Program Reviews

I started working with Scotia Personnel in October 2017. After hearing Marilyn speak at my college, I knew this was a company I wanted to partner with. At first contact, they helped me decide on what country I wanted to go to, sending me heaps of information about the destinations. When I decided to go to Italy, Scotia Personnel talked me through the process of interviewing with families. They checked in before the interviews and we discussed how I should present myself, key points about the family to take note of. Also, after each interview, they called again and we talked about what went well, what I liked and didn't like about the families, and what the next step would be.

When a family and I decided on each other, Scotia Personnel helped me with all of the legal paperwork, signing the contracts, and applying for a visa. I can honestly say that without the help of Richelle, I wouldn't have been able to navigate the Visa process. Once I got to Italy, Scotia Personnel checked in on me several times throughout my 10-month stay, and ensured I had a smooth and positive experience!

Scotia Personnel is a phenomenal company to work with. They are a highly organized and professional group of individuals who guide you through each and every step of the process to go abroad. Scotia Personnel patiently answers every question asked of them quickly and thoroughly. Throughout my entire experience with this illustrious company so far, Marilyn and her staff have been nothing but kind and informative. They were with me every step of the way, from picking a country, to interviewing with families, going to Italy, and returning home from my placement abroad. I highly recommend working with Scotia Personnel, and am looking forward to any future dealings I have with them!

My experiences with Scotia Personnel changed my life in the best way I ever could have imagined. I will be forever grateful for the opportunities that they have given me. I have now been on two trips through their agency, and although the two experiences were very different, both were so incredible and I have grown so much as an individual because of them.

For my first trip, I travelled to Mallorca, Spain, to Au Pair for a family with three young boys and I immediately connected with the whole family. This was my first time travelling overseas on my own, and they made it so easy for me. I was given the opportunity to explore the island, meet new friends, attend a new hot yoga studio, play with the kids and swim in their pool every day! They would bring me to their weekly family gatherings, and I met so many people my own age. In fact, 5 years later I am still in touch with some of them and of course the family I stayed with. I learned so much by immersing myself in their culture and lives, including a notable improvement in my Spanish!

My second trip, which took place in the summer of 2018, was just as rewarding. This time, I was off to Montreal where I was a live-in Au-Pair again, this time for two young boys. Similarly, even though I was not as far away from home, it was such a unique experience, and I was able to explore the city and spend valuable time with the kids. We took day trips to the beach, parks, and went on many picnics and bike rides. I had such a wonderful summer and didn’t want to leave!

I would recommend Scotia to anyone looking to gain experience working with children. By travelling to a new country, you also learn so much about yourself in a safe and secure setting. Scotia ensures that you are placed with a safe, caring family, and they always have your back, no matter what. I have worked closely with Richelle for years, and I can’t wait to plan my next trip!

Hi I am Hailey, I am 23 from Canada and I want to tell you about my experiences in 2018 and 2019 working with Scotia Personnel. I started last year when I went to the Netherlands first and then I went to Italy. I was an au pair and I made great connections with people, I made so many friends, it was a wonderful experience there so I thought it'd be great to continue working with them. So I then joined the China program and I was in China for about almost 10 months. I started January and I just got home October 6th and the whole time it was amazing and new. I went through all the recommendations for picking up proper host family and I found the best one for me. I could I truly love them and I continue to stay connected with them, and I plan on going to Australia with them too because we created such an excellent relationship in China. And if your idea is to build relationships and bonds that will last a long time and then you should choose Scotia Personnel because not only do you get to work with great people but you get great friends along the way…. you meet them, you talk to them, you share stories. I am still messaging with them in China, because it's still nice talking, sending them photos, catching up the exact same way I would with my friends back in Canada. So I definitely give them as many stars as possible because they are great and they truly care about their job, to make sure our experience is wonderful and wholesome so I hope you join their team and continue travelling cuz it be lovely to meet you along the way. You always meet new Au Pairs and I made friends from England, America, Germany as well as in China… there so many people in the program that are from different countries but we're been brought together the same reason, to make friends to learn more see the world. So good luck travelling in the future and hope to meet you on the road!

This past year in the race of trying to find a summer job I stumbled upon Scotia Personnel on my university's job listing site. The job listed was an international Au-pair/ English Tutor and I knew that I wanted to go to Italy, but I didn’t know how I would make it happen. I applied anyway and I received a call. From there, everything was explained to me clearly and professionally. Scotia Personnel helped me realize that it was beyond possible for me to go! So, with all the program information in mind, I decided that I would go. When it was time for me to pick a family, they made sure that the families I chose from were safe and fit well for me. Through them, I found a wonderful family that I stayed with for 3 months in a small medieval town called Sarnano (near Ancona). It was amazing! We went to Rome, Tivoli, Florence, and Turin. By myself, I traveled to Milan, Bologna and even Ibiza in Spain! I learned so much Italian while I was in Italy, I went with a basic understanding of Italian and expanded my knowledge far beyond what I ever thought I would learn! Now I can read books and watch shows in Italian with little difficultly which feels amazing as I’ve been monolingual for most of my life. While I was away, Scotia Personnel checked up on me every so often to see if I was doing well and that I was happy. I’m so glad that I au-paired through them because they provided me another level of support that’s necessary when traveling abroad. Thank you so much Scotia Personnel!

This past summer, I had the opportunity of a lifetime to teach abroad through Scotia Personnel in Santiago de Compostela, located in northeast Spain (the region of Galicia)! From the beginning, Scotia Personnel (specifically Marilyn and Richelle!) were extremely knowledgeable, supportive and personable. As a result, they connected me with a school placement that was the perfect fit for me, leading to the perfect summer experience. Prior to my arrival in Galicia, I traveled to Swizterland, France, and other regions of Spain, including Barcelona (part of Catalunya) and Madrid (part of Castile). After 10 days of aggressive travel, I arrived in Santiago de Compostela, a city rich with Celtic music, Neoclassic and Baroque architecture, the freshest seafood from nearby fishing villages of Galicia! Very quickly, Santiago became home and my colleagues and students became family. In addition to teaching two English classes to elementary aged students and an English Literature class to high school aged students, I also choreographed a play for 55 students. The school’s model was incredibly unique, for it integrated English instruction with Music and Theater classes. The school day ran between 9AM-4PM, and I spent my afternoons and early evenings running through the parks of Santiago and exploring the restaurants, shops, and fine arts culture. Additionally, the school provided wonderful experiences for traveling around the region of Galicia with students, including Cies Islands and Castro de Barona. I am eternally grateful to Scotia Personnel for connecting me with a summer program that was enriching and life changing!

This summer of 2019 I traveled abroad with Scotia Personnel. I stayed in Spain for one month and also Italy for one month. I had an excellent experience from start to finish. The associates at Scotia Personnel helped me through every step of the application process. I was paired with two wonderful and very accommodating families who went out of their way to make me feel like I was a member of the family! While working I was able to safely venture out into the city and explore with ease. Being completely immersed in the culture was such an incredible experience giving me memories to last a lifetime! I would recommend this program to anyone interested in travelling and networking! This is an opportunity you absolutely can't miss!

I worked at a summer camp for kids as a camp coach, with the help from Scotia personal. It was an amazing summer!! The camp had international and local kids, some learnt English and did activities and some did activities all day. There was zip lining, rock climbing, raft building and more! We also had excursions every Wednesday and some Saturdays where I was paid to go look at castles and tour London with the kids; I even got paid to go to a theme park! I made a ton of friends - both Canadian and English- and experienced cultures from around the world through the kids I took care of. On my days off I travelled the uk with newly made friends, exploring places like the white cliffs of Dover, London, Canterbury, and beaches where I swam in the sea. I definitely plan on going back next summer!

Teaching English in Verona, Italy was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Working with Scotia Personnel to further this experience was an incredible journey. The staff at Scotia Personnel are very easy to talk too and incredibly friendly. At first, I thought travelling and Nannying would be a cool experience but I never thought in my wildest dreams that it would come true, would be as seamless and easy as it was and that I would get to live in Italy with such an amazing family that I now call my Italian family. Going to Italy to live for two months was very scary…I didn’t speak the language, I didn’t know anyone and I was away from home in a different country for two months. To say the least this trip was life changing.

I arrived at the airport in Verona and my family was waiting for me with flowers. They were so excited to meet me and I felt the same. The language barrier was hard at first because I wanted to say so much to them and they wanted to say so much to me… thank you google translate haha!! I remember the little girl when I first met her had the biggest smile on her face and she kept hugging me and holding my hand. I immediately made a sister. She grew up with two older brothers so she was pretty excited to have an older sister. We did everything together. She especially loved it when I styled her hair.

Every person in their family opened me into their family with open arms. I went to a family party with about sixty extended family members attending. I was nervous because their English wasn’t great and I had to socialize with all these new people for the afternoon. Everyone was so excited to meet the “Canadian” girl. I was welcomed in by so many and it made me feel like family. The family offered me many things such as the option to travel, go out and explore, meet new people, have evenings out, taste new foods and see a new part of the world. The family was so excited to show me around Italy. We went to Venice for the day and got to see the canals and do a gondola ride. We also got to see a city that is all built on water which was unique.

Feeling nervous and anxious is normal and it just means you’re going outside of your comfort zone. I truly believe to have the greatest experiences of your life – you need to be outside of your comfort zone. This trip made me go out of my comfort zone because everything was a new experience in a new culture, which is why I truly believe this was the most amazing experience I have ever had. I have some new family members and a forever connection to Verona, Italy.

I have worked with Scotia Personnel twice and have had a phenomenal experience both times. In 2016, I went to Palma Mallorca Spain as an Au Pair. They set me up with a wonderful family. My days would consist of waking up the 3 boys in the family, making them breakfast, taking them to the beach and then coming back to the house for lunch. During my weekends off, I would stay with the family because they would show me around the island. I still keep in contact with the family. In 2018, I went to England to work at a camp. The process of being able to work at the camp as a Canadian citizen would seem difficult but Scotia Personnel knew what needed to be done, how to do it , and when. They guided me throughout the entire process. I had the time of my life at the camp. On a day to day basis, my roommates and I would wake up and get breakfast. Each week we were given a group of kids. We would take them to activities throughout the day, eat lunch with them, and supervise them during evening activities. On off weekends I would go to London or just hangout with friends. At the begging of the camp I requested a week off in August. During that week I visited the family that I Au Paired for in Spain. I still keep in contact with the girls that I met at the camp. We always talk about how it was the best summer ever.

Au pairing for Scotia Personnel is the best experiences I have ever had, it has one hundred percent changed my life in the best way. I was an au pair in America and in China, they were both completely different experiences and it taught be so much about travelling, children, culture and it even taught be things about myself that I didn't know.

Being in the United States was a great experience, I lived in Michigan and was an au pair. You create a bond with the children and being with them 45 hours a week your really connecting with them, I would take the boys to the park, do crafts with them, bake with them, and play lots of fun games. In the USA you're introduced to friends right away, and the friendship that you create with these other girls is on tha you will have forever, one of my best friends lives in Germany and we met in Michigan and we still talk everyday.

In china I was an english tutor, I would be with my little girl Pudding 25 hours a week, we would study english, play games, bake, play outside, and much more. In China you take mandarin classes two days a week which is also a great way to meet other au pairs, and there is activities once of twice a month where all the au pairs in your district get together. When I got to China I landed in Shanghai and then drove to Hangzhou, which is were orientation was, and explored and met new friends and it was just a great first couple days in China. When I was in China I got to travel to an island called Sanya with my host family, it was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. When people talk about going to China they always say ‘what about the food?’ the food was amazing, since I have returned back to Canada I have been craving real chinese food. For me China was amazing and I would go back in a heartbeat, my host parents were so caring and so loving, when I had to say bye to my hostchild it was so hard cause I was so close with her, I still talk to my host family often.

Traveling and working with children was one of the best things I have ever done. I was planning on going to university for Marine Biology, once I got home from these trips I realized that I wanted to teach elementary school in a different country. In September I am going to school for Early Childhood Education, and after school I hope to get a job teaching in at a Kindergarten in China.