College program Fall 2013 questions

[pennygirlj]

Hi! I'm Jen and I am hoping to get accepted into the Fall 2013 program. I have done a lot of research but there are still some questions I have so I am hoping someone here can help me out

1. One thing I am a little worried about is that I am 24 and will be turning 25 while i am doing the program. I know a lot of kids do this program right on their second semester of school so I am prepared to see a ton of 18 and 19 year old kids. But will there also be people around my age? I know about the wellness and non wellness rooms which will help me find people over 21 but I don't want to feel old. Hahaha

2. I was looking for my main roles that I would like to be in. First choice is concierge which I think will be difficult to get but I am going for it anyway. I am interested in Recreation ONLY because I want to be be a youth advisor with the kids playing hula hoop and doing disney trivia games. My question here is do you think there is anyway I can request only youth advisor? My guess is that it will be completely random and I will have to take what i get but I am hoping someone out there will have proof that it is otherwise.

3.Does anyone know what the most current pay rate is for these roles? (I am not going to be making my decision on which pays more)
Concierge, Merch, Attractions, recreation, and Hospitality

4. I would love to hear about other previous DCPers like what role did you have? Where did you work? What were your hours like? and any other info you would like to share i would lover to hear!
Thats all for now...thanks!

 

[pennygirlj]

Oh! And i thought of another one. I know about most of the discounts but do you get one on the DVC? Also I saw something about one of the water parks having group surf lessons before is opens. Would I be able to get a discount on that too?

 

[BadDad]

My S22 did the DCP Spring 2011. He plans to return Fall 2013. We're close so I know (or I think I do) some answers to your questions.

1. Go non-wellness. Why? Alcohol? no, maturity. My S was 20 when he started and turned 21 in the middle of program. With the 18/19 y.o. there was a lot of immaturity. When he turned 21, he had a reason to get a room change without paying a fee. There was beer and wine in the non-wellness apt but the trash was emptied, dishes washed, bathroom kept clean. Plus if you are in a wellness apt and if alcohol is found in a common area. Everyone is terminated regardless.

He worked at the grill at ESPN wide world of sports. Great venue. He got to meet a lot of the Atlanta Braves players and their WAGs. (wives and girlfriends) plus he worked at both waterparks. I believe custodial and QSFB pays a couple of nickels more.

 

[Wishes Count]

Hi! I'm Jen and I am hoping to get accepted into the Fall 2013 program. I have done a lot of research but there are still some questions I have so I am hoping someone here can help me out

1. One thing I am a little worried about is that I am 24 and will be turning 25 while i am doing the program. I know a lot of kids do this program right on their second semester of school so I am prepared to see a ton of 18 and 19 year old kids. But will there also be people around my age? I know about the wellness and non wellness rooms which will help me find people over 21 but I don't want to feel old. Hahaha

2. I was looking for my main roles that I would like to be in. First choice is concierge which I think will be difficult to get but I am going for it anyway. I am interested in Recreation ONLY because I want to be be a youth advisor with the kids playing hula hoop and doing disney trivia games. My question here is do you think there is anyway I can request only youth advisor? My guess is that it will be completely random and I will have to take what i get but I am hoping someone out there will have proof that it is otherwise.

3.Does anyone know what the most current pay rate is for these roles? (I am not going to be making my decision on which pays more)
Concierge, Merch, Attractions, recreation, and Hospitality

4. I would love to hear about other previous DCPers like what role did you have? Where did you work? What were your hours like? and any other info you would like to share i would lover to hear!
Thats all for now...thanks!

Oh! And i thought of another one. I know about most of the discounts but do you get one on the DVC? Also I saw something about one of the water parks having group surf lessons before is opens. Would I be able to get a discount on that too?

1. I have met lots of people over 25 who are doing the program, some as old as 40! I know right now on the Fall 2013 Facebook group there was someone posting looking for potential roommates who were over 25, so that might be an avenue for you there.

2. You could request youth adviser during your interview but there would be no guarantee that you would get it.

3. I believe Merch and Attractions are the least, it was minimum wage ($7.35 at the time I was there). Roles with more training such as hospitality or lifeguarding are more. I believe entertainment makes the most.

4. I did hospitality on my first CP and really really loved it! Hours weren't too bad, I did about 36 per week my whole program. Usually worked 6pm to 2:30am, but that could depend on your location. It is is harder to find extra shifts for this role though, unlike Merch were you can work at any merch location. I did merch on my second program at Epcot. This was fun too because I was working in a park. CP works a lot of closing shifts so I worked until midnight most nights. I worked close to 40 hours all program. I have a link to my blog in my signature if you want to read about either of those roles. Just use the archive feature to go back to 2010

5. Yes you can get a discount on DVC, and so can your family. I don't know all the details but I did ask the DVC sales guy once and he said there was a discount. I'm not sure about the surfing lessons, There is a book they give you that lists all the discounts so you would be able to check there.

 

[leeg229]

1. Don't worry about your age on the program. There will be plenty of us older folks there. I will also be 24 going on 25 while there this fall if I get accepted.

2. Remember your request is just that, a request. No guarantees. Once you mark down that you're interested in recreation then you open yourself up to Marina, Arcade, Mini Golf, or Children's Activities.

3. The rate as of Spring 2012 was $7.67/hr but I've heard that as of Jan 1st the state of Florida raised (if you can call it a raise) the minimum wage to $7.79. I believe there is a premium for working certain roles in Magic Kingdom. According to my roommate, depending on what you do in recreation you can get tips too. If you are cabana trained or trained to do wishes cruises you are often offered tips. Whether you are allowed to take them or not is another story and I never asked my roommate

4. I did Merchandise in Hollywood Studios and it was the absolute best. I had some of the funniest leaders that really took care of their cast members. I was usually scheduled about 35-45 hours/week. As a CP I was usually scheduled to work night/closing shifts. A typical shift was 3pm-10:30pm and on EMH days it might be 7pm-2:30am. The area I was in had 21 CPs and ICPs and we never had a problem trading shifts, giving them away, or picking them up. One thing I wish I did more of was networking and staying in touch with my leaders. Take advantage of the little things the programs and Disney in general offer!! When I went on my program I never would have imagined I would be canoeing in a competition around Tom Sawyer Island in the Magic Kingdom, or be a part of Star Wars Weekends.

 

[Allieran3]

Hi! I am going to apply for Fall 2013 and will be 35 on the program!

So, u have no worries about age!

I am also looking for room mates over 25

 

[Hollsey]

Definitely don't worry about age! You'd be surprised at how many people do the program that are a little older. One of my friends was 26, and I was in Traditions with at least 2 or 3 people who were older than your typical college age. I, for one, will be turning 24 only a month or so into my program this fall, so there's nothing to worry about!

I know you asked about roles other people did and what their hours were like. I know you didn't list it as one of your preferred roles (I can understand why, too!) but I did QSFB at All Star Music and I actually really liked it! Other CPs I worked with might give you different answers, but I wouldn't be scared and reject the program if you happened to get QSFB. I was lucky in that where I worked, we were trained for either nights or mornings (though we could be scheduled either one, technically speaking, as I Was scheduled one or two mornings), so it was nice having a consistent schedule. During peak season I was scheduled usually from 3:30 until 12, or the more usual 4:30 until 1. The latest I ever stayed was until 2 am during July because we kept our beverage station open later. I usually worked about 40 hours a week, which wasn't too bad. My managers were really great! When I came back to get in my Seasonal hours, the ones that were still there would find time to come and find me and check on me and see how school was going, and the ones that never met me before went out of their way to get to know me and introduce themselves to me, which I thought was really cool. One of my coordinators was amazing, too. He felt more like a big brother, and my managers felt more like aunts/uncles to me. And QSFB in general isn't that bad. It can get really busy and crazy and hectic, but if you're lucky (like I was), you'll get to work with a lot of great people who will keep you laughing during the busy times.

 

[CMHopeful!]

Hello, fellow DCP hopefuls! My name is Marissa, and I have been dreaming of the day I can apply to the college program since middle school.

I am currently a first semester senior, theatre major- tech/design track, at Rowan University in NJ. If I get into the Fall '13 CP, I am hoping to complete my undergrad between taking several summer classes & the credits I would receive from doing the program. Basically, I want to graduate ASAP so that I will have the chance to either extend my program OR achieve my dream PI...the summer technical theatre internship.

If Disney accepts me, I am hoping it is just the start to my working for the most magical place on earth for the rest of my life!!!!!!

The top roles I would like are attractions, photopass, and costuming.
However, I will basically take anything Disney will offer me to get the chance to work for the Mouse & meet some incredible people.

Questions: Unfortunately there aren't many backstage jobs available for the CP aside from costuming, but even then it isn't necessarily "theatrical costuming" that most people would assume. So if I accepted a job in a different field, would I be hurting my chances of getting a PI to do with theatre? Am I better off trying to be a character attendant or something of that nature to get to know CMS in the entertainment field? I'M SO NERVOUS...THIS KS MY DREAM FUTURE PEOPLE!? Lol Sorry everyone, just super excited.

Lastly, I can't get onto my dashboard and they haven't sent me a password recovery yet??? can anyone help? I'm so worried that I won't be able to apply because I can't create a new account, since I have applied for a PI in the past. I want to apply the second the app opens, so I need to fix this ASAP.

Well, now that I have sufficiently introduced myself- I wish everyone luck & pixie dust on application day. I hope to meet you all in August!!!

 

[pennygirlj]

Thanks for your answers! They helped me out. And if anyone else wants to add in what they did in the program I would still love to hear about it.

 

[Berlioz70]

Questions: Unfortunately there aren't many backstage jobs available for the CP aside from costuming, but even then it isn't necessarily "theatrical costuming" that most people would assume. So if I accepted a job in a different field, would I be hurting my chances of getting a PI to do with theatre? Am I better off trying to be a character attendant or something of that nature to get to know CMS in the entertainment field?

Attendant CPs have next to 0 interaction with Techs - your chances are much better in Costuming. Start networking as soon as you walk in the door.

 

[TweedleMe]

Hey all!

I'm 23 from Jersey and did the DCP in Spring 2011 but want to go back in the Fall. I may end up moving to Florida either way and working for Disney.

I loove talking about Disney, Disney World, and the College Program so ask me any questions you have!

I worked at both Blizzard Beach and Hollywood Studios as Quick Service Food and Beverage.

 

[Joanna71985]

Thanks for your answers! They helped me out. And if anyone else wants to add in what they did in the program I would still love to hear about it.

I did 6 CPs. Overall I did Fantasyland merchandise, character attendant, Epcot WS custodial, Casey's Corner QSFB, attractions (Toy Story Mania), and attractions (Great Movie Ride).

 

[Joeywarhorse]

Joanna,

That's amazing that you did 6 CPs! Can you go through and say pros and cons of each role? Are you full-time at Disney now? What are your future plans for working for the company?

Thanks!

 

[Joanna71985]

Joanna,

That's amazing that you did 6 CPs! Can you go through and say pros and cons of each role? Are you full-time at Disney now? What are your future plans for working for the company?

Thanks!

Sure. Merchandise: Pros- guest interaction, loved the area, lots of variety with rotating around. Cons- not a big fan of working with money. character attendant: Pros- love the role! enjoy getting to work in all 4 parks, playing with the characters, guest interaction. Cons- guests getting upset with closed lines. Custodial: Pros- location, freedom, guest interaction. Cons- lots of walking around. QSFB: Pros- location. Cons- not a big fan of working with money. TSM: Pros- people I worked with. Cons- hated working with FP, always very busy. GMR: Pros- loved the attraction! loved doing shows, the people I worked with, not too busy. Cons- can't think of any

Yes, I am currently FT. I was at GMR for 2.5 years, and now am back in character attendant. Not sure what I want to do next, but I think I would like to try to move up in Entertainment

 

[CMHopeful!]

Sure. Merchandise: Pros- guest interaction, loved the area, lots of variety with rotating around. Cons- not a big fan of working with money. character attendant: Pros- love the role! enjoy getting to work in all 4 parks, playing with the characters, guest interaction. Cons- guests getting upset with closed lines. Custodial: Pros- location, freedom, guest interaction. Cons- lots of walking around. QSFB: Pros- location. Cons- not a big fan of working with money. TSM: Pros- people I worked with. Cons- hated working with FP, always very busy. GMR: Pros- loved the attraction! loved doing shows, the people I worked with, not too busy. Cons- can't think of any

Yes, I am currently FT. I was at GMR for 2.5 years, and now am back in character attendant. Not sure what I want to do next, but I think I would like to try to move up in Entertainment

That's incredible, and really helpful information! You're such a hard worker, I hope you get the promotion you deserve!!

 

[Joanna71985]

Thank you!