You're Never Too Old to Wish Upon a Star - Why I chose the DCP

So why do the Disney College Program? Why drop everything you are doing to move to Florida and work crazy hours with little sleep, and graduate a semester late (in my case)? Well, there are LOTS of reasons why the DCP is a valuable experience for everyone! It doesn't matter what your major in college is - there are many, many opportunities to learn and grow through the DCP! These are some reasons that are important to me:

1. My dream has been to work for Disney for just about as long as I can remember. Every time I visit Disney World, the cast members go out of their way to make my experience special. I want to do that for others.

2. Working in the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, I will work with little girls everyday from around the world. I will learn about different cultures, and will be able to implement the skills I have learned in my special education classes into my job to create a more magical experience for children with special needs.

3. I will have an amazing costume.

4. I will be able to put Disney on my resume. This is an amazing thing to speak about in an interview, and is something that will make me stand out when applying for jobs.

5. I get to take classes only offered to DCP participants. The two I am most interested in are Disney Heritage and Disney Leadership. While I will not get credit for these classes, there are classes that do offer FREE college credits. That's right. Free.

6. I'll be living in Disney World in an apartment suite with several other girls. I really wanted to go away for college, and this will finally be my chance!

7. I'll be working for Mickey Mouse!

8. I can go into the parks for free whenever I'm not working! Feel like watching wishes tonight? Just head over the Magic Kingdom after work! In the mood to ride Soarin'? Just stop in Epcot.

9. I get 6 free credits from my school for going!

10. Disney offers special opportunities like backstage tours, volunteer opportunities, events like "Night of the Stars," and more!

This is such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I could not pass up! I first learned about the program when I went down to Disney World my senior year as a graduation present from my mom. I was looking like crazy for Mickey graduation ears that looked like this!

Cute, right? Well, I couldn't find them ANYWHERE since we went down in August :( BUT, I did see a lot of these!

My mom and I asked a couple of college students who were wearing the ears where they got them. They explained they had just completed the Disney College Program. I started talking to different cast members when I was down there. I had heard about the DCP, but didn't know much about it. I spoke with one cast member who actually started to cry talking about the program because she was having such a wonderful experience. She loved it and gave us a little magical moment by writing my name on the ears for free! Not the graduation ones of course =) When I went home, I started researching like crazy! I knew this was something that I HAD to do! I was in the Honors Program at my school, so I knew I couldn't leave until my junior year because the Honors Program was going to Ireland in Spring 2014 AND I became an executive on the campus activities board, which was a year-long commitment! However, I'm glad I waited because it gave me time to become really involved on campus, and I love my school! While I will definitely miss SJC while I'm gone, I'm so excited about going to Disney World!!!

Adventure is Out There - DCP Application and Acceptance

Thank you for taking the time to look at my first blog! I'm new to all of this, but thought it would be a great way to look back at my experience in the future and update my family (and any friends who are interested) on my DCP journey! I have also learned so much from other DCP blogs, so I am hoping to help future applicants navigate the program and see what to expect! Especially future FGIT, but I'll get to that later...

So what is the DCP? The Disney College Program (DCP) is a competitive internship where college students can live, learn and earn at Walt Disney World Resort or Disneyland. There are many options available, but I'll be going down for about four months to WDW in Florida. I will be leaving on February 9th and my journey will end on May 29th, though I may have the opportunity to extend for an additional 3 months, or up to a year! 

I was given pretty much the best role in the world! I was accepted for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique Hostess. I will be a Fairy Godmother in Training, which means I'll be making little prince and princess dreams come true! I will either work in the Magic Kingdom or Downtown Disney, though I won't know my location until I get down there. Either way, I'll be able to pick up shifts in either location, and they both have their perks. Being a FGIT (Fairy Godmother in Training) is what I've wanted to do for just about as long as I can remember. I've played the Fairy Godmother in a couple productions on Cinderella's Glass Slipper, and there is nothing more magical than PIXIE DUST! I'll be seeing a lot of that in WDW :) Although I won't be playing the Fairy Godmother, getting to make dreams come true is just about the best thing in the world.

Cinderella's Glass Slipper (Soluna Studio)

Cinderella's Glass Slipper (SPAC)
"Yay" for using my Sweet 16 dress more than once!

My application process was a bit different than most people who apply for the DCP. I only selected one role, which was really risky! Only about 25-30 girls get selected for this position, and it is one of the most popular roles to apply for. Most people apply for a few roles. You have the choice of picking "High Interest," "Moderate Interest," "Low Interest" and "No Interest." Even though you put low to no interest, it is still possible to get put in those roles, though it is rare for someone who puts "No Interest" in a role to be placed there. There's no clear answer as to how many people apply and get accepted each season, but I've seen anywhere from 3,000 - 6,000 students accepted, and I've seen up to 60,000 people apply! Don't quote me on that though!

I applied on August 21st (technically August 20 because I applied a little after midnight the first night applications became available). After my application was reviewed, I moved onto the Web Based Interview (WBI). Some people do not get past the initial application process, so I was grateful to be able to complete it fairly quickly. The WBI could be considered a personality test, though it is a bit more than that. They ask you similar questions that are worded differently to look for consistency, so it can be tricky. Again, not everyone gets past this process. I've heard some people say this interview is easy, but I also know so many qualified applicants who did not get through this process. If you pass the WBI, you are asked to schedule a phone interview. Mine was scheduled on August 26th. I had a very nice interviewer who asked me some general questions, questions about the Disney look, living with roommates, some questions based on the role I applied for, and general park questions to see what kind of advice I would give to guests! My interview lasted a little over 20 minutes, and I was told I would hear back anywhere from mid to late October. Remember, this was AUGUST, so I was ready for a long wait!

Last season, I applied the first day, had my phone interview a couple days later, and three weeks after that I was pended. According to my last interviewer, she described being pended as being "put on hold" because "they want you, but don't have enough room." After months of waiting...and waiting.....and waiting to hear back, I found out I was not accepted into the program. While I was sad, I knew I had a lot of exciting things coming up this semester, and I had a lot to look forward to. I told just about everyone I knew I was applying last semester, and I had to tell everyone I wasn't going to Disney. This time around, I only told a couple of people, so it was very exciting when I could finally say that I got in!

On September 18th, and 12:19pm, I received the most magical email in the world. I had just left my teacher observations, and was heading to school for a meeting. There is a long stoplight near my school, and it has become my place to check for Disney emails. Almost everyday last semester, I would quickly check to see if any magical message had come through, and of course I never got anything. This time, however, I saw something that said "Disney Recruiting: Congratulations!" I COULDN'T BELIEVE MY EYES! Was this really happening? Of course, the light turns green right away, so I'm driving, trying to find a place to pull over, trying to calm myself down just incase I read the message wrong. I pull into the closest parking lot I can find - a nursing home- and read the email 3 times over. I was going to Disney!

While I had assumed I got BBB (short for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique), the only way to be sure was to log into a computer and see what role I was accepted for! I drove to school with tears in my eyes, and ran to the computer lab. I was accepted not only for my dream role, but for Spring 2015, my first choice! I ran to a meeting, but didn't tell anyone because I wanted my parents to be the first to know. I had a plan since the last time I applied to get a cake for them that said I was going to Disney, and wanted to stick to that! I did tell some people at school the news since I had some long-term commitments that I would no longer be able to fulfill and paperwork to fill out. Since I had told a couple of people, I decided to text my best friends Amanda and Mike, some of the few people who knew I was applying. It is so nice to have such supportive friends - they were so excited, and hopefully they'll be able to come down to visit during one of their breaks! Here are a couple of pictures from our recent magical trip!

This is when it really became a reality. How can I leave all of my commitments? How could I leave Show Choir when we are just getting started? I wouldn't be there for my private voice students around NYSSMA time, and I hold an executive position for several clubs and organizations on campus! But this is my dream, so how could I say no? 

I texted both of my parents to see when they would be home, and both were worried that something was wrong because I was so vague. Obviously, it was quite the opposite! I ran to Carvel and dropped the first cake at my dad's house. I showed it to my brother Chris, and he asked what it said. When I told him, he said "I didn't want to say it just incase I was reading it wrong, but congratulations!!!" He helped me hide it in the freezer, and made sure my dad and his mom saw. He's an awesome brother!

I taught a voice lesson and broke the news my amazing student (who will do well with whoever she works with!) and contacted a new student I have just started working with (another fantastic musician)! We worked things out, and I'll make sure they're set for NYSSMA prep!

When I got home,  I had my mom pull the cake out of the fridge. A friend told me to record it (shout-out to Nicole!) and I'm so glad I did. I won't post the video on here because my mom would be so mad, but basically her reaction could be on a Disney World commercial. 

The cake! It says "I'm Going to Disney! DCP Spring '15" 

I paid my fees, filled out some online paperwork, accepted my position, and celebrated! And there you have it, the start of my Disney journey. Sorry for the lengthy post, but this is all stuff I want to remember when I look back years from now!

My day basically consisted of listening to Wishes and crying (happy tears of course)! The following days pretty much followed the same thing, because I'll be making wishes come true everyday! I feel like the luckiest girl in the world!