TAKE 2

Hello, friends! I have had quite an exciting first week here in Orlando Florida! 

     My travels went very well other than the airport food.  I fit all my items and clothing for the next 4 months in 2 suitcases and a small carry-on.  I took a shuttle to the hotel and there I met my 7 other roommates!
     The next day was check in day and we all found out where we would be staying, who we would be rooming with, and where we will be working for the next 4 months! I am living with 7 lovely ladies in Chatham Square and will be working at Magic Kingdom in the South which is on Main Street U.S.A.! After check in I went to Casting to turn in my I-9 documents and to get fingerprinted for the background check.  I went home to my new apartment, unpacked and went grocery shopping.  I attended a Housing Meeting the next day that went over all the rules of staying on disney housing.  In our downtime, my roommates and I went to Disney Springs (formerly called Downtown Disney) to shop and eat.  Then it was time to attend Traditions, which is our first paid day at Disney that welcomes us to being new Cast Members for Disney and where we learn Disney values and goals and visions. We ultimately learned that we as Cast Members have the ability to create happiness for the guests and to go out of our way to make the Disney difference for our guests.
     After traditions we are able to start visiting the parks with no entrance fee.  I did visit a few times, though I have been suffering through some health problems for over a week and have finally started to see an improvement.  I started feeling bad during my first day here.  I had been suffering from an eye problem for over a year and was just starting to get better when the next problem popped up. I believe I had a Urinary Tract Infection and needed antibiotics, though the antibiotics made my stomach very sore and it depleted my good bacteria so it messed with my digestion.  I bought some antibiotics and some Kombucha to help replenish my bacteria and I think it's working well!
     Although I haven't seen them all, it is great to be back in Florida and see all my old friends again! It's also great to visit the parks and to see all the changes that have been made in the past 2 years.  Today on my day off I visited Hollywood Studios, which has undergone the most changes since I left and there are many other attractions that are going away soon.  The biggest difference I noticed was the focus on Star Wars franchise.  I was able to see a short show on the making of Star Wars, and noticed there were many Star Wars character spots.  Another great update was during my flight on Star Tours, we got to visit new destinations and BB8 and Finn were there, helping the rebel alliance! Also, Disney Springs is now much more completed than it was during my last program.  In Animal Kingdom it is plain to see they are working on the creation of Pandora. Another great experience I had was going on "Kilimanjaro Safaris" when the sun was setting and seeing the animals at that time! They were much more active!
     Tomorrow I start my official training!

My roommate, Lauren!

I met Ariel!

Almost all of my roomies!

Disney College Program Order of E-mails

Hello friends! If anyone who has applied or is planning to apply for the Disney College Program and curious about when and in what order you receive emails and correspondence from Disney, this post is for you!

I will add the dates of when applied my first time, for the Spring 2014 DCP, however I have since then applied for a Fall program and turned down the offer, and recently accepted another position for Spring 2016. 

Please note that not all applicants receive all emails, and not all emails are in this order.

1. "Thank You for Applying": This is the first email you will get after your application has been submitted.  I received this email the same day I applied for the first time, which was September 29th.  Please note I applied well after a month the apps opened and therefore the application process went faster than most of those that applied when apps first opened. 

2. "Immediate Action Required: Web-Based Interview": I got this email minutes after the previous email and it provides a link to complete the web based interview. I have heard that it may take longer to receive this email, and for some they never get a chance to do the web based interview based on your information and experience in your initial application. 

3. "Schedule Phone Interview": Immediately after I completed the web based interview, I received an email asking to schedule a phone interview for within the next few days.  If you are applying early in the process, you may have to wait a few weeks.  The most important thing to remember when scheduling your interview is that the schedule is in Eastern time, and military time, so make sure you understand when your interview starts. When I completed my Web based interview, the last screen said something like" Congratulations, we believe you are a strong candidate and would like you to schedule a phone interview",  In my experience, if you do not receive this message, you may have not passed the web based interview and will not continue with the interviewing process. 

4.  "Phone Interview Confirmation": This confirms your scheduled interview time. This email, along with all previous emails were all sent to me on the same day, September 29th. 

(In between email 4 and 5 I got an email letting me know when the Character Auditions were for my area, though this only applies to applicants interested in Entertainment)

5. "Thank You for Interviewing": I received this email on October 1st, which was the date of my interview.  It says thank you for your interest and that all decisions will be made my mid November. 

6. "Congratulations!": This is the email that lets you know you have been selected to do the program.  Although it won't say in the email, there is a link to your official offer letter than includes your role that you were offered, In my case this was Custodial, my top choice! I received this email on October 4th, around 10 AM, which was a few days after my interview.  Some wait longer for this email and some waits are shorter, but the earlier you apply, in most cases, means the longer you wait.  This may seem like you should apply later, however there are perks of applying early, such as getting a chance to pick an earlier arrival date.  Also in this email it explains the 3 step process of accepting your offer with Disney. 

7. "Submit Program Fees" After you have reviewed your offer and have decided to embark on this journey and click "Accept Offer", you will be instructed to pay your program fees. You have 7 days to submit these fees. Please save up money before you apply for the program in order to make this deadline.  For my second program offer, I was never sent a "Congratulations!" email and was sent a warning email that said I had like two or three days left to submit my program fees, so you can imagine my surprise when I got this email since I had no idea I had an offer. I decided to not take the offer (because I had another job offer that conflicted with the program dates" and received a "No Longer in Consideration" email for not paying the fees. I got this email October 4th. 

8.  "DORMS Payment Confirmation": A receipt of payment, mine was for about 350 dollars, which is for the first two weeks of rent at housing.  If you choose to opt out of housing, a portion of this fee will be refunded to you. The rest of the fee is for paying for things like Housing events, and the end of the year party, so be sure to take advantage of those opportunities during your program because you are technically paying for some of it, and they are lots of fun! I got this email October 4th.

9.  "Welcome to the Disney College Program Team!" This email is to ensure you that you have completed all steps to accept your offer, and confirm your program dates.  It gives you a link to the website with reading material to prepare for your arrival.  I received this email October 4th.

10. "Request for Additional Information": This email has links that you click on with forms that Disney needs you to fill out. 

11. "Education Course Registration": I got this email next, though there may be others you get in between, such as newletters.  The education email basically lets you know what courses are available and when you will be able to register for courses.  The policy has recently changed that someone who would like to take a collegiate course with DCP must be receiving credit through their college/university.  However, all participants are eligible to sign up for the Seminars, which are now only 4 weeks long instead of 8 weeks. I received this email on November 11th.

12."The Disney Look": The email provides a link to the Disney Look information that is important to look over to make sure you are in compliance with the Disney Look while working.  I received this email on November 19th. 

13. "Prepare for Your Arrival"  This email has a link to the onboarding website and encourages you to visit the site to review the information.  I received this email on December 19th

14. "See Ya Real Soon": This email mentions that your arrival date is quickly approaching and that the next step is to complete the New Hire paperwork, however it offers no instructions for how to complete it.  This is by far the most confusing email because it tells you to do something yet provides no links.  When you receive this email, it means that they will shortly be sending you the new hire paperwork, so don't panic if you are unsure what to do.

15.  "New Hire Portal Instructions" This email gives you a link to fill out your New Hire Paperwork.  It also gives you a username and explains that your password will be sent in a separate email. I received this email November 26th.

16. "New Hire Account Information": Moments after the previous email, I received this email with my one time password for filling out my paperwork.  When you receive this email, you are able to fully log in and complete all the paperwork.  I received this email November 26th. 

17. "Housing Pre-Registration" This email usually comes 14 days prior to your arrival date.  Some arrival dates get this email the night before registration goes up, some get it that day when registration is live. This is the email that you have been waiting for if you have a group of people that you want to room with already.  You will receive a ID number (that becomes your Perner number) in the email. Whoever you appoint in your group to be the group leader will take these numbers and link you all together in DORMS to request that you live together. The leader also will pick housing preferences, which includes which complex, how many bedrooms, and if you want double or triple occupancy.  You will only have a few days to enter and link everyone so make sure you have all your roommates in mind before this date and that you all check your emails and have received and completed the new hire paperwork. I received this email on January 7th for a January 20th arrival date. 

18. "You Have Been Linked!" This lets you know that someone has linked up with you in DORMS, and sends you a link to confirm and double check your preferences.  

19. "Boarding Pass": This email sends you your DORMS Boarding Pass that you need to print out for check in day.  

20. "Final Reminders": Reminds you when you are checking in and to pack appropriately for the weather. I received this email January 8th. 

21. "DORMS Domestic Arrival Reminder": This reminder is a specific reminder for you, that tells you when you need to report for check in (mine was at 9 AM), and where check in is. (Vista Way). It also reminds you that you need your printed Boarding Pass, Vehicle Registration Form, and your I9 documentation. 

I hope this was helpful!