It can be difficult to find babysitting jobs if you live in an area with many other teens and young adults. To stand out from the local candidate pool, you'll need to offer something extra—a superior set of skills that speaks to your dedication. You can not only add a special skill, like first aid certification, to your resume, but it will also give parents extra peace of mind.

3 Certifications to Get as a Babysitter

1. Babysitting Basics 

If you're 11 years of age or older, you can register for an online babysitting certification with the American Red Cross. This course will go over the basic principles of care for children and infants. If your client’s child falls out of their high chair, this course will teach you how to address the emergency.

It will also go over non-emergency topics, such as how to entertain the children you're babysitting with age-appropriate behaviors, and what to do when they don’t listen to your directions. The course takes about four hours, including the final exam.

2. Advanced Child Care

This course is also online-oriented, making it easy to find time to take it. It will teach you about hands-on practices like feeding children, holding infants, and handling disciplinary needs. It will also teach some pointers on professionalism, which is crucial for those looking to build their client list and make more money.

3. First Aid Certification

Once the shelter-in-place guidelines surround the coronavirus have lifted, look into in-person training that will prepare you for emergencies that could occur while babysitting. First-aid training teaches you how to calmly address injuries like skinned knees from falling off a bike, or burned skin from a hot metal playground slide.

You’ll learn how to dress wounds, remove splinters, and help children recover from choking or asthma attacks. Consider looking into a course that specializes in CPR so you can effectively help in a situation where a child is having trouble breathing or experiencing a heart-related emergency.

To learn more about first aid certification and CPR courses, reach out to Northern KY Emergency Medical Services Inc. This non-profit organization is based in Fort Thomas, KY, and has been helping teens and young adults learn how to be better babysitters for over 50 years. Their instructors have years of experience in the industry, so you can rest assured you’re learning time-tested techniques. To learn more about their offerings, visit them online, or call (859) 572-4511.