A look at students with local babysitting jobs.

Kasie Bourque ’18 is one of many students at St. Joe’s who takes advantage of the surrounding suburban areas as an opportunity to find babysitting jobs.

“I’ve always been around kids,” Bourque said. “In high school I babysat my neighbors and for people my mom worked with.”

Bourque prefers babysitting over any other side job because of the the great pay of 15 dollars an hour, and also the comfortable environment.

“I used to work at the Kinney Center, and I still work at the Writing Center to earn extra money,” Bourque said. “But I love babysitting because it is a great way to make money, I’ve always had such great experiences and the family I am with makes it easy.”

Bourque’s responsibilities include homework help, activities like playing games to entertain the two girls, and some light chores around the house.

Some students, like Megan Mancinelli ’20, prefer the hours of a babysitting gig.

“I’m an only child, so I have no direct experience with kids, but I love babysitting because you’ll work better hours than you would working in a restaurant,” Megan Mancinelli ’20 said. “I work one day a week and occasionally weekends when they ask me too and I make dinner, get the kids ready for soccer and help them with their homework.”

There are several outlets that St. Joe’s students can go to in order to find babysitting opportunities in the surrounding area, including a Facebook group called Babysitters Club of the mainline. That’s where Mancinelli got her current babysitting job.

The Babysitters Club of the Mainline Facebook group that mothers in the surrounding areas created is meant to reach out to students at St. Joe’s, Villanova University, Cabrini College and other nearby universities. Students have to request admission to this group on Facebook and the mothers have to accept it.

Babysitters Club of the Mainline not only offers students long-term nanny jobs but also quick last-minute gigs.

“If I’m looking to make some extra money on the weekends, I’ll go on Babysitters Club of the Mainline for extra job opportunities,” Bourque said.

Online platforms such as care.com allow students to find babysitting opportunities in the areas nearby as well. Bourque got her first babysitting job as a student at St. Joe’s through care.com.

Care.com allows both caregivers and care-seekers to create profiles to either post job opportunities or to apply to those jobs. Both caregivers and care seekers can message each other and request access to their profile, past experiences and references.

Not only can students turn to the internet for babysitting gigs, but they can also look to each other to grab a job.

“I’m a commuter and have been a part of the babysitting network in areas near St. Joe’s for a long time,” said Sara Clark ‘19. “I’ve directed other friends to many families who need babysitters.”

“I like to pick up new families generally but I do stay with families for a long time and I have a handful of families I’ve been babysitting for over 2-3 years now,” Clark said.

The families whom students babysit for can also introduce them to their friends and other family members with children, opening up even more job opportunities.

“I find that even being at the playground with the kids I babysit, talking to other moms and dads introduces me to even more jobs,” Clark said.

St. Joe’s students who babysit find that having this job opportunity does more than just give them some extra pocket money after all. They are able to connect with and get close to the families they work for.

“I’ve been with the same family since my junior year, I helped them throughout this past summer and I will until the end of this year,” Bourque said.

These opportunities allow student be a part of children’s lives and get to watch them grow up.

“I like to stay with families for long periods of time,” Clark said. “I like to build connections and watch them grow.”