The DCP Phone Interview

Tips to defeat the DCP phone interview

      So by now you have your phone interview scheduled for a number of days after you completed the web-based interview; and you're probably asking yourself, "What is my interviewer going to ask me?" And I can tell you, there are a few staple questions they are definitely going to ask you, and then there will be a few grab bag, more role specific based questions they are going to ask you. Now, in this post, I will only share the questions I was asked because I do not want to start tossing out false info to you guys. So, because of my major, the contents of my resume, my cover letter and the roles I put most of my interest in, my role based questions were directed toward the Hospitality (Front Desk) role and the Bell Service Dispatch/Greeter role. So here they are:

1. Why do you want to do the Disney College Program?
2. How will the Disney College Program help you professionally?
3. How would you confront a roommate about a conflict you had with them?
4. What have your previous living conditions been at school?
5. What positions do you feel you are most qualified for?
6. Are you comfortable working long hours in both indoor and outdoor environments?
7. What was one of the longest days at work you have had and what kept you motivated that day?
8. What has your past work experience been?
9. How would you handle communicating with a guest who speaks a foreign language?
10. How would you handle a repeat guest who always stays in the same room during every visit, but that room is not available during their stay?
11. Have you had experience working bell staff before?
12. Are you familiar with the Disney look?
13. How would you make a guest feel special?
14. As a member of the bell staff, how would you leave a lasting impression on a guest as they are leaving the resort?

      Out of these questions, the ones I can almost guarantee you will be asked are the general ones, like 1 and 2, any of the ones that are specifically about guest interactions within a resort, those will be reserved for the people applying specifically for the resort roles.

      As soon as I scheduled my phone interview, I almost immediately started Googling "DCP

Interview Questions." There are plenty of resources out there that post their interview questions so you can search beyond just mine to find what you need. Once I narrowed down the questions I should be preparing for, I typed them up in a Word document and then typed, verbatim, how I wanted to answer the questions. Once I did this, I practiced and practiced and practiced to the point where I would shower in the mornings and be able to remember the questions and answers no problem. And although it may be difficult to pull off with roommates or even alone, I recommend doing the same thing. Once you are comfortable and confident with how you want to answer the interview questions, you will destroy the phone interview (in a good way).
      Once you reach the day of the interview, you will likely be nervous and excited all at the same time, I know I was. If you have practiced for the interview, you will be fine, I guarantee it. A tip that I have heard a number of times and have even taken is, to dress professionally even though it is just a phone interview. It works for me because it makes me play the part of a professional and whenever I wear professional clothing I feel 10x more confident then when I'm wearing street clothes or sweats.
      Now, you have reached the point where your interviewer should call you soon. They will say give 15 minutes leeway both before and after your scheduled time. I had mine scheduled for 7:15 PM, 7 PM rolled around and I sat at my desk with my phone, waiting patiently. 7:15 comes and goes, still nothing, 7:30, still nothing, 7:40 I start sweating and getting real nervous, 7:45 and the phone starts ringing and my stress levels immediately spike, but because I practiced my interview, I felt confident the whole way through. The length of the interview will ultimately depend on the length of your answers because the interviewer really just asks questions and records your answers, my interview was about 25 minutes.
      Once the interview is over, they will ask you if you have any questions for them, AND YOU WILL! No matter the interview, no matter the job you always want to ask the interviewer questions, it shows you are interested in the company and the position. The questions I asked were:

1. Did you do the Disney College Program?
2. How did you start your career at Disney?

In retrospect I easily could have asked more, but I got accepted and still would not change a single thing about how I went about my phone interview. After all of this, the biggest tip I will emphasize is PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE, it really does make a difference and you will only help yourself by doing so!