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The WDW Disney College Program


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Wow all of your reviews make me want to do the program so bad!!!

 

I had heard about this the summer before my freshman year of college. I'm a junior now and I would really like to do this in Anaheim next Fall. But after reading all these reviews, I haven't really heard anything about the actual schooling?

 

How does it work? What classes do you take? Where do you take these classes? Do these classes go towards your major or does doing the Disney College program completely set you back a semester?

 

Any information you all have would be great.

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^ It's nice to see someone else considering doing the CA program besides me!

 

I haven't done the program so I can't really answer your questions very well, but I'm trying to figure out the class credits thing right now too so here's what I know. My friend did the WDW program and she couldn't use the Disney classes as credit for her major, even though she's a business major. That seems to be the case with a lot of people. Her school did offer her general elective credits, though she didn't take them since she was already ahead in school because of AP transfer units and didn't need electives. I think whether or not you get credit really depends on your school and your major. My adviser told me to email her a list of the classes Disney offers (you can find them on the CP website) and she'd let me know if any transfer over to count for classes in my major (I doubt it since my school is really picky). If not, hopefully I can get elective credit or internship units.

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Some people did get credit for the classes, but like the previous poster mentioned, it is up to the college. Some allowed to cover one of their business required classes, and others got electives. My school required an intership for graduation, so it satisfied that. As for setting you back a semester, it depends. If your school offers online courses, that could help you not miss a semester, but it pretty much is a full-time job, so it could get pretty tough trying to do an online class in one of the best places in the world. That is why summer session tends to be so popular. The classes are all over the 'world' and depend on what you pick. However, wherever they are, there will be bus transportation available. Here is a list of the classes, but this is not technically an entire list because they offer seminars and other types of 'training.' Your best bet is to go to the actual website, WDWCP, and click on the student tab. There is a ton of information there. That would be the best way to learn all about the program.

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  • 1 month later...

^ & ^^ Congratulations to both of you! My roommate worked in Full Service Food & Beverage at Mama Melrose's. He really enjoyed it. He said it was exactly like working in a normal restaurant, but almost alway busy, and the guests were more demanding. But he did like it a lot more than the restaurants at home that he worked at.

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Glad to hear about FSF&B cuz I havent heard anything about it since a lot of people are getting quick service. I've been working at a restaurant for almost 3 years now and my place is almost always busy so it probably won't be that big of a change then. Just the fact of more hours..

 

 

&& I arrive jan 17-may20 wanted to extend it but the college I'm transferring to won't let me :/

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  • 1 month later...

Add me to the list for Spring 2011!

I arrive January 31st and leave in mid-August, and will be doing housekeeping in the resorts!

 

Reading through everything in this thread has been extremely helpful, but I had a few more questions for those who may have completed the program already:

 

I will be taking one online class through my university to get internship credit, but would anyone suggest also taking one of the Disney classes too? I understand that the Disney Exploration Series courses don't earn you any credit, however I feel like they could be interesting/helpful for my career interests (I'm wanting to work in the hotel/resort industry).

 

Also, can someone possibly give a breakdown of the apartment complexes? I know you don't choose until you arrive in Orlando and that it often depends on how many roommates you have, but any other information would be greatly appreciated regarding their size, location, etc.

 

I can't wait to leave, and hopefully some of us College Program TPRer's can meet up while we are all down there and visit some Florida parks together!

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I will be taking one online class through my university to get internship credit, but would anyone suggest also taking one of the Disney classes too? I understand that the Disney Exploration Series courses don't earn you any credit, however I feel like they could be interesting/helpful for my career interests (I'm wanting to work in the hotel/resort industry).

 

It's been a while since I was in the program, but all the classes I took were very helpful and opened up a ton of networking opportunities. The networking alone was worth the classes.

 

Also, can someone possibly give a breakdown of the apartment complexes? I know you don't choose until you arrive in Orlando and that it often depends on how many roommates you have, but any other information would be greatly appreciated regarding their size, location, etc.

 

This site gives you a 360 view of the rooms/apartments.

 

I stayed in both locations and would probably pick Chatham Square, but I have a car.

If you don't have a car Vista Way could be a lot better because there are a few stores within walking distance like Walgreens, Wendy's, Chik-fil-A, and a gas station. Chatham Square has nothing within walking distance. However, Chatham Square is newer, and seemed more spread out an relaxing, but that was about 9 years ago so they may have been remodeled and upgraded (but there are no stores within walking distance of Chatham Square). I'm so jealous of everyone that's going. It was a ton of work, but I had the best time in my life. Hopefully someone will be working at my old location, The Great Movie Ride at the Studios!

Edited by jray21
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^ Thank you very much! I'm definitely leaning towards taking one of the Disney classes now. And Chatham Square does indeed look a lot nicer. Luckily I'll have my car with me, so hopefully its less convenient location won't be such an issue.

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Does anyone know when the fall apps go up? The WDW CP site says February (I'm actually leaning towards the DL CP but their site says nothing), but I've seen people on other sites saying they go up in mid-January. Hoping someone here can clear that up. I'm still undecided about whether I should do the program or not so I'm just trying to figure out how much time I have.

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I am planning on applying to the Disney CareerStart program instead of the College Program. Its the same thing basically but for individuals that are not currently enrolled in college that are looking for a way to boost their resumé.

 

Any suggestions for those in the College Program? Is it a lot of fun and what should I expect if I do get accepted and move down to Florida?

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After reading this thread I'm actually thinking about applying for for the program for Spring 2012. I graduate from my two year school in December 2011 and was thinking about taking the spring semester off and doing my last two years starting in the fall. Doing the WDW internship during that Spring/Summer I'm taking off sounds like it would be a blast. Although I have to admit I'm a little unnerved by the negative things I've heard about the program, it seems like overall most people say it was a very positive experience.

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Does anyone know when the fall apps go up? The WDW CP site says February (I'm actually leaning towards the DL CP but their site says nothing), but I've seen people on other sites saying they go up in mid-January. Hoping someone here can clear that up. I'm still undecided about whether I should do the program or not so I'm just trying to figure out how much time I have.

 

I'm not sure of the exact date, but if you aren't completely positive of whether or not you want to do the program, I wouldn't suggest applying as soon as the applications become available! Once you complete the application and have your phone interview, you are only given about two weeks to accept or decline your offer. Since I made the mistake of applying right away in August while still being unsure about the program, I then had to make a hasty decision in September, which seemed really early considering I wasn't going to be leaving until the end of January. Just a quick warning!

 

Doing the WDW internship during that Spring/Summer I'm taking off sounds like it would be a blast. Although I have to admit I'm a little unnerved by the negative things I've heard about the program, it seems like overall most people say it was a very positive experience.

 

I felt very much the same way, but I'm hoping that it will truly be an amazing experience! It seems that the biggest issue people have had is with the housing, but hopefully if you suck it up and play by their rules, everything else should be fine!

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^In my opnion, the two biggest factors in whether or not you're going to enjoy your program are 1) What's your job? and 2)Where and who you end up living with

 

1)You're in the College Program, so you need to go in accepting the fact that you're going to work a good amount of hours, many of which will be closing shifts. If you're ok working Quick Service Food till 1am or later many nights of the week, that's cool, but I wouldn't enjoy doing that. The CP takes a lot of people for attractions and merchandise, which are solid positions to start in, I'd just say avoid Custodial and Quick Service Food. Recreation is also really awesome and laid back, but they typically don't take too many CP's.

 

2)The apartments aren't great, but Chatham and Patterson aren't really that bad either. If you end up with a bad roommate, that sucks, but you can always transfer.

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^It seems possible and entirely likely. I applied as soon as I could and I was very fortunate to get the role I wanted. The more popular roles (quick food service, attractions, merchandise) fill up more quickly then others so applying sooner seems like it would give you a better chance of giving you the role you wanted.

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I did the College Program in Spring 2009 as a Monorail Pilot and just got back for a Professional Internship in engineering. I'll be working with Animal Kingdom's Engineering services team and so excited for this awesome opportunity. I have my Traditions class tomorrow and officially start at my job Friday morning.

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I stayed in both locations and would probably pick Chatham Square, but I have a car.

If you don't have a car Vista Way could be a lot better because there are a few stores within walking distance like Walgreens, Wendy's, Chik-fil-A, and a gas station. Chatham Square has nothing within walking distance.

 

I'd go for Chatham. Scuzz mall is opposite the Commons and is about 10 minutes walk. From the mall you could get the I-ride trolly up to SeaWorld and Universal. It's close to a Publix as well, which even though it's slightly more expensive than WalMart, at least you're not wasting hours of your life getting there and back. To get there from Vista you'd need to catch a bus to the Commons or Chatham first. If American Coach still run the buses, you will grow to hate them. Especially the C bus at night.

 

Also Chatham has washers/driers in the apartments so you don't need to risk having it stolen.

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I did the College Program in Spring 2009 as a Monorail Pilot and just got back for a Professional Internship in engineering. I'll be working with Animal Kingdom's Engineering services team and so excited for this awesome opportunity. I have my Traditions class tomorrow and officially start at my job Friday morning.

 

CONGRATS!!! That's really awesome! Especially since I heard the professional internships were extremely competitive this year. Hopefully I'll see you down there at some point

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  • 3 weeks later...

Question for those of you who did Attractions...did you get a lot of Attractions-specific questions in your interview? I interviewed for WDW & DL and said Attractions was my definite #1 for both, but don't think I got many related questions. However, I got a lot of questions about Hospitality (2nd choice at both) and Guest Relations (3rd choice at DL). I know those roles are a lot more competitive, especially at DL, so maybe that's why. It just seemed odd because I have no hospitality experience (I have some phone experience for GR, but not much), so I feel like if I do get in, it wouldn't be there especially since it wasn't my first choice. But I don't know.

 

Anyway, I know there's nothing I can do, I was just curious what other people's experiences were. I'm sure I'm totally overanalyzing it and just having post-interview paranoia. Everyone here has been so helpful regarding the CP so thanks for everything guys!

Edited by tinkerbell
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