One Month To Go!

It's almost time!! We are down to just 30 days until my check in at Vista Way for my Disney College Program!

I thought that I would give a little update as to what has been going on and what I'm doing in preparation in the weeks to come!

- Signed Up for Classes
      No not school classes (thank God!). Disney sent an email around with our log in information to sign up for classes. This came about 6 weeks before the move in date. They direct you to the DORMS website where you take a quick survey and they generate which classes they offer that would fit how you answered the survey. You do not need to take classes! Some of them you can take for credit at school, and others are just speaker series about different aspects of the company. I am taking the Human Resource Management Speaker Series class which will dive into all the areas of Disney's HR. Since that was the major that I graduated with and I want to get into that division of the company, I figured this would be the perfect classes!

- Communicating with Roommates
       My roommates and I have been talking about who has certain items for the apartment such as TVs, toasters, Coffee makers, etc. that we are going to bring with us. This way we won't have duplicates. We have also narrowed down which apartment complexes we want. We will be getting the email to sign up for our housing preferences 10 days prior to check in and we want to be prepared. It's great to really start talking to them because it makes everything all the more exciting!

- New Hire Paperwork
         This week Disney Casting sent us the link to all of our new hire paperwork that needed to be filled out. This was so much easier than the last time that I did a DCP! The old way was that you received a giant envelope in the mail with all the documents that you had to sign and fill out and remember to bring with you on the first day. Now, you just go to the website and everything is already populated with your information and you do an e-signature to sign the documents! It was really simple and easy! 

- Received my Postcard!
         This is also something new since my last program! Since you don't get the giant welcome packet, Recruiting sends all the CPs a Postcard that says congratulations on it! (See my picture above) This was such a great way to just make it more real and like it is really happening... I am moving to Walt Disney World!

- Packing! Packing! Packing!
         It's still kind of early to really be packing, but I have all of my luggage down from the attic and set up in my sisters room. She's away at school so she didn't mind that I have turned her room into my staging area! Slowly I have been moving some summer clothes over into her room to get them out of sight so that I don't wear everything and have to do a ton of laundry before I leave. I also went through all of the stuff that I have accumulated from college and decided what I was going to need and what I wasn't. Once I have finalized my packing list, I will be sure to post it so you can see an idea of what you'd need to bring.

- Just Keep Waiting...
        I turned in my notice to work that I am leaving a week ago and now it is just a matter of waiting until my last day! I can't wait to be in Florida! I just wish the next few weeks would fly by! 

We Keep Moving Forward

Growing up as a "Disney Kid", I learned a lot from Walt Disney's movies, but also from the man himself. Here are some of my favorite quotes and why that are special to me. 

"Keep moving forward" was one of my favorite lines from the film, Meet the Robinsons. It was the motto that ran throughout the whole movie. (If you haven't seen it, you really should! It's one of those amazing and underrated Disney movies.) I fell in love with the phrase even more when I found out that it actually came from Walt Disney himself. 

This is something that I think everyone needs to remember in life. No matter what happens, you need to keep on going. Don't forget about the past, but learn from it. Take what you learned and use that to find new opportunities that you didn't know where there before. When one door shuts, another one opens. Just keep on going!

This was never more true for me as it was when I did not get any of the Professional Internships that I applied to last year when I was graduating. I thought it was my last opportunity to apply since you have to be in school when you're applying. I did not dwell on the fact that I did not get the positions, but I looked to see how I would be able to get myself down to Disney again. I decided to go back to school (online) for my Masters. This then made me eligible to apply for the DCP and PI all over again! 

Don't focus so much on what has already happened. There is nothing that you can do to change the past. You just need to pick yourself up and see what the next step in the process will be and move on. Move forward.

Want to see more Disney Quotes? Check out Wise Words From Walt

Forming my Bucket List for DCP 2015

Hi All!

So I am seriously so excited for May to come and for my to move to Florida! Just 2 months away!!! 

In the mean time, I have been focusing my excitement into my blog because otherwise I would probably explode. So I have started forming my Disney College Program 2015 Bucket List! Super awesome right?! 

It is a work in progress and I promise that once I get down there, I will make sure to take pictures of each event as I check them off my list so that you know I successfully completed it. If you have any suggestions of things that I should do while in Florida, I would love for any ideas! 6 months should provide me with enough time to get everything accomplished!

You can navigate to my Bucket List by selecting the page name on the tabs on the top of the page, or by clicking the link here : Click Here for my DCP Bucket List

Finding Roommates

The great thing about Disney creating their DORMS application is that now you can make sure that you are getting the roommates that you want (even though it really isn't a guarantee, they try to keep together the roommates that you list over the location). Since they now make it so easy, everyone is on the hunt for the perfect roommates for their semester in Disney.

It all starts with the Roommate Survey. Here is mine below: (Sorry it's long haha!)

Name: Julie Heider
Gender: Female
Orientation: Straight
Relationship Status: Single
Birthday/Age: August 8 - I'll be turning 24 on the program
From: New Jersey
School: Southern New Hampshire University
Major: MS Human Resource Management
Are you allergic/allergies to anything?: Nothing major. 
Do you have any siblings? 2 - One Sister and One brother.. both younger
DCP DETAILS
Are you applying for WDW or DL? WDW
Flying or Driving: Driving and keeping my car
Your Role?: Hospitality
What program are you applying for? Fall Advantage
Do you want to live in Wellness or Non-Wellness? Non-Wellness
How many people do you want to live with? would prefer 4 total
Which housing complex would you like to live in?: In order: Commons or Chatham
Alumni? YES! Spring Advantage 2011
LIFESTYLE
Do you party? How often? I like to have fun! Love to go out and try new place. More of a bar person than a club person. Also love nights in and cuddling with Netflix
Do you smoke? No
Do you drink? yes
Can you cook? I can hold my own. I make killer Enchiladas!! (in a good way)
Are you a night person or morning person? Definitely more a night person
Do you snore? Not that I know of
What does your bedroom normally look like? Sometimes I can have some clothes thrown around, but thats it. The life of a girl trying to get dressed...
Do you like it when your room is hot or cold? I'm always cold so I usually have a sweatshirt with me anyway so it doesn't really matter.
Would you rather go out or stay in? Depends on the day! 
What do you like to do on your days off/the weekend? Definitely go to the parks or explore since I will have my car. Then sometimes I just like to binge watch Friends on Netflix. 
Do you work out a lot? I try! I am planning on running the Disney Princess Half Marathon in February so I'm sure I'll be training.
Three words that describe you: Creative, Spontaneous, Fun
One good quality: I am very go with the flow at times and can just find something fun to do when it seems like there is nothing.
Are you outgoing or quiet? Outgoing
Do you like hanging out with people or keeping to yourself? Definitely love to have people around me!
What would you want in a roommate? Someone easy-going that doesn't mind a little chaos at times haha. 
What are your biggest pet peeves/dislikes? People that don't know personal boundaries and are very close minded. 
Are you messy or organized? I like to say I am an organized mess haha but usually it is just clothes. everything else is organized.
How do you feel about sharing? I don't mind as long as someone asks. 99% of the time i will say yes!
Do you like having people over a lot? As long as everyone is ok with it then I don't mind. Just not until like 4 am.
Favorite thing to do: Definitely the parks! Going out to eat or to a bar, watch Netflix. I also like to craft - paint and such.
Favorite Music: I can get into anything. Death Cab, Paramore, Taylor Swift, Mumford and Sons, Avicii, Calvin Harris... really go for anything haha
Favorite TV Shows: Orange is the New Black, Friends, BMS, Downton Abbey, Doctor Who
Favorite Movies: Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, Disney.. anything haha
Christmas movie?: Elf. 
Favorite Food: pizza! or quesadillas!
Favorite Candy: Dots and Starburst
Favorite Drink: Sweet Tea.... Moscato smile emoticon
Favorite Color: Hunter Green
DISNEY!
Favorite Character: Snow White! 
Favorite Movie: Thats way too hard! Just to say something I will say Meet the Robinsons!!
Favorite Disney Channel Show: Kim Possible, Phineas and Ferb
Favorite Park: EPCOT
Favorite Ride: Test Track!

The best thing to do is to find your arrival date's Facebook page and join! This way you're connecting with people that will be moving in the same day as you. Apparently, there is something new this year that you do not have to room with people from your move in day, but I find it is easier to coordinate if everyone is arriving on the same day.

The best advice that I can give you is to talk to everyone! Don't just talk to those who look great in their survey. Not only could you find someone that you click with, but these people could be living across the hall from you or you could be working with them. Everyone is excited and it's a great way to start meeting the people that you are going to be living around for the next 3-6 months! Also, be honest. If you're not comfortable with a few people after you've been talking, just say you want to go in a different direction. Or if you're really looking to live in a 6 or 8 person apartment, make sure to let any potential roommates know your preferences. You don't want to settle for something that after a month, you're not going to be happy with.

The housing preferences portal only opens 10 days before your arrival date. Take you're time in finding someone that you mesh with for a roommate, and spend time meeting everyone else and sharing in the excitement together! As they say in High School Musical:

Corny I know..

200 Views!!!

Wow! I can't believe over 200 people have viewed my blog and it's only been live for 5 days! Unbelievable! I hope I was able to help some of you get questions answered and shed some light on the Disney College Program!

Have a ~*~ M A G I C A L~*~ Day!!!

The Interview and The Acceptance

I first applied for 3 Professional Internships with Disney for Fall 2015. However, after I did not feel like the phone screen went very well, I decided to apply for the Disney College Program again as a back up. All I have thought about since my first program was, how can I get back down to Disney? I was going to take every opportunity that I could to get my foot back in that door!

I applied for the DCP on February 9th. After applying a received an email letting me know that I was invited to take the Web Based Interview. This is a web screening that asked you questions and you have to rank how you feel about them from "completely agree" to "completely disagree". This takes about a half hour to get through all the questions. At the end of the WBI, they will tell you whether you have made it to the next interview round or not.

The next interview is over the phone. After the WBI, you will receive an email telling you how to schedule your interview. Should the time you schedule your interview for no longer works, you have the opportunity to log back in and change your appointment. You are only allowed to reschedule ONCE! So make sure that if you reschedule that you are certain that is the best choice.

To learn more about what to expect in the Phone Interview, see my page About the Interview.

____________________________________

Exactly one week after my phone interview I received the following email:

I literally cried when I saw that I had been accepted once again to live out my dream of working for Disney!! AND I was accepted as a Hospitality Role which was my number 1 choice!!

Everyone gets their acceptance at different times, so don't compare the time you're waiting for an acceptance to how quick anyone else received theirs. If they really were no longer considering you, then you would know! The recruiter will always give you a date that you will hear by. This year it was April 20th. Until that last day comes and goes, do NOT give up hope!!

Scrolling all the way down, I followed the link in the email to view my acceptance letter. In the acceptance, you see which role you have received, which program (regular semester or advantage) you were accepted to, and how much you will be making. You will not find out exactly which location you are working in until your arrival day in Florida. At the end of the letter, you can either accept or deny the offer. If you need to think about it and discuss with family, you have up to 7 days to do so.

After accepting the role, you will receive an email to pay your program fees. The total is $350, which breaks down to $150 for "program assessment fee" and $200 for "housing and administration fee". Again, you will be allowed 7 days to complete this.

Once you pay your fees, you will receive another email about how to log in to select your arrival date! Now certain roles have specific days that they want you to sign up for. I had to make sure that I chose an arrival date with "Front Desk Only" as an option. There will be 4 dates that CPs can ultimately choose from to arrive. However, when you first log in to schedule your arrival date, not all of the arrival dates may be available for you to choice. Should this happen it is either because your specific role has a special arrival date, or Disney is trying to even out when people in certain roles are arriving to make it even. If you have a date in mind that you do not see available, you can either call casting to see if they can assign you to one of the closed dates, or check back at the available dates every day. This is another step that allows you to take up to 7 days to complete. I really wanted May 26th as my arrival date, however when I first logged in it wasn't available. I checked back the next day and there it was!

I know how exciting it is when you get the acceptance letter in your email! You want to zoom through all of the steps and be able to know exactly when you are moving yourself to Florida! But remember that you need to make sure that the scheduling works out. Make sure to talk to any friends or family that are going to help you move down, what mode of transportation you are going to get there, and make sure to talk to your school to make sure you can take the semester in the program (hopefully you talked to someone before applying). It is an exciting time for sure, but make sure that you take the time to plan everything out! 

A Little About Me!

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to my new blog all about my experience doing a SECOND Disney College Program Internship! I was lucky enough to have done my first program in Spring (advantage) 2011 and I am happy to announce that I will be moving back down to Florida on May 26th to participate in my next great adventure!

I am 23 and have been dreaming of working for Disney ever since a tour guide on the Keys To The Kingdom tour told me about how she got her job by starting with a DCP. I participated in my first program in my sophomore year of college. I am now just starting my Masters degree and since my program is all online, I figured I would give Disney another shot and try to make a career out of it this time!

My goal is to provide potential interns with as much knowledge as I can throughout the whole process and what to expect once you are there. I will also try to compare and contrast both of my experiences to give multiple views of this wonderful opportunity!

If any any time you would like to request information that you would like to hear more about, please don't hesitate to let me know! I would be more than happy to help!

Have a ~*~ M A G I C A L ~*~ day!