Tips for a Successful Parent Interview

Interviewing a prospective parent is an important moment for a family child care provider. It can make the difference between a new client and a lost opportunity. Here are some tips to make your parent interview more successful:

1) Set aside enough time to go over the details of your business, including all the terms of your contract and policies. Point out the benefits of your program: how you will help the child learn and succeed. One of the best ways to do this is to show photos and letters of how well children are doing after leaving your program. See my article on this.

2) Describe your expectations of parents and ask about their parenting philosophy. Share how you would handle common discipline issues. Ask if the parent has experienced difficulties with other child care providers.

3) Offer a tour of your home. Emphasize the safety features of your home (covered outlets, gates across stairs, dangerous items locked away, etc.). Because health and safety are the top concerns of parents, you can't emphasize this enough.

4) Never rush into signing a contract. If you or the parent need more time before deciding - take it. Allow the parent to take the unsigned contract home to review.

5) Some providers do two interviews - one with the parent alone and another with the parent and her child to see how the child will fit in.

During an interview, you may want to look for these warning signs:

* Was the parent unreasonably late for the interview? It may be a sign of things to come.

* Is the parent uncomfortable talking about their values and expectations in raising children (especially if they are different from yours)? You want a parent who is willing to talk through future conflicts.

* Does the parent show a lack of interest in how you will be caring for their child? If so, you may later be frustrated in trying to involve the parent in addressing their child's needs.

* Does the parent show signs of inflexibility and unwillingness to compromise? If so, you may have trouble handling unforeseen problems.

* Are there signs that indicate problems in caring for the child that would be unreasonably difficult?

* Does the parent treat you with respect?

Tom Copeland - www.tomcopelandblog.com

Image credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/141761303@N08/24814438748 

For more information about parent interviews, see my book Family Child Care Contracts and Policies.