Sophea Buckles is juggling a lot. The Michigan State University senior is studying public policy and international development, putting in hours as a government affairs intern, and earning extra cash as a cart girl and bartender at a golf course. Somehow, she also finds time to help raise two young girls, ages 9 and 11, as a full-time nanny.
“A day in the life for me can change depending on the day, but it for sure comes with a lot of chaos,” Buckles tells Her Campus. During the school year, she goes straight from class to her internship, and then right to nannying, with no breaks in between. “It is hard to keep up in having a personal life, but I am able to do stuff on the weekends,” Buckles says. “Or, if ever needed, I can even drag my nanny girls along somewhere. I finish most of my homework while the girls are at dance or hockey practice and finish the rest between classes or when I am home at night. It is for sure a lot but I manage it.”
Considering the shaky job market, the rise of the gig economy, and the glamorization of the profession thanks to social media and pop culture, it’s no wonder nannying is such an attractive job for Gen Zers. The demand is there, too, given that many households have two parents in the workforce and thus are in need of childcare: According to 2025 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 66.3% of families made up of a married couple and children had both parents employed. A separate study from 2022 done by the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at University of California, Berkeley noted that around 12% of parents with children under age 3 hire nannies, along with 9% of parents with children age 3 to 5. The college students who have tapped into this market recognize the opportunities afforded to them by nannying — but there are also demanding responsibilities.
Keeley Sheffield, a full-time grad student studying information and library science and children’s literature at Simmons University, knows this all too well. “Sometimes it’s very hard to convince my brain to think about crafts and our next trip to the zoo when, for the last five hours, I’ve been focused on the Dewey Decimal System and how I am going to write a 40-page paper on The Wizard of Oz,” Sheffield says. “It can sometimes feel like you’re two different people with two different lives mushing it all into one.”
When you are on the clock, you need to be fully present. “Nannying is not babysitting,” Buckles clarifies. “Being a nanny is closer to being another parent. I pick the girls up from school and am with them until they are asleep. I give them their afternoon snack, get them ready for practice, take them to practice, meal prep, make dinner every single night, do all the grocery shopping, bathe them, do their laundry, do bedtime, put them to bed, sit in their rooms until they fall asleep, take their dog on walks, drive them around, take them to appointments if needed, wrap their presents, organize their house, clean their house. Basically anything a parent would do, I am doing on a daily basis.”
Why would a college student choose to nanny when they could easily work with their friends in retail or sit on their phones behind the desk at the campus bookstore?
It can be a lot of pressure. Estefanía Eigen, originally from Colombia, was an au pair (basically, an international nanny working and living with a family as part of a cultural exchange program) for two years in Atlanta, and worked 40 hours a week with four kids between the ages of 4 and 11, all while completing her college degree online. “I was freshly 19 when I came — no family around me, or anyone to confide in,” Eigen says. By the nature of her situation, she was forced to quickly learn how to maintain work-life balance. “Working with kids is a very sweet and rewarding labor, but it can drain you fast if you don’t have boundaries, and those can become very blurry living with them,” she says.
With the demanding duties and schedules, it raises the question: Why would a college student choose to nanny when they could easily work with their friends in retail or sit on their phones behind the desk at the campus bookstore? For many, it’s the money. “The pay is honestly unbeatable at this age and as a student,” Buckles says. “I don’t think I would have ever found a high-paying job anywhere other than nannying.”
According to Urbansitter’s 2026 data, the national average hourly rate for a nanny in 2026 is $26.04, with an approximate annual salary of $55,000. This, of course, varies by state and each specific family. For example, a 2023 CNBC interview with a nanny working for the ultra-rich as a side hustle between acting gigs revealed she made up to $167 an hour. So, clearly, there’s a wide range, but for the most part, nannying is going to pay more than the typical college gig.
“In Boston, as a ‘career nanny,’ I get paid $36 per hour,” Sheffield says. “I started with this family at $32 per hour, and get a yearly raise! I’d say the general range currently in Boston is $32 to $40 [per hour] for my exact job description.”
Each day after school, my kids and I debrief about all the drama that happened to each of us in class that day.
Keeley Sheffield
But, as they say, money isn’t everything — and many nannies find their jobs provide more benefits than just good pay. “If your nanny family really cares about you, there are so many perks,” Sheffield says. “Paid time off, schedule flexibility, health care stipends, public transportation reimbursement, meaningful relationships with both the kids and the employers, and a full heart at the end of each day!”
Nannying as a college student can lead to an especially close bond with children. “Honestly, it’s such a great way to really connect with the kid,” Sheffield says. “Each day after school, my kids and I debrief about all the drama that happened to each of us in class that day. Who was absent? Did you have to sit next to that girl who was rude to you last week? How was your presentation? Do you also have so much homework? They get to ask me all the same things that I ask them, which gives us all something to look forward to.”
For some, nannying can be just as influential on a student’s future as an internship or college course. Some college nannies choose to turn it into a long-term career, while others use it as a springboard to pursue other opportunities. “For me, it opened doors,” Eigen says. Originally, she was studying publicity and digital marketing, but decided to change her career path due to her au pair job. “Now, I’m registered to start my Master of Arts in elementary education, and I really think I wouldn’t have even considered changing career paths if it wasn’t for my experience as an au pair.”
And even if nannying isn’t the long-term plan, it can still look great on a resume. “On my resumes, I [list my job title as] ‘Household Manager & Nanny’ to really emphasize what I am doing,” Buckles says. “I’m sure not all nanny jobs are as much of a heavy workload as this, but that’s my experience, and with everything I’m doing day to day, I feel that’s 100% appropriate to put as the job title.”
Even outside of the professional space, nannying can teach students about their goals and values. “This experience shows me how I want my future career to be something where I am still able to spend time with my [own] kids because I can see how important that is,” Buckles says. “It also taught me a lot [about] how day-to-day care is with children and will help me to better meet the needs of my future kids.”
Regardless of where their lives take them, nannying can have a lifelong impact on college students. “Being a nanny and a student has taught me extreme patience, responsibility, and how to find fun in all the little moments,” Sheffield says. “It requires an entirely different level of trustworthiness and reliability, as well as creativity and nurturing instincts. I would choose it over and over again.”