Questions about the College Program

[Dayzie914]

I am a senior in high school and I know where I am going next year. I already spoke with the Internship Administrator at my school, and he said that this program is allowed, and that I can receive credit if I do it during my senior year.

Does anyone know what that means? Will I get credit toward my graduation, as if I were taking the classes at school? ( I know I can ask him this but I just wanted to see what others have experienced)

What is the difference between the Career Start and the Internship (I just heard about the Career Start from reading this forum)

I am planning on being a Bio major, I would love to do LivingSeas and work with marine mammals(which is what I want to do as my job). What if you dont get your first chioce, there is not much else for a Bio major down there.

Also, he said that the program is from Jan- July or July- Jan, but I have read here that you can also do it from Jan-May?

Any other info on this would be helpful.

Thanks

 

[radiohost]

Hello friend...

it sounds like your still in high school correct???? if thats the case then i hope your senior year is going awesome,,,,when i left in 03 i had no regrets and loved every moment of it!!!

Now to answer your question.....As a college junior i would suggest going through a year of college first before deciding to do the internship,,,,i say this from experience for three reasons.
1. You never know if the major you have going into college will be the same after your first year,,,,i think over half of college students change there major after there first year...i did..

2. The disney college internship is called the walt disney world college program.....heres the website..... www.wdwcollegeprogram.com this is open to --ALL-- majors and is recognized as being one of the BEST internships available in the U.S. After your first year of college you should have a pretty good idea of what you want to do.....so this will be able to let the disney recruiter know what goals you have set for yourself in the next 5 years or so....

3. You want this to be a rewarding experience,,,and college life is fun,,,trust me,,,,so you may want to experience that first before disney.....this will help you get involved with campus activities which will look great ---AND I MEAN GREAT!!! on your disney resume....

well i hope this advice helps you out....i myself have been accepted into the wdw college program starting this march,,,and cant wait!!! illl be in operations,,,hopefullly jungle cruise...lol.....but ill be happy with anything....have a great senior year!!!!.....Radiohost

 

[Magicmyway]

Hey~ I am doing the career start program in February. The difference is that in the career start program you are REQUIRED to take the classes and that you are in the wellness apartments. But, they are really similar. The career start info can be found on this page: http://disney.go.com/DisneyCareers/wdwcareers/careerstart/. My high school required that I graduate early. But, I had taken college classes while in high school so I dont know if that had something to do with it. I had all my credits except for government done at the end of the first semester and then I took Government correspondent to graduate in January for my career start program. I guess it can differ with high school? I dont know. But Good Luck in all you do!

bethany

 

[joanna71985]

Hey. I did the CP after 1 semester in college. It was one of the best times of my life. I hope to do another one soon.

 

[Dayzie914]

Thanks so much for the info...I have three more questions...

Does anyone have an email address for the college program...I had one but it didn't work, I then found one on the website and it didn't work either.

Does anyone know about the length options, can you do it from Jan-May?

Can I do the E Presentation without doing an interview, in other words, will they even know that I downloaded it?

Thanks

 

[radiohost]

Thanks so much for the info...I have three more questions...

Does anyone have an email address for the college program...I had one but it didn't work, I then found one on the website and it didn't work either.

Does anyone know about the length options, can you do it from Jan-May?

Can I do the E Presentation without doing an interview, in other words, will they even know that I downloaded it?

Thanks

1. www.wdwcollegeprogram.com

2. yes,,,for semester schools only though.....check website for more dates

3. No.....i myself did an online e-presentation....after you watch it they give you a number to call to schedule the interview (usually 2-3 days afterwards)

hope this helps.....if you need any more questions feel free to ask,,,thats what theis forum is all about,,,,have fun....Radiohost

 

[Magicmyway]

Hey. Radiohost gave you the site so you have that, I did a college presentation but watched the e-presentation too. (Out of curiosity of what the differences were) I thought the campus presentation explained it more because there were people there who had done the program. But, to your question no they do not know you watched it, however I think you do have to give the number at the end of the presentation within 48 hours. Hope this helps.

Bethany

 

[joanna71985]

Yeah. That's what the website said (I also watched it out of interest because I went to the presentation for my CP. I would say that I like it live better, but the E-Presentation is good). About 2 days after for the phone call.

 

[joanna71985]

• You will be asked to call and schedule your telephone interview at the conclusion of the E-Presentation. Your telephone interview must be scheduled no later than 48 HOURS of your on-line presentation.
• The presentation is around 30 minutes in length.

You will be provided with additional information on scheduling your telephone interview at the conclusion of the E-Presentation.

This is from www.wdwcollegeprogram.com. I just wanted to add this.

 

[Gary S. Ownsby]

I have a daughter in the college program right now (Jan-May 2006). We studied this very carefully before letting her participate. I think generally our thoughts are as follows:

• Disney on a resume is a positive factor for employment
• Getting credit for participation is "iffy". Work it out with your college before assuming anything.
• You will need monetary support from home since your pay will be low.
• You pay for housing out of your paycheck.
• Expect a full work week (more than 40 hours)
• Remember - "It's Disney's World" Do Not Get Crossways With Disney or You're Instantly Out.
• Substantial discounts are available to CPs at many places inside/outside Disney
• Disney is VERY big on the "Disney" personna. If you're not ready to comply...don't apply.
• Expect to be very flexible in terms of work assignments, hours, etc. This is not a "Burger King" assignment. You may not get everything your way. Being flexible shows respect to your employer and personal strength of character.
• Stay in touch with your recruiter between acceptance and when you actually are to report...especially if you have been advised of any possible problems by Disney during the early stages. Example: Excessive sized holes in pierced ears; hair color choices; etc. THIS IS IMPORTANT. Don't get sent home on the day you arrive. We have seen it happen with others.