February 13, 2023
AuPairCare, the premier au pair agency matching families in the United States with international au pairs who provide live-in childcare as part of a cultural exchange experience, is proud to announce its 2023 Ultimate Au Pair, Nicole Pereira from Brazil. Au Pair Nicole, along with 9 other finalists were chosen from over 350 submissions, the highest since the contest inception.
Au Pairs are young adults from all over the world between the ages of 18-26 who come to the United States for a year-long cultural exchange program and live with host families. They provide childcare while sharing their culture, language, food specialties and customs. The key to the success of the program is for the au pair to be welcomed and really be a part of the family.
“We are so incredibly grateful for Nicole and for her impact on our lives,” shared Host Mom Kelsey Tewart. “We are a military family with four kids. The kids adore Nicole and consider her the seventh member of our family. Her enthusiasm for all things new is infectious. She seeks out friends and cultural experiences and makes the most of every opportunity.”
Through the au pair cultural exchange program, au pairs get to take classes at a post-secondary university and also attend monthly fun events organized by AuPairCare’s local support in the community. “Nicole is such an exemplary young woman with a heart of gold who is always thinking about other au pairs in my group,” said Marie Page, AuPairCare Area Director supporting Connecticut au pairs. AuPairCare is honored to celebrate Nicole and all the au pairs whose host families nominated them for this award.
AuPairCare continues to support this important cultural exchange program and advocate for positive change. With inflation and cost of living increases, at the beginning of 2023, AuPairCare introduced a new AuPairCare minimum weekly stipend of $215 per week for new program participants, in addition to the room and board an au pair receives. This is higher than the U.S. Department of State minimum of $195.75 and host families and au pairs can agree to a stipend even higher than the $215 per week minimum.
“As a sponsor, we adhere to all the U.S. Department of State regulations and strive to go above and beyond in our screening of host families and au pairs and our support for all participants,” said Sarah McNamara, Senior Vice President of AuPairCare. “As one of the only au pair agencies to offer this higher au pair stipend, we feel this proactive move will help au pairs make the most of their cultural exchange program while in the United States.”
About AuPairCare
AuPairCare is an award-winning, U.S. Department of State designated Au Pair Sponsor matching host families in the U.S. with international au pairs. As one of the first au pair agencies, AuPairCare has matched over 90,000 au pairs from all over the world with host families in the U.S. since 1989. AuPairCare helps to provide reliable and flexible childcare that grows with a family. AuPairCare adheres to the U.S. Department of State regulations and will continue to do so. Visit our website for more information on our au pair program