum999]

I wonder if any of you can reassure or advise me. My daughter plans to go to China as an au pair through an agency. She is going to be out of pocket and is doing it for the experience rather than the money. I don't know the culture or how to check if she is going to be safe. I don't know if the agency is good or how to find out more. Any suggestions would be so welcome. Thanks

It sounds like an amazing opportunity.

Is she going alone?

Do some research into the agency. Also speak to other agencies that offer the same to see if they are much the same. See if they can put you in touch with girls who have done this before - find out about their experience.

Do you have any Chinese friends? Ask them about life in China for a western girl in 2011.

Is your dd at college? Do they have any experience of students doing this?

Don't have any other ideas, but I understand your concerns.

I would want to know how much back up the agency provides - or if they just provide an introduction. Will they get your dd out if things go wrong?

I would look on the Chinese Embassy website there is a lot of information about travelling to China the Culture etc. You could also ensure she has the British Embassy address and phone number in China for reference.
What a fantastic opportunity, would have loved to have done something like this.

I wonder how much the agency are charging the host family for an 'English speaking au pair'?

I bet they aren't out of pocket.

I travelled around China on my own in my 20s. It was surprisingly safe, even now it is still quite an authoritarian state.

Really interesting, it won't always be easy but then that's the point. Where in China?

Oh and remember, there is no facebook in China!

If she's in a big city like Beijing or Shanghai things are very cosmopolitan these days - Starbucks etc everywhere. Going somewhere smaller or more rural would be more of a culture shock, and communication (both with the locals and back home) might be more of an issue. I have at least one friend in China who is on facebook so there are obviously ways round it, maybe not straightforward though.

Great opportunity, but you should definitely check out the agency and see what provisions there are if her placement doesn't work out.

Chinese families are probably more used to having maids than au pairs so I suggest she is very clear what her "duties" are from the start. Hopefully it will be an amazing experience for her.

Is she learning the language? Will she take language classes? It can be daunting not even being able to decipher the street names or to read the destination on a bus in China.

As others have said check out the agency very carefully. Make sure she isn't going to be treated like some of the maids, ie expected to sleep on the floor in a corridor and eat nothing but noodles. A massive generalisation but it happens.