My Disney College Program Bucket List

I've been to Disney World over 50 times in the past 20 years of my life, but there are still some things that I want to accomplish during my Disney College Program that I have never done before! I want to share my list with you all, and I will definitely keep you updated as I check things off of this list.

1. Explore New Fantasyland
2. Eat at Be Our Guest
3. Make an International friend
4. Take a picture with every Disney princess
5. See every parade at all 4 parks
6. Watch every night-time show
7. Explore all parts of Downtown Disney
8. Go to a Florida beach for a day
9. Go into the utilidor (first floor of the Magic Kingdom)
10. Have a Disney date 
11. Have a roommate movie and dinner night with all 8 of my roommates
12. Visit an Orlando club
13. Ride every attraction at all 4 parks
14. Go to Harry Potter World and not get lost (it's a long story)
15. Network with current Disney employees
16. Scuba dive in the Seas with Nemo and Friends
17. Play grocery bingo
18. Meet a celebrity while working
19. Witness the opening of all 4 parks
20. Visit all of my roommates at their work locations
21. Watch all of the Disney movies I haven't seen yet
22. Try the Kitchen Sink with my roommates
23. Learn new things about the Disney company
24. Have a guest ask to take a picture with me
25. Go to every College Program event possible

So, there you have it: my Disney College Program Bucket List! It's not too long, but I look forward to experiencing all of these things and more during my program. 

39 days until check-in!

Interview Tips

I know that a huge part of the application process for the DCP are the two interviews, the web-based interview (WBI) and the phone interview. For those of you who are considering applying, or who just want to know more about the application and interviews, I wanted to write a post about my experience with the two interviews.

After you complete the initial application, you may get an email telling you that you have moved on to the next step of the application: the web-based interview. This is a completely online interview, where you select an answer to a variety of questions from Disney. My advice for this step is to be yourself, and don't over-think the questions. Some of the questions are timed, but I promise you that you will have enough time to finish the question before time runs out. Just take a deep breath, read the question (out loud helps!) and select the answer that you think is the most "Disney-appropriate question." I've been to Disney World over 50 times, so I have a general idea of how the cast members act and what Disney expects of its cast members, so I didn't have too hard of a time putting myself in a cast member's shoes and selecting the answer that I thought fit best. I know that this step can be really nerve-wracking, but just try to stay calm! As soon as you answer the last question on the WBI, you will get a message saying whether you have moved on to the next step. I passed the WBI, so my next step was to schedule a phone interview!

My phone interview was scheduled 10 days after my WBI. I know some people only had a few days in between their interviews, but I liked having more time. I felt like I could prepare more and think about my answers thoroughly. I did A LOT of research online, I googled it and read people's blogs and looked at the Facebook group. I compiled a list of questions that people claimed were commonly asked, and then thought about how I would choose to answer these questions. On the day of the interview, I had a bunch of notes written out saying things like "smile!" "be magical" "relax" and "take a deep breath". They really helped to calm be down. My school offers a private room for phone interviews in our career center, so I did my interview in there. I had Disney music playing while I was waiting, and I was pacing around the room waiting for my interviewer to call! Be prepared for your interviewer to call anytime from 15 minutes before to 15 minutes after your scheduled time. About 8 minutes after my scheduled interview time, I got a call from a blocked caller, and I knew it was "go time!"

My interviewer's name was Carolyn. She was really nice, very to the point, and very thorough in her questions. I can't tell you too much about the questions that I got asked, but I'll just let you know that you should be prepared to answer situational questions and of course the obvious question "Why do you want to work for Disney?" I got asked a lot of questions that I hadn't even prepared for, and I just took a moment to think about it before I gave my best Disney answer! At the end of the interview, I made sure to thank Carolyn by name, and she told me to have a magical day! All in all I believe my interview was about 20 minutes long!

I'm not going to lie, after my interview I was very unsure about how it went. I thought that I answered most of the questions really well, but I'm one of those people who always second-guesses things, so I began to second-guess myself. But, at that point, I knew all there was left to do was to wait!

I got my acceptance email 13 days after my phone interview, while I was eating lunch after class. It was easily the most exciting day of my year. It was so nice to know that all of my hard-work, preparation, and research had paid off!

My advice to all of you is to do your research! Take the time to think about what kinds of questions you will get asked, and have a general idea of how you want to answer them. Don't try to memorize anything, it will only trip you up if you make a mistake during the interview. All in all, be yourself, SMILE, and make sure the interviewer knows why you deserve to work in the most magical place on earth!

The Waiting Game

At this point in the application season, it seems like all there is to do it wait. Some people are still waiting for the WBI (web-based interview), while others are waiting for their phone interview. Applicants may also be waiting for their pending status to change, and some of the lucky few are waiting for their program to start!

Regardless of the status of your application, a huge part of the Disney College Program experience is "The Waiting Game." The waiting game consists of constantly refreshing your email and dashboard (Disney's way of communicating with you), checking the Facebook pages incessantly, and stressing about your plans for the next semester. I know how real the struggle of waiting is, so I've compiled some tips to help you get through this transitional period:

1. Try to have patience. Understand that Disney knows what they are doing, and you will eventually be done with all of this waiting. 
2. Focus on your schoolwork for the current semester. You still have several weeks to get through before you can even get to Disney, so don't let your grades suffer because you're too anxious!
3. Keep yourself busy. Join a club, spend time with friends, work on homework, just do something to take your mind off of the waiting.
4. Make plans with your school for the next semester. Regardless of your application status, it can never hurt to talk with your advisor or other faculty members about your future and how the DCP can play a role in it.
5. Talk about it! Talk to your family, friends, roommates, Facebook friends, whoever you need to, and express your excitement/frustration/anxiousness or whatever you are feeling! Keeping all those feelings in will do you no good, so it's best to express yourself. 
6. Prepare. If you still have an interview to complete, prepare for the interviews. If you are waiting for an acceptance, prepare for both outcomes, and have a back up plan in place. If you are just waiting for your program to start, prepare for the program. Stay on top of the paperwork, look for class signups to start coming out, discuss apartment items with your roommates. Don't let it all wait until the last minute, especially while you have all of this valuable waiting time to prepare!

The Waiting Game is  tough, but just stay positive! Remember, we are all in this together. Have the most magical of days! (: 

Welcome!

Acceptance Postcard from the Disney College Program 

Welcome! My name is Megan, and I have recently been accepted to the Disney College Program for the 2014 Spring Advantage session! I want to use this blog to allow everyone to experience my Disney Dream alongside me. It has been my dream to participate in the Disney College Program ever since I was 10 years old and my brother did the program. I cannot believe that my Disney Dreams are finally coming true, and I am so excited to be able to share this experience with all of you.

For those who are interested, my timeline for acceptance is listed below:

September 6 - Web Application

September 7- Received Web Based Interview (WBI)

September 8 - Completed WBI

September 18 - Phone Interview

October 1 - Accepted! (13 days after my phone interview)

I have been accepted to the role of attractions, which was my first choice! I won't know any of the details of my work location until I check in for my program, which will be on January 13, 2014. Because I am part of the Spring Advantage program, I will be working from January 13 until August 1, which means 7 months in Walt Disney World; I truly can't imagine a better situation!

I want to use this blog to share my experience with you, but to also answer any questions you might have about myself or the program. Please, let me know if you have questions and I will do my absolute best to answer them. 

I can't wait to share my Disney Dream with you! Remember:

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them." - Walt Disney

Keep on dreaming!

Finding Roommates

So, you've been accepted to the Disney College Program, now what? Well, for me, the next step was to find roommates for the program! To be honest, this was kind of a tricky and stressful situation, so I want to let you guys know about my experience, and share some tips with you on how to pick roommates for your program.

First off, join the Facebook group for your program. Sure, there are some posts on there that you really won't care about, but there are other really helpful posts that can answer some tricky questions. Additionally, as acceptances start rolling in, people create groups for each arrival date.  Join this group too. I know it sounds like a lot, but you'll be thanking me later.

You have to understand, that while yes, there are thousands of students accepted into this program every semester, the number of potential roommates one can have is actually quite limited. First, you must live with the same gender. This means girls live with other girls and guys live with other guys. Then, you are further split by your age. People under 21 must live in wellness, which means that there is no alcohol allowed in the apartment. People over the age of 21 have the option to live in wellness or nonwellness, but it seems as if most people go the nonwellness route once they are of legal drinking age. Finally, you are split by your arrival and departure dates. You must check in and check out on the same day as your roommates. This is to make it easier for Disney to completely fill apartments for each program. Remember, when you check out, the next semester's participants will be checking in shortly after! So, while it may seem like there are tons of options for roommates, you have to remember that you need these three things in common in order for Disney to approve the match. For example, I looked for girls who were living in wellness and checking in on January 13 for Spring Advantage.

The next thing I recommend is to make a roommate survey. Usually people start filling them out as the acceptances begin coming in, so just copy someone's and change their answers to yours. BE HONEST! You will be living with these people for many months; don't just say something you think potential roommates will want to hear. If you are honest with yourself, you will most likely have better luck finding roommates who have similar tastes, interests, and habits.

So, after you've determined your criteria and filled out your roommate survey, the waiting game begins. People will start to look at your survey and see if you have things in common. Remember to also look at other people's surveys, you might find them before they find you! I remember being really stressed during the roommate search process, because it seemed like so many people had already found roommates. Just remember to be yourself, stay calm, and the right roommates will eventually come along!

I've listed some quick tips for the roommate search:

1. Join the Facebook groups
2. Create a roommate survey
3. Browse other people's roommate surveys
4. Decide which complex you are most interested in
5. Determine the amount of people you are looking to live with
6. Talk to everyone who seems interested; don't judge a book by its cover
7. Make sure that the things that are most important to you line up with the other person's personality/characteristics/beliefs. For example, it was really important for me to have social roommates who would respect the rules we set place in the apartment!
8. STAY CALM! Don't panic because it seems like everyone already has a roommate
9. Don't just message people and say "want to be roommates?" Can you imagine someone coming up to you on the street and doing this? You would be extremely creeped out. Take the time to get to know someone, ask questions about them and their life, and then, if you feel it's right, ask them to live with you
10. BE YOURSELF! I promise, you will eventually find people who like you for you, and who want to live with you. Remember, this is Disney. You will be meeting all kinds of different people from many different backgrounds; embrace it!

After doing all of this, I finally found roommates! The whole process probably took me about 2 weeks. I ended up finding 7 awesome girls (8 of us total) and we are hoping to live in a 4 bedroom apartment in Chatham Square. 

Good luck with your personal roommate search! I know it can be stressful at times, but just remember that you will be spending the most magical time of your life with these people, so take the time to make sure they are people you see yourself spending these moments with.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Best of luck out there, and as always, keep on dreaming!!