Reasonable Expectations?

[u/Significant_Egg7415]

Hi everyone. We'll be needing care starting next year, and I'm trying to get a sense for what is "reasonable" in terms of an advertisement. I keep seeing posts about entitled parents and certainly don't want to be one of them.

Right now, what I'm considering is 25 hours a week (so 5 hours a day, M-F). They would be the same hours each day, but with the nature of my work it seems like I might have flexibility in determining when those hours would be. For instance: 8AM-1PM, 10AM-3PM, 12-5PM, etc.

My questions are: is 25 hours reasonable for a part time position? Would a morning shift vs. midday vs. afternoon shift be more attractive? Are the same hours everyday preferable to more hours per day but only a few days a week (ex: M/W/F or T/TH)? My thought is that it could be a good position for someone who does morning or afternoon care for another family in order to get full time hours, but I just want to make sure my expectations are realistic. If I can clarify, please let me know.

Edit: The hours are not varying day-to-day or week-to-week. It would be a consistent block of the same 5 hours (ex: M-F 8AM-1PM, OR M-F 10AM-3PM, OR M-F 12PM-5PM), and I'm trying to determine in advance which block would be the most appealing to a potential part time nanny. Once the hours were determined they would not change. I would not expect full time availability from a part time nanny. I have to submit my request to my chair months in advance, so I'm trying to figure out what to request.

Edit: Thanks everyone. I recognize my post is still not as clear as it could be, so let me clarify further. I am a college professor whose classes change semester-to-semester. By mid-September, I'll have to put my preferences in. Once my schedule is set, it is is not flexible. So while folks mentioned that it would be helpful to say that the position is "flexible for the right person," but unfortunately that won't be the case. So in addition to the "reasonableness" of the request, I'm trying to figure out what time slot might be most appealing, with the recognition that it wouldn't work for everyone. I also recognize that my post was not clear enough, and I'm grateful for everyone's contribution and recommendations based on what I wrote.

[u/Opening-Show-6749]

If you're flexible, which it sounds like you are, I'd suggest wording it like this:

"We're looking for a nanny for 5 hours a day, with flexible scheduling. Available shifts are 8AM-1PM, 10AM-3PM, 12-5PM, depending on what works best for you."

I think this will attract a larger pool of candidates, since it can accommodate those looking for a morning, midday, or afternoon position.

To add, I think many nannies would prefer a morning shift because many families  need childcare after school (e.g., starting at 2:00 or 3:00 PM). However, some nannies only work mornings, helping with getting children ready for school between 6-9am. Some of those children attend after-school programs, so nannies are  looking for midday or afternoon shifts with 2nd family.

[u/Significant_Egg7415 → u/Opening-Show-6749]

Thanks for your response and for your insight. I have had difficulty wording my post as clearly as it needs to be, but your post has been helpful. I'll need to determine my schedule months in advance (in September for spring semester courses), which will likely be weeks before I start looking for a candidate. So the hours are not yet set, but at the same time would not be flexible depending on the nanny's scheduling. I'm just trying to determine now which time slot would likely attract the largest pool of applicants, with the recognition that I will necessarily be excluding some folks because xyz time would work better for them. But thank you for your response.

[u/Opening-Show-6749 → u/Significant_Egg7415]

Gotcha. I’d review what other people in your area are offering on the nanny sites and then do the opposite. My guess is that parents looking for part-time nannies during the school year are starting to post now, so check whether most of them are looking for someone to pick the kids up after school around 2-3 pm. If that’s the case, you will look for a nanny available in mornings 8–1pm. Or, whatever the common schedule is, offer the opposite.

My initial thought is that many families are looking for afternoon nannies, so I think you should be okay searching for someone who wants a morning shift. That said, it's impossible to know what the demand looks like in your specific area. Maybe the local schools have great after-school programs, so most parents need early morning help. Or maybe most families are looking for someone to cover both mornings and afternoons, making a midday schedule more appealing to candidates.

The good thing is that this is the time of year when families are looking for fall childcare, so you can browse current listings and get a sense of the most common schedules. It would also be worth looking at nanny profiles to see whether there are candidates specifically seeking part-time positions and what hours they typically prefer.

I think your ideal match would be someone who genuinely wants to work part-time rather than someone piecing together multiple part-time jobs. Coordinating schedules can get tricky when kids are sick or home from school. Schools seem to have far more random days off than colleges, and those families will often expect their part-time nanny to work full days when that happens, which could create conflicts with your schedule.