Ever since I was little I have always loved Disney. My love for Disney grew when I became a New Media Design major and realized all of the detailed work that went into animating the Disney/Pixar movies. It soon became my ultimate dream job to work on a Pixar movie. After doing lots of research I realized that this dream was going to be no easy feat. There are multiple steps and schooling you need to complete before Pixar will even give you the time of day. After researching different internships, I came across the Disney College Program. A program for college students, or recent grads, to go and work in the DisneyLand or Disney World parks and gain invaluable knowledge and experience working for a fortune 500 company, and one of the largest global corporations in the world. I was going to apply during my Junior year to work during my Senior year but the timing just didn't seem right. The DCP went on the back burner as a possibility in the future after I completed my course requirements for graduation. A year or so went by when I was visiting my boyfriend, Zach, in college in September, and we were bored one day discussing the future. He said he needed to do an internship before he could graduate. I had remembered seeing the DCP facebook page had just recently posted that the applications were open for the Spring Semester. After thinking about the idea for roughly 20 minutes, we decided to apply just for the heck of it. It was pretty slim chances that we would both get accepted but we thought we'd just see where it took us. Within a few hours we got an email to complete the web based interview. Excited we debated about starting it at midnight the day we got the email! I'm glad we waited as it was a pretty extensive process. Zach talked to his family about it and mentioned to his brother Jake that he should apply too. Jake and his girlfriend Marina decided to apply and see where it took them. When we were all invited to do the online interview we were excited and hopeful that possibly all of us could be accepted! We started doing more research and learned that only 1 in 100 applicants get accepted to the WDWDCP, or Walt Disney World Disney College Program. After the web-based interview we were all accepted into the next round, the intimidating Phone Interview. All of us feel we did pretty well, and soon it was all in Disney's hands. The 14 day wait seemed like a lifetime as I checked day after day after day to see if I was accepted. One afternoon I was home by myself when Zach called me. He sounds thrilled as he told me he'd been accepted into the Disney College Program! I was speechless, and already silently in tears as I was so excited for him, and worried that I hadn't gotten an email yet. 5 minutes went by, then 10, then 15.. I thought the worst. I wasn't accepted. I started accepting that I had to try to get Zach to go down by himself. 20 minutes went by, and my email dinged. Afraid but excited to open it... and CONGRATULATIONS in big white lettering was across the top of the email. I immediately called Zach and told him I was accepted! We quickly got off the phone as, 1 of course I was crying and 2 we had a lot of phone calls to make to family members. I remember the feeling of my heart beating through my chest and my cheeks hurt from smiling so big as I read that I was going to be a LIFEGUARD in DISNEY WORLD! You have to be kidding me. I'm not sure a more perfect job exists out there. Lifeguarding was my number 1 choice when they asked me my top 3 and I explained that I had been training for a triathlon during the summer, but thought I blew it when I failed to tell them that I was already Waterfront, Pool, AED and First Aid Red Cross Certified. Jake and Marina also learned that they had been accepted, but regretfully decided that it wasn't the right time for them. The process since acceptance has been consuming and very involved. I am so excited to go and get started. Realizing that this is the beginning of the rest of my life, is scary, yet so exhilarating. I don't think there is a better place than The Happiest Place in the World to start the rest of my life. I couldn't say thank you enough to the amount of friends and family support I have felt through this whole process as there aren't enough words to adequately give thanks. The hopes of this blog is to share with you our struggles and triumphs as we begin this new journey.
ADVENTURE IS OUT THERE!
~ Olivia
No comments:
Post a Comment