I think about Walt Disney World every day. It’s more than I should and in a parallel world I’m probably still working there. The other day I was speaking with someone about WDW and they mentioned the College Program. For me that’s where it all started at the Walt Disney World College Program. It’s an internship like no other one on Earth that has the power to deliver whatever it is that you’re looking for from it.
That is a bold claim. However, I have friends who are still working there 30 years later, one’s won an Oscar, some are in the parks and a couple are behind the scenes. When I was a younger man the College Program was just something potentially fun and very different to earn some college credits. My father, in his sage wisdom said that “Disney would be as close to the military as you get”. Even now I’m too sure what he meant by that, but I’m guessing that he meant that an employer would hold me accountable and require that I be on time. The adult version of me wants to go back and add to his statement, “so it would be a job then”?
To an extent, yes, but it was so much more than a job. Since then I’ve never met anyone who has regretted accepting the internship into the College Program. Instead, it’s become much more competitive, I’ve met employers who favor people who have had the ‘Disney experience’ and its countless business lessons that you learn there.
The Disney College Program is currently accepting applicants for the period from May 2022 to October 2022. The program length might vary depending on your job. The window for the Disney College Program only opens twice a year and it’s not taking applications for very long, so hurry up.
The College Program at Walt Disney World has undeniably changed since I was there. What’s remained the same is that the jobs that you’ll be hired for are front-line roles that are within one of the parks at Walt Disney World. You might be working at a ride, in a restaurant, sanitation, at a hotel, a retail store or something else. It’s almost guaranteed that your position will be interacting with hundreds to thousands of different people every day. You also might have to work holidays, stand for long hours, have a job that’s outside or more. The complete list of job possibilities are here.
It’s what you could experience that is the true X factor of completing the College Program. You’ll also engage in some Disney-led seminars that will enhance your teamwork, creativity and more. During your work you’ll have the opportunity to interact with world-class professionals who are the top of their field in a very unique game. Engineers, animators, facility managers, PR folks, logistics and any field that you have an interest in is represented within Walt Disney World to some degree.
If you’re playing the long game, then you have options to work hard, build up a reputation and meet them. If the short game is more your plan, and you want a fun place to work that will earn you a handful of college credits, there’s no better way to go about it. People who are in the College Program do get paid and the starting rate is $14 an hour. The program is so much more than learning to point with two fingers and getting the joke about when the three O’clock parade is.
As one gets more experience in business they tell you that you must read Good to Great. Taking part in the Disney College Program is a chance to live and work in an environment where great is the norm. Moreover, if you don’t operate at that level when you arrive, you’ll be guided to where you can perform like that without any effort at all. It’s easier to be happy, all the Disney Parks do is take that attitude and magnify it to where everyone is the show. Once you’re there just take notes and use those lessons in future endeavors.
Facebook
Twitter
Flickr
GooglePlus
Youtube