Imagineers Please Help!!!

[gkolta36]

Hi my name is George,

Before asking my question, I feel that I should give a little background about myself. To start, I am currently a Mechanical Engineering Major finishing up my second out of five years in my undergraduate education. I have been wanting to become an Imagineer since I found out about Imagineering, my sophomore year in high school. Since then, I had planned on going into the Disney College Program, however a few weeks ago a recruiter for the program was on my campus, so I spoke to him for a few minutes. After I was done explaining all this to him, he told me that the Disney College Program would not be a good path to take if I want to go into engineering; he said there was another program in which it would be easier to get hired from. Unfortunately, he mumbled the name of the programming, and after asking a few times I still could not understand what he was saying. I think he said something like "Electric Light and Magic" but I'm not sure. So my first question is, does anyone know what the program he was talking about is, or is that actually the name of the program? I would also like to know if there are any other programs you may know of that could help me in getting into Imagineering. I would also like to point out that I do understand that Imagineering is a tough career to get into, and that inn order for me to have a chance at getting a position I need to give it 100%. So I feel like not asking these questions wouldn't be giving it my all. I would like to thank you in advance for any replies and help anyone can give me.

 

[wilkeliza]

The College Program is actually a good in for anyone who wants to work for Disney. A lot of the higher internships say that although it is not a requirement to be be a College Program alumni it is strongly encouraged. I tried applying for their more advanced internships since I will be graduating (one in theatrical design and one in production management) but wasn't even looked at for either and got denied instantly. I was hired right away for the upcoming semester of the College Program.

I want to work as an Imagineer one day but not in the engineering aspect. I'm about to graduate this year with my degree in Theatrical design so I want to be the Imagineers that design the rides. Tony Baxter is always who comes to mind when I think about who's job I want haha.

I met with some people at Disney and was told the CP was the best way to start for anyone who wants to work for the company later. Remember many of the greats got their start at the Parks including Tony Baxter and John Lassater.

You should check out disneycareers.com and look around. It will give you some insight into all the internships and job openings.

 

[gkolta36]

Ok, so I was thinking of applying for the College Program during the fall semester of my third year, so that I could go into the College Program in the spring. That way after that I could try to go into the program that the recruiter told me about. The problem is that I don't think I got the name of the program right; I researched the name on google like crazy but I couldn't find anything. So I was wondering if there are any engineering based internships with Disney that I could try to go into during my fourth year or fifth year. So if you known anything like that, it would be great.

 

[KaitlinT]

ImagiNations?

Hi,
I am a senior in high school, but I will be majoring in Mechanical Engineering as well starting in the fall. I have been searching for some way to contact an Imagineer for an interview for my senior project and, as I'm sure you've discovered, finding any information about them is extremely difficult. However, while I was searching for anything that had Disney, engineering, and a phone number or email address of any kind, I found a design competition that sounds similar to what you are talking about. It's called ImagiNations. I recommend looking through the stuff on this page, especially the "About ImagiNations" tab. Even if this isn't what you were looking for, one thing I know for sure is that it talks about engineering internships.
Here's the link:
http://disneyimaginations.com/
I hope this is useful and good luck!
Sincerely,
Kaitlin
P.S. If you happen to know of any contacts or email addresses or phone numbers, feel free to email them to me at any time! :animwink:

 

[flynnibus]

the college program is useful to get your 'foot in the door' at disney in terms of getting a better position to try to move onto the next level which is 'professional internships'. Professional Internships are a good step to try to get positioned for real jobs, etc.

It's a progression.. each is used to demonstrate to the company you can perform, references, and have a lead on future openings.

Just remember... engineering is just ONE discipline in Imagineering.. it's probably far out numbered by other artistic disciplines.

 

[blogs]

I want to work as an Imagineer one day but not in the engineering aspect. I'm about to graduate this year with my degree in Theatrical design so I want to be the Imagineers that design the rides. Tony Baxter is always who comes to mind when I think about who's job I want haha.

 

[-Tom-]

I know they recruit a lot from Carnegie Mellon. I can't seem to think of the name of the program right now. But I have heard it pretty much referred to as Imagineering school by people working at WDI.
Also definitely look at thinks like http://disneyimaginations.com/. I know they recruit people from there too.
I would try anything to get my foot in the door. Once you know the right people things are a lot easier. (If you also have the required skills/experience)

 

[ZaneB]

Hey does anyone know what I should study on college if I want to have a chance at becoming a concept designer at imagineering?

 

[unkadug]

Hey does anyone know what I should study on college if I want to have a chance at becoming a concept designer at imagineering?

There is no one thing that they look for. They look for the best in the respective fields.

They want artists, they want engineers, they want architects, they want people that think outside of the box, they want experience. Go to school, get good grades, excel at your job and they will find YOU.

Of course it doesn't hurt to do the CP either. Make a good impression though.

I'm still waiting for them to call me...of course I never gave them my number!

 

[Nala94]

Hey does anyone know what I should study on college if I want to have a chance at becoming a concept designer at imagineering?

In an imagineering book, one aspect was show/concept design and illustration. That's what I want to do and I am planning on doing a major in illustration next year. The major at my college also includes graphic design. So maybe study illustration, graphic design, or major in fine arts like drawing or painting to get the art done or something like that.

 

[ZaneB]

In an imagineering book, one aspect was show/concept design and illustration. That's what I want to do and I am planning on doing a major in illustration next year. The major at my college also includes graphic design. So maybe study illustration, graphic design, or major in fine arts like drawing or painting to get the art done or something like that.

thanks Nala I am thinking about majoring mechanical engineering and then taking art lessons somewhere (maybe CalArts)

 

[Nala94]

then taking art lessons somewhere (maybe CalArts)

that would be insane to take art classes at CalArts. You would really get looked at then.

 

[ZaneB]

that would be insane to take art classes at CalArts. You would really get looked at then.

That's what I'm hoping

 

[wedenterprises]

The ol' "how do I become an imagineer" question is a timeless classic. It has slayed many a dragon, and defeated many a foe.

The secret to becoming an imagineer is to simply attend Carnegie Mellon. look up entertainment technology or whatever it's called now and google "Mk Haley". I just saved your life.

 

[ZaneB]

The ol' "how do I become an imagineer" question is a timeless classic. It has slayed many a dragon, and defeated many a foe.

The secret to becoming an imagineer is to simply attend Carnegie Mellon. look up entertainment technology or whatever it's called now and google "Mk Haley". I just saved your life.

How did reading someones life summary save my life?