Disappointed by Disney
Walt Disney World College Program not a magical experience for students
By Erin Beatty
Kansan staff writer
Tony Vyhanek said he thought his Disney World internship would teach him leadership skills and allow him to make connections at a large, well-respected corporation.
Instead, he spent four months selling egg rolls at Disney-MGM Studios for $6 an hour, making no professional connections.
“It was disappointing from an internship standpoint,” said Vyhanek, an Overland Park senior studying business.
Vyhanek worked at Disney World in Orlando, Fla., during Spring 2001 as part of the Walt Disney World College Program.
Some students enjoyed their Disney internship. They said they met people from around the world, received free admission to the Disney parks and learned about the hospitality industry.
Others, like Vyhanek, expected more. These students said the pay was too low, the work was boring and they didn´t get an opportunity to shadow Disney employees.
The Walt Disney World College Program, which began in 1980, offers college students “a unique living, learning and earning experience” working at Disney World. The program provides paid positions at theme parks and resorts and offers educational classes and seminars for about 6,000 students each year.
Disney representatives recruit interns at 350 schools each fall and spring. Twenty-eight KU students have been offered Disney internships for next semester, according to University Career and Employment Services.
Program recruiters offer “a magical time in a magical place” to college students, as well as the opportunity to network with employees of a successful Fortune 500 company.
Molly Griffith participated in the program during Fall 2000 and is a member of the Walt Disney World College Program Alumni Association. The Stillwater, Minn., senior is one of six college program recruiters at KU.
“We all loved the program and we all wanted to stay involved with Disney at KU,” Griffith said.
But not all participants found the experience magical.
Beth Ann Allison, a sophomore at Emporia State University, participated in the program in Spring 2001 and went home after two months.
She said she lived in a three-bedroom apartment with five girls whom she didn't like and worked as a merchandise hostess on Main Street at the Magic Kingdom.
She said she was promised 40 hours a week at her job but worked only 25 to 30 hours. For Allison and other students, it was tough to pay for groceries, gas and rent.
“You spend all the money you make on food and Disney souvenirs,” said Emilie Norvell, a junior at Murray State University in Murray, Ky. “So it´s like Disney gets all its money back.”
Allison said she didn´t have much spending money and could only go out one night a week, when admission was free at Pleasure Island for “cast members,” or employees.
She also didn´t like her job selling glass, art and animation sketches, or cells. Allison said she was often the only worker at the store and knew nothing about the art. She said she wasn´t qualified to answer shoppers´ questions.
Allison asked her managers more than once if she could switch jobs, but they would not let her.
A Disney World employment assistant said interns were not allowed to switch jobs once they began working because they already had been told three times what their jobs would be.
“The recruiter tells you, they tell you in the interview, and in your acceptance letter,” said Michelle, who would not give her last name. “Here at Disney, we´re a first-name company. We don´t give our last names out.”
Disney surveys interns to get feedback but doesn´t disclose the results, Michelle said.
Jeff Tasset is a Disney college recruiter and has recruited at KU for three years. During his September presentation, he said interns were guaranteed 30 to 45 hours of work per week.
Interns live in apartment complexes provided by the company and their rent, which ranges from $67 to $79 per person per week, is automatically deducted from their paychecks, he said.
Tasset did not respond to subsequent calls or e-mails.
Common student jobs — or “roles,” as Disney calls them — include working in quick-service food and beverage; full-service food and beverage; merchandise; operations, which includes attractions, park greeters and parking; custodial; lifeguarding and hospitality. The pay is $6 an hour.
There is no set minimum wage in Florida, but $6 an hour is less than the minimum wage in eight states, according to U.S. Department of Labor statistics.
Norvell worked in quick-service food and beverage at Disney-MGM Studios during Spring 2001.
“I worked selling ice cream at `The Dip Cart,´ also known as `Hell on Earth,´” she said. “They made it sound so glamorous, but it was not what it seemed.”
Norvell said she worked long hours in the sun, wearing an apron and hot polyester pants.
The costume was not the worst part for Norvell. As a dance minor, she wanted to shadow Disney dancers.
“They told me I would be able to shadow and make connections, so I tried several times to shadow Beauty and the Beast dancers,” Norvell said. “But I asked at least three people for the chance to shadow, and I was never able to.”
Whether interns have the opportunity to shadow depends largely on their individual managers, said Disney World employee Cameron Meier.
“It really is the luck of the draw,” Meier said.
Kendra Merino, Disney college recruiting coordinator, said recruiters stopped telling students a year ago that they would be able to shadow employees.
“Now we tell them that they can `network´ with employees,” she said. “We have networking events for students to meet people from different areas of Disney.”
She said if students wanted to network with employees, it was their responsibility to take the initiative.
Brian Edwards said he was never able to shadow Disney employees during his internship. He said he asked three or four times to shadow someone in the business or the marketing department, but it never happened.
“It was just a sales pitch,” said Edwards, a junior studying finance at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.
Edwards worked as a lifeguard at the Yacht Club Resort and the Beach Club Resort from May 2001 until January 2002.
“As interns, we were like the bottom of the food chain there,” he said.
He said he was frustrated with 10-hour shifts, working holidays and not having scheduling input.
“I hated the work experience,” Edwards said. “It was like exploited labor.”
Brea Baumann said the internship was not the best job she ever had, but it was fun.
She worked as a lifeguard at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa from August 2001 until January 2002.
“It was the most mind-numbing job I´ve ever had,” said Baumann, a Clearwater senior studying business at KU, “but I had so much fun down there. The work stinks, but the tradeoff is worth it.”
She said it was a good experience to learn about herself and to realize she could live on her own.
Meier, the Disney World employee, participated in the college program in 1992. He enjoyed the program so much that he did the internship three times and went on to be full-time, working as an attractions coordinator for seven years.
“I would recommend the internship to people who love Disney and want a fun experience,” said Meier, a KU graduate. “I wouldn´t recommend it to people who want to make a lot of money.”
What he made in the early 1990s was not much different from the $6 an hour interns receive today, he said.
“People have complained about the intern pay not increasing more throughout the years,” Meier said.
KU career coordinator Gail Rooney said potential employers probably considered the Disney internship to be valuable work experience, especially employers looking to hire students for sales, customer service and management.
But she did warn that students interested in the internship should understand exactly what they would be doing at Disney.
“You need to look realistically at the program and figure out if it's a good match for you,” Rooney said.
Edwards said he had a different view of Disney after working there as a lifeguard.
“Being a Disney employee definitely ruined the magic,” he said.
Walt Disney World College Program not a magical experience for students
By Erin Beatty
Kansan staff writer
Tony Vyhanek said he thought his Disney World internship would teach him leadership skills and allow him to make connections at a large, well-respected corporation.
Instead, he spent four months selling egg rolls at Disney-MGM Studios for $6 an hour, making no professional connections.
“It was disappointing from an internship standpoint,” said Vyhanek, an Overland Park senior studying business.
Vyhanek worked at Disney World in Orlando, Fla., during Spring 2001 as part of the Walt Disney World College Program.
Some students enjoyed their Disney internship. They said they met people from around the world, received free admission to the Disney parks and learned about the hospitality industry.
Others, like Vyhanek, expected more. These students said the pay was too low, the work was boring and they didn´t get an opportunity to shadow Disney employees.
The Walt Disney World College Program, which began in 1980, offers college students “a unique living, learning and earning experience” working at Disney World. The program provides paid positions at theme parks and resorts and offers educational classes and seminars for about 6,000 students each year.
Disney representatives recruit interns at 350 schools each fall and spring. Twenty-eight KU students have been offered Disney internships for next semester, according to University Career and Employment Services.
Program recruiters offer “a magical time in a magical place” to college students, as well as the opportunity to network with employees of a successful Fortune 500 company.
Molly Griffith participated in the program during Fall 2000 and is a member of the Walt Disney World College Program Alumni Association. The Stillwater, Minn., senior is one of six college program recruiters at KU.
“We all loved the program and we all wanted to stay involved with Disney at KU,” Griffith said.
But not all participants found the experience magical.
Beth Ann Allison, a sophomore at Emporia State University, participated in the program in Spring 2001 and went home after two months.
She said she lived in a three-bedroom apartment with five girls whom she didn't like and worked as a merchandise hostess on Main Street at the Magic Kingdom.
She said she was promised 40 hours a week at her job but worked only 25 to 30 hours. For Allison and other students, it was tough to pay for groceries, gas and rent.
“You spend all the money you make on food and Disney souvenirs,” said Emilie Norvell, a junior at Murray State University in Murray, Ky. “So it´s like Disney gets all its money back.”
Allison said she didn´t have much spending money and could only go out one night a week, when admission was free at Pleasure Island for “cast members,” or employees.
She also didn´t like her job selling glass, art and animation sketches, or cells. Allison said she was often the only worker at the store and knew nothing about the art. She said she wasn´t qualified to answer shoppers´ questions.
Allison asked her managers more than once if she could switch jobs, but they would not let her.
A Disney World employment assistant said interns were not allowed to switch jobs once they began working because they already had been told three times what their jobs would be.
“The recruiter tells you, they tell you in the interview, and in your acceptance letter,” said Michelle, who would not give her last name. “Here at Disney, we´re a first-name company. We don´t give our last names out.”
Disney surveys interns to get feedback but doesn´t disclose the results, Michelle said.
Jeff Tasset is a Disney college recruiter and has recruited at KU for three years. During his September presentation, he said interns were guaranteed 30 to 45 hours of work per week.
Interns live in apartment complexes provided by the company and their rent, which ranges from $67 to $79 per person per week, is automatically deducted from their paychecks, he said.
Tasset did not respond to subsequent calls or e-mails.
Common student jobs — or “roles,” as Disney calls them — include working in quick-service food and beverage; full-service food and beverage; merchandise; operations, which includes attractions, park greeters and parking; custodial; lifeguarding and hospitality. The pay is $6 an hour.
There is no set minimum wage in Florida, but $6 an hour is less than the minimum wage in eight states, according to U.S. Department of Labor statistics.
Norvell worked in quick-service food and beverage at Disney-MGM Studios during Spring 2001.
“I worked selling ice cream at `The Dip Cart,´ also known as `Hell on Earth,´” she said. “They made it sound so glamorous, but it was not what it seemed.”
Norvell said she worked long hours in the sun, wearing an apron and hot polyester pants.
The costume was not the worst part for Norvell. As a dance minor, she wanted to shadow Disney dancers.
“They told me I would be able to shadow and make connections, so I tried several times to shadow Beauty and the Beast dancers,” Norvell said. “But I asked at least three people for the chance to shadow, and I was never able to.”
Whether interns have the opportunity to shadow depends largely on their individual managers, said Disney World employee Cameron Meier.
“It really is the luck of the draw,” Meier said.
Kendra Merino, Disney college recruiting coordinator, said recruiters stopped telling students a year ago that they would be able to shadow employees.
“Now we tell them that they can `network´ with employees,” she said. “We have networking events for students to meet people from different areas of Disney.”
She said if students wanted to network with employees, it was their responsibility to take the initiative.
Brian Edwards said he was never able to shadow Disney employees during his internship. He said he asked three or four times to shadow someone in the business or the marketing department, but it never happened.
“It was just a sales pitch,” said Edwards, a junior studying finance at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.
Edwards worked as a lifeguard at the Yacht Club Resort and the Beach Club Resort from May 2001 until January 2002.
“As interns, we were like the bottom of the food chain there,” he said.
He said he was frustrated with 10-hour shifts, working holidays and not having scheduling input.
“I hated the work experience,” Edwards said. “It was like exploited labor.”
Brea Baumann said the internship was not the best job she ever had, but it was fun.
She worked as a lifeguard at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa from August 2001 until January 2002.
“It was the most mind-numbing job I´ve ever had,” said Baumann, a Clearwater senior studying business at KU, “but I had so much fun down there. The work stinks, but the tradeoff is worth it.”
She said it was a good experience to learn about herself and to realize she could live on her own.
Meier, the Disney World employee, participated in the college program in 1992. He enjoyed the program so much that he did the internship three times and went on to be full-time, working as an attractions coordinator for seven years.
“I would recommend the internship to people who love Disney and want a fun experience,” said Meier, a KU graduate. “I wouldn´t recommend it to people who want to make a lot of money.”
What he made in the early 1990s was not much different from the $6 an hour interns receive today, he said.
“People have complained about the intern pay not increasing more throughout the years,” Meier said.
KU career coordinator Gail Rooney said potential employers probably considered the Disney internship to be valuable work experience, especially employers looking to hire students for sales, customer service and management.
But she did warn that students interested in the internship should understand exactly what they would be doing at Disney.
“You need to look realistically at the program and figure out if it's a good match for you,” Rooney said.
Edwards said he had a different view of Disney after working there as a lifeguard.
“Being a Disney employee definitely ruined the magic,” he said.
The program isn't for everyone.
