Last Updated: May 15th, 2022 by
Parenting and raising children in this day and age can be pretty challenging, especially for parents that need to work full-time jobs.
That’s why many families rely on the services provided by nannies to help relieve some of those responsibilities.
This guide will show you every step you must go through to learn how to become a nanny.
On top of that, you’ll also learn how much you can earn in this role and how you can maximize your earning potential.
Visit our Career Guide for a list of all our job insights for an in depth look at the new career path you are considering.
Job Description
As a nanny, you provide value to your clients by caring for their children while they’re busy.
While clients are at work or away from home, your responsibility begins with feeding the children under your care.
Besides that, you’ll also play with the children to keep them stimulated.
Play activities tend to overlap with learning ones, so you’ll also focus on enhancing the lessons they already learn in school.
You’re also responsible for the cleanliness and hygiene of the spaces you occupy with those children.
Doing so minimizes the children’s injury risk and keeps them free from germs and the like.
Lastly, your nanny responsibilities will likely require you to accompany children to school and other activities outside the home.
Read More: How to Become a Pediatrician. If you love taking care of kids and are open to careers in the medical field, a role as a Pediatrician may be worth considering!
What Does an Average Day for a Nanny Look Like?
Before you decide to learn how to become a nanny, you should see what an average day on the job will look like.
Of course, your work schedule will be different depending on the family you’re working with.
For example, being a live-in nanny means working with children all day long, except for your day off.
However, some families only hire nannies to work a 9-to-5 schedule while away at work.
Whatever your work pattern looks like, here’s what your average day as a nanny will look like:
Prepare and Feed Meals
Most nannies are required to prepare meals for children and supervise them as they eat.
Some children can eat independently, though you’ll have to feed babies and toddlers yourself.
Bathe and Clean Children
Aside from meals, you’ll also spend parts of your day bathing and cleaning the children as well. But, again, depending on how young the children are, this part of your day might involve changing diapers as needed.
Play and Educate
Children require stimulation to keep them occupied. You’ll cater to that need by playing with them throughout your workday.
Some of the games you play with them will likely be educational, which complements the learning they do in school.
Accompany Children
Children have to go to school and do other daily activities.
Depending on the arrangement you have with the family, you might have to spend your day accompanying them to and from those activities.
Overall, you’ll have to ensure those under your care are safe and have everything they might need.
Clean Areas
Throughout your workday, you must also clean and sanitize the places where you interact with the children. That includes any furniture or play areas that they spend time around.
Again, some nannies have an understanding with the family to perform cleaning tasks throughout the house as part of their day-to-day responsibilities.
Process for Becoming a Nanny
You’ll have to go through several steps to learn how to become a nanny.
Here’s what that process will look like for you:
1. Start Preparing in High School
You can start preparing for your career as a nanny in high school. The Illinois Career Information System (CIS)
2. Get a College Degree
As a nanny, there are no strict requirements regarding education. However, the family services agencies or families you work for might expect you to have a college degree.
You can consider a college degree an investment in your nanny career.
Having a degree related to early childhood education, care, and development will equip you with helpful knowledge that makes you a more effective nanny and increases your earning potential.
3. Gain Hands-On Experience
While there are no strict education requirements, nannies are expected to have the skills to care for young children.
You can only get these skills through hands-on experience at any stage of this process.
For example, working as a sitter while in high school or taking on part-time nanny jobs in college will give you valuable experience for this line of work.
4. Licenses or Certifications
According to RAACE, states don’t require you to have licenses or certifications to work as a nanny.
However, there are still some credentials you can choose to pursue as a childcare worker.
For example, you can pursue a Child Development Associate (CDA) certification as evidence to future employers that you’re equipped to work with children.
5. Pursue Specialized Training
Lastly, you should also pursue training for skills related to your work.
Specialized skills, like those for handling newborns or children with special needs, will set you apart from your peers.
Many families prefer nannies with specialized skills, which will make you a valuable asset to them.
Are You Suited for a Nanny Career? Skills, Credentials, Tools and Technology
Learning how to become a nanny requires a lot more than the knowledge you pick up in college. You’ll also need a specific set of skills and proficiencies to succeed in this role.
Here are some skills and proficiencies you’ll need to succeed as a nanny.
Personality and Skills
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) highlights interpersonal skills, patience, and decision-making skills as the most important for childcare workers, including nannies.
Your interpersonal skills are critical for your career because you’ll be working closely with the family that employs you.
As a result, you’ll need to relate and communicate with adults and children of all ages.
Working as a nanny can be pretty challenging, especially when handling children. That’s why you’ll need a lot of patience to address the issues and obstacles you’ll experience.
Lastly, having well-honed decision-making skills also carry a lot of weight as a nanny. You’ll often take care of children while their parents are away.
So, you’ll make decisions that ensure the well-being of the kids under your supervision.
Credentials and Proficiencies
The Occupational Information Network (O*Net), on the other hand, emphasizes proficiencies in education, training, and psychology as being valuable for your work as a nanny.
Remember: as a nanny, you’ll spend your time working with very young children. Being proficient in early education allows you to help those children learn as effectively as possible.
The same is also valid with understanding training principles that apply to young children.
Those under your care are also learning skills like walking and talking. Your grasp of how young children pick up those skills will help you guide them effectively.
Lastly, being proficient in psychology will help you work well with children on an emotional level.
Children have different needs than adults in that area, and an effective nanny must understand how to cater to them.
Read More: How to Become a School Counselor. Help kids through their day-to-day resolving problems and being an encouragement in this career!
How Does a Nanny Find Work?
Some of the most important ways you’ll learn how to become a nanny are through first-hand experience while you’re on the job.
As a nanny, you can find work in several ways, both formal and informally.
Firstly, many nannies exist as self-employed childcare workers. You can find work this way through word-of-mouth, such as by offering to help friends, family, and acquaintances.
Besides that, you can also advertise your services on job boards, both physically and online.
Alternatively, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that childcare workers like you can also find work through family services providers.
A typical example would be a nanny agency that connects nannies like you to families who need your help.
You can find these family service providers in pretty much every city. Once you identify the ones in your area, you can then express your interest in working with them by:
- Checking their official website for recruitment details
- Contacting them directly on the phone or through email
- Visiting their office and asking how to be a part of the agency
What is the Average Salary of a Nanny?
Learning how to become a nanny and working in the industry can be pretty demanding.
So, naturally, you’ll want to know how much you could earn by caring for the children in someone’s family.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), childcare workers (including nannies) earn an average of $27,860 a year.
The same data by the BLS also shows that:
- Nannies in the top 90th percentile earn an average of $37,430 a year, and
- Nannies in the bottom 10th percentile earn an average of $18,540 a year.
By understanding the average nanny salaries at both ends of the spectrum, you’ll be able to know if an employer is offering you a fair wage or not.
Where Do Nannies Earn the Most?
Looking closely at the salary data for nannies by the BLS, it’s also clear that some states have higher average salaries than others for this line of work.
Here are the top 5 highest-paying states for nannies and the average salaries of those locations:
- District of Columbia: $37,300
- California: $35,390
- Massachusetts: $34,920
- Washington: $34,020
- Colorado: $33,340
With this data, you’ll see how much your salary compares to those in other states.
As a nanny, you can also choose to relocate to states where the average pay for your work is higher.
How Do You Earn More as a Nanny?
There’s a demand for your services as a nanny wherever you go. On top of that, families of all economic levels seek nannies to help take care of their children.
With that in mind, here are a few ways that you can increase your earning potential as a nanny:
- Specialize: The first way to increase your salary is to specialize in a particular niche. Not all families and children are the same, and some require specialized care. For example, you can specialize in caring for infants and newborns, children with special needs, and families with multiple children (e.g. those with twins, triplets, or children in the same age range).
- Extra duties: As a nanny, you can also offer to take on additional responsibilities beyond your scope of caring for children. For example, you can help keep the home tidy or transport kids to and from school and other daily activities. Multitasking increases your value, allowing you to ask for a higher salary.
- Tutor: Also related to the point above, you can offer to tutor the family’s children on topics you’re knowledgeable about. The subjects you tutor the kids on can be anything from languages to math.
- Target Market: Lastly, remember that families at all economic levels require nannies. One way to increase how much you earn is to target families willing to pay more for childcare.
Nanny Job Outlook
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) suggests that the career outlook for nannies will continue to be positive in the near future.
According to them, the childcare industry as a whole will grow by 8% by 2030.
That growth rate, which the BLS considers to be ‘as fast as average’, means a promising future ahead for you and anyone else interested in learning how to become a nanny.
You can expect the nanny industry to be moderately competitive when you join the industry.
There will be an increasing number of nanny jobs becoming available in the next few years.
Top 5 Types of Nannies in 2022
The work patterns for nannies and the overall industry have evolved a lot in recent years.
Here are 5 of the most common types of nanny jobs that you can choose to apply for:
- Live-In Nanny: As a live-in nanny, you’ll be caring for the children of a family full-time. As the term suggests, you’ll live with the family that employs you and care for their children around the clock. Besides that, you’ll likely help transport the children to school and after-school activities.
- Daytime Nanny: Some nanny jobs only require you to be present during the daytime. That means you’ll only work with the family for a set number of hours a day, perhaps during 9-to-5 hours while parents are away at work.
- Part-Time Nanny: While some families need your help to care for their kids over extended periods, others will only need your help from time to time. Your work patterns with these families will usually be irregular and limited, allowing you to work with several families.
- Shared Nanny: In some cases, several families might share the services of one nanny. In that role, you’ll work with the children of several families simultaneously or on a rotational basis.
- Co-Nanny: Lastly, some families will hire more than one nanny at a time. Depending on the family’s unique needs, you and your co-nanny will focus on one child or several of them in the same household.
The 3 Nanny Specializations in 2022
As a nanny, you can also pursue one or more specializations to cater to more specific needs.
Doing so will help you stand out among your peers and be sought after by families with special needs.
Some of the most common nanny specializations include:
- Infant or Newborn Care: Infants and newborns require specialized care beyond what’s needed for toddlers, children, and adolescents. With specialized training, you can support parents who have just welcomed a new child.
- Special Needs Care: Children with disabilities or other special needs will require the care of a nanny who understands their condition. In addition, you can pursue additional training to cater to those special needs, making you indispensable compared to most nannies.
- Multiple Children Care: Some families have multiple children within the same age range. In this niche, you could work with kids of the same age (like twins and triplets) or those who are only a few years apart.
Professional Associations
Your journey to learn how to become a nanny never ends. Once you start working, you’ll be working directly with families with little exposure to other nannies.
That’s why you must network and build relationships with your peers through associations like:
The Association of Premier Nanny Agencies
Carroll Gardens Nanny Association
International Nanny Association
State-level nanny associations like:
Michigan Professional Nanny Association
Top Colleges and Universities
There are no formal degree requirements for working as a nanny.
However, some families or agencies will expect you to learn how to become a nanny by pursuing a bachelor’s or associate’s degree in early childhood education.
Here are some of the top colleges and universities with programs in that field:
