The Disney College Program: What Is It?

Ever since my acceptance, I have received multiple questions about what the Disney College Program actually is and how do you get to do the program. This post is going to go over all of this!

The Disney College Program is a paid internship where students work in the Disney theme parks in the United States for one semester. The program is offered in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida and Disneyland in Anaheim, California!

With this, there are certain requirements, programs, and roles available that the Disney College Program has, these are listed below:

                    Requirements: 

           1. Must be enrolled as a full/part time student and taking classes

           2. Meet any school requirements

( GPA, Grade Level, Credit Hours, etc.)

           3. Be 18 by start of program

           4. Posses unrestricted work authorization

Programs:

          1. Spring (January-May)

          2. Spring Advantage (January-August)

          3. Fall (August-January)

          4. Fall Advantage (May-January)

Roles Available:

          1. Attractions

          2. Custodial

          3. Hopper

          4. Photopass Photographer

          5. Main Gate Operations

          6. Transportation

          7. Greeter/Bell Services

          8. Concierge

          9. Hospitality

          10. Housekeeping

          11. Full Service Food & Beverage

          12. Quick Service Food & Beverage

          13. Bibbiti Boppity Boutique/Pirates League

          14. Merchandise

          15. Vacation Planner

          16. Lifeguard

          17. Recreation 

          18. Character Attendant

          19. Character Performer (Audition Required)

Now I am going to go over the most important process about the Disney College Program... the Application Process!

Application Process:

• General Application: This is the start of the application process. In this application you fill out your past job/volunteer experience, general information, and you get to put your preference in your roles. You will need to have your Social Security number to apply for the program.
• Web Based Interview: This is the next step, and if Disney sees you seem qualified, you will receive a Web Based Interview. You have 3 days to complete the interview by the time you receive the invitation. Do not put this off, it will take about 20-40 minutes to complete. Many people pass the WBI, but some do not. Most of the questions are statements, so you would answer with: agree, disagree, neutral, strongly agree, strongly disagree. Make sure you answer strongly and honestly, and don't stress out.
• Example Questions
1. Are you ever late to work?
2. Are you generally a positive person?
3. Do you work better in groups?
4. How would you feel in a repetitive role?
• Phone Interview: After passing your WBI, you will be able to schedule your phone interview, the last part of the Application Process. A Disney College Program Recruiter will call you and interview you asking you questions about the DCP, and the roles you picked. I posted a video and talked about my Phone Interview here.
• Example Questions:
1. Why do you want to do the Disney College Program?
2. Tell me about a time where you had to use teamwork.
3. Can you work in all weather conditions?
4. Are you aware of the Disney look?
5. Specific role questions.
• Waiting: This is the most nerve racking part of the whole process, the waiting game. Disney will give you your answer within 2-3 weeks from your interview. But, you can get Accepted, No Longer in Consideration, or Pended (which simply means wait listed.. it's not a no, but not necessarily a yes yet!)

When you get that acceptance email, it will look like this! :)

After you get that little email above you will have to follow some simple steps to complete your acceptance. 

1. Pay Your Fees: $100 Program Assessment Fee, $200 Housing and Administration Free, and Minimal Processing Fee. These fees support the events/activities schedules in the housing complexes during your program. The housing fee is the first few weeks of the programs housing costs.
2. Select Move In Dates: This is the same software you used to schedule your phone interview. You have to log into your dashboard and click "Pending Invitations" in "Your Interviews and  Events" area.  If your role is Attractions, Front Desk, Concierge, or Lifeguard you must pay attention to the available program dates, You must select a program date that matches your role. For instance, when I picked my dates I selected "MERCHANDISE ROLES ONLY"
3. Submit Additional Information : Disney will email and ask you to submit additional information, but all they need is you to confirm your birthday.

After these steps you will receive the "Welcome To The Team Email"

Now, all you need to do is find roommates and get ready to move in! When finding roommates, you all must have the SAME Arrival and Departure date. This means if you are in the Spring Program, YOU MUST room with someone else in the Spring Program who arrives and departs the same day as you. Spring cannot room with Spring Advantage, even if you arrive the same day.

There are four living options for the Disney College Program in WDW:

1. Patterson Court
2. Chatham Square
3. Vista Way
4. The Commons

The apartments come fully furnished, and the rent comes out of your pay check automatically! There are 2-4 bedrooms available (2 people in each room) and the more the people, the cheaper the rent. There is Wellness (Under 21 is required to live in wellness, which is a dry apartment - No Alcohol Allowed) and Non-Wellness which is for (21+ only, and is allowed to have alcohol in the apartment).

Last but not least is learning. During the Disney College Program you have the opportunity to take classes through Disney! There are Colligate, Seminar, and Self-Paced courses. You can take a maximum of two if you are Spring/Fall, and four if you are Spring/Fall Advantage. All of the course syllabuses are available here.

Thank you for reading and if you have any questions feel free to comment below or message me here.

See ya real soon! :)