Scotia Personnel

Program Reviews

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Summer
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

2 years abroad in the United States - the best 2 years!!!

In 2020-2022 I spent two years abroad in the United States as an Au Pair with Au Pair in America. Scotia Personnel helped me set up my profile, get my visa, and encouraged me the whole way through the application. This took off so much stress because they were so proffesional and organized. Shoutout to Marilyn and Richelle for their constant support, I couldn’t have done it without them.

Being an Au Pair taught me how to be confident in myself, as well as helped me find friends all over the world!

If you’re looking to take an abroad experience, I highly recommend going through Scotia Personnel. You won’t regret it!

What was the most nerve-racking moment and how did you overcome it?
The most nerve-wracking part was worrying if I would meet friends, but the local Au Pair community in your area will help you connect with girls from all over the world! You’ll be blown away by how close you all become.
Pros
  • Adventure
  • Life Experience
  • Independence
Cons
  • Having to come home!
  • Deciding what route you’ll take! There’s so many good ones!
  • Can be scary! (But you’ll overcome it!)
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Samantha
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Au Pair in America through Scotia Personnel

I had such an amazing experience working with Scotia Personnel!
I interviewed with them to become an Au Pair in America, and this experience has been the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I have Scotia Personnel to thank for it.
They were so helpful, kind, and had exceptional communication throughout the whole process. They set me up with my Au Pair program, helped with my application, and gave great guidance on picking my host family. They took care of the entire visa process for me and made the whole experience of doing a cultural work exchange stress free!
I cannot recommend them enough. Still to this day I’m in contact with Richelle and Marilyn from Scotia Personnel, they love hearing updates of how their au pairs are doing!
Thank you Scotia Personnel!!

Pros
  • Experiencing a new country, travelling
  • Meeting new people
  • Living outside your comfort zone
Cons
  • Missing your friends and family
  • Living under someone else's roof with their unique rules (can be different from what you're used to)
  • Feeling far away
Response from Scotia Personnel

Thank you Samantha it has been aa pleasure working with you!

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Hayley
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Amazing experience!

Being an Au Pair in the states was a dream, it was the best thing that I needed to do for myself. I had an amazing time and experience. I loved my host family and where I was located. I extended longer and stayed an extra 9 months. It was the perfect amount of time because I knew I wanted to jump into education and start school. I'm grateful for every moment and for my American family.
Scotia Personnel was an absolutely amazing company to work with for having been my first time in the program for wanting to be an Au Pair. The whole team , but especially Richelle and Marilyn have been beyond amazing. My whole process of becoming an Au Pair was so easy and non stressful because they helped me with everything from getting my visa to the paperwork and answering any questions that I had. They are very professional and easy to speak to. Having that communication was great.
My entire experience was terrific and I loved every part of the program and people. Thanks to the Scotia Personnel team.
I'll recommend them every time!!

-Hayley

Pros
  • Growth and learning experience
  • Adventure
  • New relationships/ Friendships
Response from Scotia Personnel

Thank you Haley we are happy to hear we were able to make your experience as seamless as possible for you!

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Holly
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

2 years in England as a Chef

Scotia Personnel helped me travel to England in 2018, where I stayed for 2 years. They made the process so easy, from helping with the visa, paperwork and finding a job, to moral support through the process. All the staff I worked with were so friendly kind and helpful. It really made the process so much easier and took the fear out of it. They also set me up with a life changing experience. I was 19 when I went, and taking a job abroad, learning about other cultures and traveling the world has forever changed my life. It was an enlightening experience and gave me a level of independence like no other. Not to mention memories that will last me a lifetime. If you are debating on taking on this process, I strongly encourage you to do so, it will change your life forever, in a way no one can take from you. This is your time, and Scotia Personnel is a great first step towards it.

Pros
  • Made the process so easy
  • Had a great time
  • Paid vacation, accommodations and free meals
Response from Scotia Personnel

Thank you Holly! We are happy to have been apart of your memorable experience overseas!

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Kendall
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Wonderful Experience with a Supportive Agency

I went through Scotia Personnel to au pair with Au Pair in America. Richelle and Marilyn were unbelievably supportive and helpful throughout the entire application process and continued to check in with me while I was in my au pair year in New York City, making sure that everything was going well and that I had everything I needed. Scotia Personnel made sure to provide me with all the information and resources I needed to make sure that my time as an au pair was seamless and enjoyable.

Since returning home from au pairing, Scotia Personnel has continued to reach out to me with new and exciting opportunities and has now facilitated my getting a nanny job in a new city. I am so thankful for the opportunities that they have provided me with and for all the love and support I have received from Richelle and Marilyn along the way. Without a shadow of a doubt, I would recommend anyone interested in work and travel opportunities to go through Scotia Personnel.

Pros
  • Supportive and Encouraging
  • Organized and Communicative
  • Fun and Adventurous
Response from Scotia Personnel

Thank you Kendall! It has been a pleasure working with you and we are happy to know you felt supported!

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Amilie
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Amazing communication at Scotia

I used this agency 2 times so far. Once for USA, and once for England. And right now I am in the process for the next opportunity! Richelle and Marilyn are the two that really helped me with the 2 different programs. From the day one until the end of the journey, they were helping me with everything. They are both very professional, communicate with me very well, they are funny, human and lovely to speak with. They are very motivated by their work, so its an honour to work with them. I recommend them, they got lovely programs all over the world! Thank you, look forward for my next adventure !!

Amilie

Pros
  • Safety
  • Good communication
  • Great organization
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Hilary
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Amazing Support and Experience

Marilyn, Richelle and the whole team at Scotia Personnel are absolutely amazing; I am forever grateful. Moving to the UK was a huge decision for me back in 2017, and they held my hand throughout the whole process. They found me a place to work and live, set up my interview with the hotel, helped me with my Youth Mobility visa application, and answered my hundreds of questions quickly and professionally. Very soon after my application was submitted, they presented me with two hotel options, and even sooner I find myself working at a beautiful historic hotel just outside Oxford!

Even after the initial move, the team stayed in touch ensuring I was comfortable and happy. I even met my European partner!! We have been together over 3 years and now live in central London. I have travelled to AMAZING places in Europe, Africa and the Middle East since moving here- London is a great base to travel from. When my youth mobility visa expired, I was not ready to move back to Canada permanently and leave the European lifestyle and was fortunate enough to obtain the Ancestry Visa (thanks Nana!) I am forever grateful for Scotia Personnel, giving me guidance and support during the whole process, which can be exciting but a little scary. Remember- life begins on the other side of your comfort zone! THANK YOU!

What was the most surprising thing you saw or did?
Met my European partner, and travelled to Africa 3 times! I've not only fallen in love with a man (with a super accent may I add), but also the rough African terrain. Neither of which I would've been able to do without moving to Europe and having the travel opportunities I've had.
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Emelie
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

Au Pair experience in Paris, France

Scotia Personnel was an excellent company to have a first time travel experience with. From start to finish, they were available for any questions, concerns, or advice.
When I was nineteen and looking for an opportunity to travel abroad, I really wanted to have a life changing experience. Scotia personnel was able to pair me with an amazing host family, I still speak with them to this day. It genuinely changed my life spending three months in France with my host family, the bond I created with the two girls I took care of was so strong. I loved being a part of that family.
I enjoyed my experience with scotia personnel so much so, that I have chosen to move forward with them to find an au pair for my family. They are the only people I would trust to find a safe, good person to join our family and to be a big sister to my son. What was the most amazing was that I worked with Scotia personnel six years ago, and the people I worked with still recognized my name and voice! I couldn't believe they remembered working with me so instantly. It just proved to me that they really take there time to find good quality candidates on both ends, the families we go and see, and the people striving to become an au pair.
I definitely wouldn't recommend any other company for an international experience.

What was the most nerve-racking moment and how did you overcome it?
Flying and maneuvering the airports in Europe! Their air ports are huge, they go everywhere that you can imagine, and there are always hundreds of thousands of people moving using this system everyday. IT was awesome when I mastered traveling in Europe!
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Adam
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

The best impulse decision I ever made

I found out about Scotia Personnel when walking through a career fair through my university. I was taking engineering and only had some experience working with kids when I did babysitting years before. I still applied because I thought going abroad for the Summer would be a great opportunity and even though I only had a small amount of experience in childcare, I had done good work in the past. Thanks to Scotia Personnel, I had two experiences working abroad. My first experience was when I got to work as a camp coach in The United Kingdom and the second time, I worked as an Au Pair in Italy for a family with two young boys. Both experiences, the most valuable things Scotia Personnel did was guide me through the process for my travelling, get me in contact with people I would be working with and they were understanding about any questions and problems I had when applying because it was my first time travelling out of country by myself. Before travelling, I tend to get nervous and anxious and Scotia Personnel really helped with my nerves. The first year, they got me in contact with another camp coach who I made a great friend with and the second year, I was speaking with my host family (now called my second family) a lot before leaving and helping me get in touch with people I would be spending my Summer with really helped ease my nerves both times. Both Summers were amazing experiences and before I got the call from Scotia Personnel after I applied the first time, I never would have thought I could have a job abroad while I was still in university. But more importantly, I never saw myself as a childcare worker. I did it before but I never thought it was more than a favor for my family friends (that I happened to get paid for). But now that I had my two experiences abroad, meeting new friends, experiencing different parts of the world and feeling like I had an impact on the kids I worked with, I can't imagine myself not having worked with Scotia Personnel. Which is crazy because I was debating on going to the career fair in the first place. If anyone is debating on taking a Summer to try an experience like becoming a camp coach or an Au Pair, I couldn't recommend it enough and Scotia Personnel made it so simple and way less stressful than I thought it would be. Also, being an Au Pair and a camp coach are very different experiences (I can't recommend one over the other either. They're both great but one feels like a fun summer camp with a different bunch of kids every week, and the other feels like you're a big brother/sister for your new family for a few months) and the process for recruiting for each of them are really different but I was able to do both seamlessly. So that is a testament to how easy they made the process. Thanks to everyone at Scotia Personnel, I had two of the best Summers of my life!

What was your funniest moment?
My second family were very nice and accommodating but they would go to pretty fancy restaurants and to be honest, I wasn't packed for any fine dining (I packed a lot of shorts and t-shirts.) so I remember the kids still had a lot of fancy clothes and I already felt pretty out of place with the whole thing but my family was really nice and understanding, EXCEPT for the youngest guy who was a great kid, don't get me wrong, but when I came down, the first thing he said was "You're going to wear that?" My fashion was judged by a six year old. This was really early in to my time there and he was a good kid who wouldn't call me out like that any other time we went anywhere but you don't know the meaning of insecurity until you've been judged by a six year old for what you wear.
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Karleen
5/5
Yes, I recommend this program

GO TO ITALY!

Scotia Personnel selected a lovely Italian family for me to AuPair with. For starters, I met them in France at their beachfront summer home. The family treated me very well and gave me a weekly stipend of 100 Euros. I spent most days hanging out with them on the beach, participating in outdoor activities, reading with my host brother, and engaging him in conversational English. After spending a few weeks in France, we then drove to their scenic home near Lake Como, in Italy. Throughout my experience in Italy and France, Scotia Personnel checked in with me to make sure that I was happy. My host family gave me free time on the weekends to explore other cities in Italy. I took the train to neighboring cities like Milan. Overall, my experience was amazing and I am so thankful for Scotia Personnel and their professionalism every step of the way.

Going abroad can be daunting, that's why you need expert companies like Scotia Personnel to help make your experience seamless and unforgettable. Go to Italy you won't regret it!

Shout out to Marilyn and Richelle!