Disney College Program, is it worth it?

T

TiggersPooh

Active Member
When I host info tables for the College Program I make sure to tell people that you get what you put into the experience. Many students go down thinking it will be a VACATION. While there are plenty of times to relax and have fun you will be working.
I think just the experience for living far away from home within a diverse community is reason enough alone to go. It forces you to grow as a person.

As you might guess I loved my College Program. (Spring Quarter 2005 Program) and I am doing another for Fall 2009 (start in June right after graduation).
 
coilback

coilback

Active Member
Okay, I seem to be one of the few responding that has done the CP recently (2008). You can maybe look up some of my other posts for more details, but here's my general impression:

First, you WILL work. A LOT !!! But if you make the effort, you will meet some great people along the way and if you enjoy Disney, you will totally love it. Take every chance you get to network, meet people and check out the parks. I worked in Operations at the Epic Stunt Theater (aka Indiana Jones). I loved interacting with the guests and a lot of my co-workers were a lot of fun. You will not get a lot of money, but it'll be enough to feed you and have a bit of fun with (just don't go overboard). Bring appliances if you can (i.e. coffee makers, toasters, stuff you use a lot) since you don't want to depend on your paychecks to cover much. If you enjoy interacting with guests and are really into being "Disney" then you'll have a blast and won't want to leave...but....

...trust me...leave. I stayed full time as a technician. At first, I was totally stoked that I had a full time, DECENT paying job at WDW. After awhile, though, it does become a job. You get around a lot of jaded people and the worst part for me was the fact that everything outside the "Disney Bubble" (i.e. Kissimmee / Orlando) is a bit shady. Disney can chew you up and spit you out at times. I'm from Texas and Florida can be pretty rough relatively speaking. Crime rate is a bit high for me. Needless to say, I'm back in Texas now.

Now, saying all that, did I regret any of it ? Not at all. I loved it and wouldn't have changed it. Hell, part of me still wants to go back there and work (if there was some way to do it without dealing with the rest of Florida). I wish I could come in on a more executive / creative position as being a "button pusher" aka Technician, bored me quite a bit. My dream was to be an Imagineer, but lately, from the ones I came into contact with and the way I hear the rest of the cast talking, I can't say they are what they used to be. The Disney Standard isn't as high as it once was to say the least. I still love Disney and will take my child there one day. It isn't the same to me and part of me hates that fact and part of me loves that I got to see everything I did. So it's bittersweet, but if you really like Disney, by all means, go for it.

And if any of you ever have any questions, feel free to PM me anytime.
 
A

alecky

New Member
Questions concerning international programme...is it worth the money?

hey,
im 18 years old and from new zealand and thinking of doing the disney college programme for 6 months. im in my first year on university and would be taking off a semester to do it. i would not be doing it for career related reasons, mostly just because i have always wanted to work at disney and i fell in love with it as a little girl. it would cost me about 3000 nz dollars for my plan flight alone (approx 2000us), money i could otherwise spend on a different holiday however i am really interested in the disney programme and my question is is it worth it? i dont mind working hard if it is a nice environment behind the scenes?
also i currently have a part time job waitressing which is full time in the holidays in which i can get pretty horrible hours, i have no problem with working late nights however i have had to work till 2am some mornings and starting again at 10am, or at times have worked 13hr shifts, are shifts like that given at disney?
also has anyone ever done it and been able to get a job as a face character or at least the opportunity to audition?
i would greatly appreciate any help with this decision and knowledge from your experiences.
many thanks
alecky :)
 
coilback

coilback

Active Member
If you enjoy Disney, then it's definitely worth it for the experience. It's a once in a lifetime chance to do it without having to make it a long term career thing. You would need to talk to your College Program recruiter about auditions as I know they only hold them at certain times for certain areas.
 
T

TiggersPooh

Active Member
alecky said:
hey,
im 18 years old and from new zealand and thinking of doing the disney college programme for 6 months. im in my first year on university and would be taking off a semester to do it. i would not be doing it for career related reasons, mostly just because i have always wanted to work at disney and i fell in love with it as a little girl. it would cost me about 3000 nz dollars for my plan flight alone (approx 2000us), money i could otherwise spend on a different holiday however i am really interested in the disney programme and my question is is it worth it? i dont mind working hard if it is a nice environment behind the scenes?
also i currently have a part time job waitressing which is full time in the holidays in which i can get pretty horrible hours, i have no problem with working late nights however i have had to work till 2am some mornings and starting again at 10am, or at times have worked 13hr shifts, are shifts like that given at disney?
also has anyone ever done it and been able to get a job as a face character or at least the opportunity to audition?
i would greatly appreciate any help with this decision and knowledge from your experiences.
many thanks
alecky :)
Click to expand...

You would have to do the International Program not the College Program. I am not sure if they do auditions for the international program.
 
A

alecky

New Member
the not being able to drink doesnt really concern me cause im not really much of a drinker, but do ppl under 21 get left out at times? :)
 
DisneyChik17

DisneyChik17

Well-Known Member
joanna71985 said:
Yes, it is true that the hours can be bad and the pay is low. However, it is a paying internship. You won't find that many of those. And if you budget carefully, you can bring home some money. I brought home almost $3,000 my second program. Even with the negatives, I would never give away the great memories and friends I made.
Click to expand...

Joanna, I am thinking that maybe you should help me budget while I'm down there. That is 3 times the amout I was thinking I would be able to save. But, bringing that much home would be AMAZING!
 
skycraft

skycraft

New Member
The CP was the best thing I would ever do with my life.
My only advice is to not let others get you down about what they think makes the jobs "terrible", which they arent. It is so much fun and you gain so much experience and a bigger perspective on life.
 
8

8890

New Member
Hello,

I've been searching around for information on Disney's College Program and so far I've heard the two opposite poles: either I will enjoy it and love the experience or it will be a waste of time and I will hate it. I'm a 3rd year college student studying Media Communications majoring in Audiovisual Communications (film) and I don't know if this Internship would be beneficial for my major ( because of all the supposed "networking opportunities", development of "leadership and communication skills", etc. ) or if it would be a waste of time and I should just search for another internship.

I've also been searching for the roles that communication students may have in Disney's Professional internship but I can't seem to find any detailed explanation.

If anybody could help me out here I would reeally appreciate it.<!-- google_ad_section_end -->
 
coilback

coilback

Active Member
As for helping your major, I can't say that I know of anything you'll do during a CP that will help your major specifically, BUT having Disney on your resume does help on the job market.

I can say that I enjoyed my CP a LOT more than working there as a full time "regular" employee. I highly suggest it, but understand you WILL be working a lot and you better really like Disney or you'll get sick of it before you go.
 
joanna71985

joanna71985

Well-Known Member
I definitely recommend it. I love being down here on the CP (I've had awsome experiences on my CPs, and hope to go FT in the Spring).
 

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