`Playsitter` growing popular as part-time job for female collegians

“I can speak English at the native level and have two years of experience teaching privately and at institutes. Babysitting on the weekends is available!”

This is a job application posted on an online job search site last month by a 22-year-old student at a women’s university in Seoul. She was looking to be a “playsitter,” a term made by combining the words "play" and "babysitter."

In her application, the student attached proof of her overseas stays while a teenager and a certificate of an English course for playing at university.

Playsitter is a popular part-time job among college students over winter vacation. In recent years, Korean-Chinese women have grown popular as babysitters in Korea, but are known for not being good at playing or teaching children.

The playsitter is considered a better alternative. Dual-earner couples are the main clients and they especially prefer female collegians majoring in early childhood education or music, fine arts or physical education.

As of Sunday, 26 households looking for playsitters have been added in just one week on a website for housekeepers and babysitters. Certain want ads listed demand for both babysitters and tutors. A mother of 3-year-old twins said she had hired a Korean-Chinese woman as a babysitter but wanted to find a playsitter who is majoring in early childhood education.

Other women posted want ads on college community websites to confirm the identities of playsitters. A working mother with a 2-year-old son living in Seoul posted an ad on her alma mater`s homepage, asking or a playsitter who would work three hours a day for 7,000 won (6.50 U.S. dollars) per hour.

With more working moms seeking better early childhood education for their children, demand for playsitters has grown. A 27-year-old mother of a 2-year-old boy said, “Children learn while playing with their mothers or when they hear mom’s reading books. But I can’t do such things after he comes home from nursery school due to my job. I’d love to hire a playsitter if we have a little more income.”

Getting hired as a playsitter entails more preconditions than as a babysitter. Playsitters are expected to have a good understanding of children, and women in their 20s majoring in early childhood education or related subjects are the most preferred. Those who majored in physical education or fine arts are also given preferential consideration in the market. Applicants are asked to submit copies of college attendance or language skills and even undergo a job interview.

sykim@donga.com