Down to Earth (aka Disney)

The journey begins...

Train cars that got to carry our cars.

     So your arrival is going to begin, as far as I’m concerned, about 5 days before your check in day when you receive the email with your arrival time. I received mine on Thursday, August 27^th and my arrival time is 7:30-8:30 AM. Early, yes, but in my opinion, likely well worth it. From everything I have been told, the earlier your arrival time, the faster check-in and casting go and the quicker you have the opportunity to get fully moved into your apartment. So waking up that early is a small price to pay to enjoy the benefits that (should) come along with it.

     Last night I made sure my car was (for the most part) completely packed, minus the carry-on bags I would be taking on the train with me. I tried to be as minimalist as possible but that is because my car is pretty small, so the less stuffed in it the better. I brought a backpack with my laptop, chargers and a few mags to read. With that I have a duffle bag with my changes of clothes for the next two days rather than trying to dig through my car to get to my suitcase…just much easier.

     A few immediate recommendations if you choose the Auto Train, its hot, but bring sweatpants, a hoody and a pillow. The train can be a bit chilly at first, and especially overnight, I was frozen and it was no fun. Also consider bringing a change of comfortable clothes to wear on the train, it will make your trip much less miserable. Lastly, reach out on Facebook to see who else is taking the Auto Train, trust me, you’ll be happy you did.

     From the area of Jersey I am from, it took me about 5 hours to get to the Lorton, VA Auto Train Station with minimal traffic and a few rest stops. Overall pretty painless, I left at 8AM and arrived in VA at 1PM giving me about an hour and change until they began boarding the train that departed at 4:30PM. As I sit on the train typing this, I just wrapped a glorious game of Apples to Apples with 7 other CPs….beauty of this mode of transportation, I can almost guarantee other CPs will be with you because we all want our cars and this is an easy option if you are from the Northeast. 

The next morning....

     Sitting in the station in Sanford feels fantastic right now. If you take the Auto Train and ride coach, sleeping will be horrible, just is what it is. We got here at around 9:30 and they are unloading the cars as I type this so myself and a few other CPs are just sitting, waiting, anticipating the greatest shower of our lives when we get to our respective hotels.
     All in all it wasn't a terrible experience, sleeping was tough but when you connect with other CPs you are no longer alone and the trip is much more enjoyable. I'm now less than 24 hours away from check-in and it is still surreal!

30 days out....10 days out....

And we're less than 2 weeks away...

     By now you have your packing list finalized, done everything you can to find roommates, signed up for classes and then you got another e-mail about your New Hire Paperwork and everything just becomes more and more real. Now the New Hire Paperwork may be a bit underwhelming when you go to complete it, but it makes you realize that your arrival date will be here before you know it and you are officially going to be working for Disney.

     The paperwork is pretty generic, asking for all your general info, sign off on a bunch of policies and other things and include information for direct deposit. Shouldn't take you more than about 20 to 30 minutes to fully complete. But, don't be a rebel and try to be cool and complete the paperwork on a browser other than one that they recommend. I use Google Chrome and thought I was a hot shot doing it on here but could not sign any of the policies. So use Internet Explorer of Firefox or whatever Disney tells you to, otherwise it will not work.

     Disney tells you that you will receive the e-mail about housing 10 days out....THEY LIE. You will get it two weeks before your arrival date and you have to complete it (as well as the New Hire Paperwork) by the date 10 days before your arrival date. So for me, I arrive August 31st, my housing e-mail came in on August 17th, and the housing paperwork and my New Hire Paperwork is due August 20th.

     So the housing paperwork can be a little more exciting because you and your roommates will finally be able to link with each other officially and place your preferences for where you would like to live. The first few pages are just general information and information for your car if you are bringing one. Following this, you will come to a page to link with your potential roommates (keep in mind these are preferences and Disney does not guarantee you will be with them). Now as much as I'd love to give every detail on how to link with your roommates, my roommates and I are still having issues figuring it out as I write this, so I will go into more detail at a later date when we have all the details. The most I can say for now is you can only link with 2 other people, a pain in the butt I know, but it is what it is.

     Once you link with your roommates, you are given the chance to put your preferences in order of most desired to least desired. And much to my surprise, you reorder all 16 housing options across all 4 apartment complexes. So you and your roommates may want to figure this out before you complete the paperwork so you can go through it without any major speed bumps.

     So my arrival date is rapidly approaching, I leave in a little over a week and I'm getting PUMPED, can't wait to start my journey through the Disney College Program!

It's Not About the Money, Money, Money

Seriously though, the DCP isn't about the money

    In reality, its about the experience and although I am still yet to participate in it, I am taking my classmates word for it as well as my own thoughts on what to expect. We are the bottom of the barrel, usually working the most hours and getting paid the lowest wage, so our earnings are not going to be great to begin with. Next, we factor in the weekly rent that will be withdrawn which, although small in comparison to most, is still a significant amount of money to lose on a weekly basis. Then there is necessity number two, FOOD. We all need it and we are all gonna be buying it, more often than not from restaurants or somewhere in the park rather than cooking. Even as someone who cooked as many meals as possible for myself during my time at college, I want to spend as much time outside my apartment as possible during my DCP so I see myself eating out a significant amount, which I've come to accept. Lastly, its Disney, we're Disney fans and we will be surrounded by Disney merch...we are going to end up buying some if not a ton of it!

    The most proactive action we can take leading up to the DCP is to work and save that money so we are able to support ourselves financially throughout our program. As of now, I just completed a ten week internship and saved as much money from that as possible, as well as the money I saved working during this past school year, so I'm thankful to a have a fair amount saved up. The last thing I want restricting my ability to have a good time in Disney is money, and I am doing everything I can to thwart that.

    And let's be honest, everyone keeps telling us how AMAZING Disney looks on a resume. I have heard it from everyone...from classmates to co workers, everyone raves about how great Disney will look on my resume for future job applications. So in my mind, making money is just a perk on top of being able to learn from the greatest hospitality company on the planet. Having the opportunity to make a guest's day magical is all the incentive I needed to want to participate.

Handling the reactions of your decision to do the DCP

You will hear a lot of opinions, don't let them sway you...

    As your time between acceptance and arrival passes and you inform others of your acceptance to the DCP, everyone will have their own reactions. From the, "Congratulations!" the, "What's that?" and, "Why would you do that?" the mixed reactions can certainly take a toll on you emotionally and can effect your mindset. I have told a vast number of people and have seldom received the same reaction twice. A lot of people have been very happy for me, while others are skeptical of my decision. Regardless, I have not let them change my opinion on the decision to commit to participating in the DCP.

    For the most part, a lot of people have been very supportive of my decision but also given me words of caution, which I understand. Disney has a variety of reputations depending on who you speak to about it, those of us who believe in and support the way Disney performs and conducts their business have no issue with it, others are skeptical of the high standards and strict rules they require cast members to follow. After speaking to fellow classmates who have done the program before and are equally major fans of Disney as I am, they LOVED completing the DCP! This also did not surprise me, we love this company, everything it does and everything it stands for; therefore it makes sense that we would love being a part of it. For those who are doing it to put Disney on their resume or participating on a whim, I fully support that decision, but it makes sense why it may not be for them. With Disney, there seems to be very little middle ground on people's opinions, they either love it or hate it, so as long as your are committed to and believe in being part of making magic everyday, there is no reason we should not enjoy the DCP.  

    I think the harshest words I have received came from someone who has spoken to individuals who worked for Disney and said Disney treats their employees poorly. When I hear that, I think of all the different variables that can play into an opinion like that; what were their hours like, how was their management team, what was their position in the company, were they committed to hospitality as a career? Anyone can endure a company that, "treats their employees poorly," if they are working under a management team that mismanages them or they are not fully committed to the position they have been placed in. Of course, my bias opinion on Disney and not wanting to believe the negatives factor into my opinion on this, but I try to look at it objectively. Without all the facts on their situation, I will take the comment in stride but not lose sleep over it. I will have my own opinion on how Disney treats the cast members when I become one, until then it would be unfair for me to judge them without having experienced it first hand.

    In conclusion, the message I want to get across is do not get discouraged about participating in the DCP from what other people have to say about it, especially those who have not done it. The opinions I have taken seriously are those from my classmates who have done it before and are doing it again because they enjoyed it so much. When we arrive, we can generate our own opinions based on our own experience, but for now, let your dream come true and participate in the DCP, whether anyone else likes it or not!

60 Days out....

Just when you thought they forgot about you...

    They send you and e-mail when you are 60 days from arrival and remember, YOU ARE GOING TO DISNEY WORLD! Thursday July 2nd, exactly 60 days from my arrival date I got the e-mail notifying me of course registration dates and term dates for the courses. I have a little under a week until registration for the collegiate courses and roughly a month until registration for the seminar classes open. More importantly, this e-mail was a reminder that my arrival date is rapidly apporaching and will be here before I know it. I have already been planning and anticipating my family's trip down for Thanksgiving, my brother's potential trip during the Food and Wine Festival and my friend's trip down at some point during my four month program. Not to mention I have thankfully found roommates, been preparing a packing list and talking about where we want to live and how we want to live as well. 

    In terms of courses, the seminar courses are really just for your own personal pleasure and development, while the collegiate courses have the potential to be credited by your college if they allow it. So far I have only considered the seminar courses, primarily the Disney Heritage course, and I am sure after you looked at the syllabus you will be just as interested as I am, (check it out and others at this link: DCP Courses) The overall beauty of the courses is their fee, its only between $10 and $30 which is nice and inexpensive so we can't complain there. From what I have been told and know, the seminar courses can be really enjoyable and not academically taxing, therefore they drew my attention. My friend tried to get into the Disney Heritage class, but was not able to get in because of how competitive it is to get in due to popularity. Therefore I am prepared, if I try to register, to potentially not get in, so I will not be too heart broken if I don't. Overall, these classes seem to be a good opportunity to learn and explore what Disney can show us, therefore keeping them in consideration is not a bad idea.

How To Find Roommates

Finding roommates...

      So when it comes to finding roommates or approaching the roommate situation for the DCP, it can definitely be a little awkward but also remember, most people are in the same boat. It is definitely weird messaging someone out of no where asking to be roommates but it is just the nature of the beast. I joined 3 groups on Facebook for my program and posted the DCP roommate survey everyone was filling out in each of the groups hoping for someone to message me or finding someone else's survey who seemed to match my general personality. I was lucky that it worked out and I ended up finding 3 roommates so far, hoping to stay with 3 to try  and avoid being put into an apartment with bunk-beds (fingers crossed). Just keep in mind, most people in the group are in the same situation as you and we all just have to dive in and try and find others also looking for roommates. It can hands down be a daunting task but once you found your roommates, you'll be feeling real good that you took the leap of faith.

Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride

More like an East Coast Train Ride, how I'm getting to The Most Magical Place on Earth

      A decision you'll end up having to make once you are accepted into the DCP is how am I gonna get to The Most Magical Place on Earth? Of course, for everyone this will be different because we are all from different places so I can only speak for how I am getting down there, but we all generally have the same options; driving, flying or (if possible) riding the train. Each have their pros and cons of course, and I had to do a fair amount of debating and contemplating before finally deciding on taking the train from Virginia. So I'll break down my thought process for each.

My drive from NJ to the train station in Lorton, VA.

      Flying: I almost instantly ruled out flying because, to me, it was a major inconvenience. Having lived in apartment style housing for past 2 years of school, I know what I want/need to bring with me and flying just would not allow for that to happen. On top of some stuff needing to be shipped down after I arrive to Orlando because we don't get our addresses until we are down there, so that just didn't help at all. Lastly, cost. From the ticket, to transportation to and from the airport, to (likely) a hotel room for the day prior to check in, it was just too much to handle.

      Driving: Being on the east coast and the drive only being 16/17 hours, this was heavily considered. I would've ended up driving my Honda Civic, loaded up with my stuff, with my Dad and then flying him home after check in. I could bring (for the most part) everything I needed, have my car and spend some quality time with my Dad. But once we did out the cost of driving down (from the gas to hotel rooms to Dad's plane ticket home) we discovered it would cost about the same as taking the train down, so we chose the train.

      Train (Auto-Train): Until my Mom mentioned what the "Auto-Train" was, this had never even flown across my radar. All it is is a typical train ride, but they have cars designated to load and transport passenger's cars. We had agreed that having my car with me would be a "necessity" (more like a luxury) so we wanted to explore all of our options, and the Auto-Train turned out to be the best. I could have my car, bring as much stuff as I needed and avoid the work of driving all the way down to Orlando. It costs roughly the same as driving and it just SO MUCH more convenient.

The train ride from Lorton, VA to Sanford, FL.

      It's settled, I'm taking the train. Now its a little bit of a pain cause its roughly a full 36 hour journey from when I'll leave my house to when I'll arrive at my hotel the day before check-in, but it'll be well worth it. The train leaves on Aug. 29th, two days prior to my check-in but arrives in Florida Aug. 30th, so I'll only have to kill about half a day. It leaves at 4PM from Lorton, VA and arrives in Sanford, FL at 9:30 AM the following day;  about 45 minutes from Vista Weeeeey. Therefore, I'll end up leaving my house in NJ between 8-9 AM to get to Lorton around 12-1 PM because they start loading cars at 11:30 AM and stop at 2:30 PM. Once I arrive in Florida, I'll get my car off the train and drive straight to my hotel near Vista Weeeeeeeey and chill for the remainder of the day.

      For those going from the east coast looking to take their car, I'd recommend the Auto-Train because of its convenience, general affordability and ease of travel. There are no weight restrictions for how much stuff you can load into your car and then you just sit on the train overnight and (hopefully) sleep through the night. Best of luck and safe travels to all!

When Will My Life Begin

When will my program get here, the anticipation/expectations build

My trip in 2012. #Mexico

      Ever since I got accepted to the DCP, I have basically been counting down the days until my arrival date of August 31st. Even knowing how much I have to do from now until then between school and a summer internship, it doesn't help the fact that I am a Disney geek/nerd/call me what you want I love Disney! And, when I think about it, I have barely experienced all that WDW has to offer since I have only been 3 times in my 20 years of existence on this planet. My first trip was in 2000 when I was in kindergarten and I have a few vague, fuzzy memories from that visit; I went again in 2005 when I was in 4th grade, I have more vivid memories of that trip, primarily skipping Haunted Mansion with my Grandpa cause I was scared, getting a turkey leg and the going into the Hall of Presidents. And lastly, my most recent trip was in 2012 when I graduated high school and we did so much in such little time, I had a ton of fun but it was hard to enjoy everything because we were so rushed. Therefore, its easy to say that knowing I will have 4 months of free admission to the parks is filling me up with anticipation and expectations of what I could do and enjoy.

      In terms of these expectations, I can place them in 2 categories, work expectations and play expectations; let's start with the work ones:

• First things first, I understand that everyone who is accepted into the DCP is accepted to be a Cast Member and it isn't necessarily a, "vacation." So right away, I am prepared to work...A LOT! As DCPs we are basically the bottom the of the totem pole, I am prepared to get the worst hours and work a ton of those worst hours, but you also have to view it from a positive perspective. We are accepted to work and this work experience opens us up to learn so much and gain so much that it should not be taken for granted. I want to uphold those Disney standards, and, as a Cast Member at my resort, I will likely end up being the first face guests see when they enter Disney property, so I want to make those magical moments for everyone. 
• Next, I cannot wait to find out where I work! I discovered that the Value resorts do not have bell service so when I realized I will be at one of the Moderate or Deluxe resorts I was over the moon! I have only stayed on Disney property once, and it was back in 2000 at Port Orleans and I only have vague memories of it, so having the chance to work at one of these resorts will be awesome! Ideally, I'd want to work at a resort on the Magic Kingdom monorail loop (Grand Floridian, Polynesian, or Contemporary) but no matter where they place me, I'm going to be PUUUMPEDD! 
• Third, most of the money I make is probably going right back into WDW. It's true and I'm sure Disney knows this too, even though I'm gonna go into it with the intentions of making and saving money, I know that once I am there, I'm gonna end up spending most of my paychecks on food and various shenanigans at the parks. And after talking to one of my classmates who did the program before, she basically just cemented that for me. So yeah, the sooner I accept that the better. 
• Lastly, I hope to form strong relationships with my co-workers and supervisors. This is a goal I will have for all of my jobs but even more at Disney because it is a company I want to build a career with. I was extremely lucky this past summer to have built strong bonds with the front office staff at the Hyatt and still keep in touch with them today, so I hope to be able to do the same while I am working at Disney.

      When it comes to my expectations outside of work, let's just say I'm gonna aim REAL HIGH and know that it's unlikely everything will be met.

• First and foremost, I am super excited and super nervous to meet new people and make new friends. At the end of the day, most people are entering the program the same way they entered college, without knowing anyone, and that's me. I have met a few people through Facebook groups but that does not change that when I arrive on August 31st, I will be overwhelmed by the number of people and having to make friends all over again. But, its one of those things I just need to let happen naturally and try to not stress about. 
• Next, I want to go the parks, A LOT! Having only been to WDW 3 times prior to this, I want to make the most of having free admission for 4 months, so I want to get the parks whenever I can. It is my hope that most of the people doing the program will have the same anticipation, but I won't know until I get there.
• Avoiding being in my apartment a lot, besides just going to the parks just getting out and doing stuff in and around Orlando or participating in housing events. I am pretty sure there are intramurals for CPs; and if there are, I want to get involved! I have participated in athletics since I was 5 up until I finished high school and now I just go to the gym every day, I miss playing!

      At the end of it all, my excitement builds every day closer we get to August 31st. Like I have said, I'm sure my friends and family are sick of me talking about how excited I am but I don't care; this is who I am, this is what I love and this is my dream come true! Living vicariously through YouTube and every other form of media on the internet is all I can do for now, but my anticipation for this program will never die down, it'll only continue to grow! 

When You Wish Upon an Application

Waiting to hear back is gonna be rough, but you'll be alright

      By now, you have done everything you can to give yourself the best chance to get accepted into the Disney College Program for your desired role and you are now forced to wait....and wait....and wait for what seems like eternity. Like waiting for Space Mountain at 3 PM in the middle of July or standing in the 300 minute line at Princess Fairy Tale Hall to meet Anna and Elsa, its going to be a struggle, but you will make it. Like most things in life, your patience will be rewarded. For me, everyday was like mental agony! They told me, "we begin to make most of the hiring decisions at the beginning of March,"...THAT WAS A FULL MONTH FROM WHEN I FINISHED MY PHONE INTERVIEW! The only thing that kept me sane was being super tied up with school and work for the 20 days I had to wait to get my acceptance e-mail, and I recommend doing the same. The busier you are able to keep yourself while you are waiting to hear back, the easier waiting will be. But if you are as much of a Disney freak as I am you know, no matter how busy you keep yourself, it will always be in the back of your mind. And every time an e-mail comes in to your phone, you will jump and hope its subject line reads reads, "Congratulations!"

      And even though 9 times out of 10 it was either a spam email from my school or something completely non-Disney related, when that e-mail did come in, and it was from Disney, I borderline lost it in the middle of class. Yeah, I got my acceptance e-mail in the middle of class, no worse time, and on top of that, I would've grabbed my bag and straight up left mid-class if I did not have to do a presentation later in said class. So, I saw the e-mail, saw the subject line, and took a step out from class, read the e-mail, found out my role, basked in my own happiness and gave a good Tiger Woods fist pump and went back to class. And I sat there with a ridiculous grin on my face and my leg tapping the whole time because of how excited I was. When I left that class though I could not wait to drain what little I had left of my phone battery to tell the people I cared about most that my dream had finally come true, I AM GOING TO DISNEY WORLD! Every now and again in life you will have feelings of euphoria that are difficult to describe; being accepted for the DCP will give you this feeling!
      Now, one thing Disney does not tell you is that you will have one week from the day you receive your e-mail to accept or decline (but let's face it, your going to accept ASAP, its WDW, how could you not) and you must put down a $350 deposit to essentially hold your spot in the program for housing purposes (but again, its Disney, $350 is a small price to pay for 4-6 months at the most magical place on Earth). So I got back to my room, opened the e-mail on my laptop, placed my deposit and from then on out, nearly every moment of every day has been filled with anticipation and excitement, I'm going to Disney World and I'm gonna have the time of my life!

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!