Formspring

Here's a quick formspring update. I haven't gotten many questions, but I figured I need to post something during this long stretch of time before my arrival date.

Your left... no right side GOD ANDREW I LOVE YOU,....ONLY IN DISNEY LAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDD

Thanks ;-)

when is the next vlog

I probably won't be posting another vlog until closer to my arrival date (August 18th). There won't be much to talk about before then, so I'll do one right before I leave and hopefully I'll have time to post more regularly while I'm in Disneyland.

This blog will likely be pretty lifeless for the next few months. I'm done with the winter semester (I've moved on to spring classes) and haven't heard anything from Disney since being accepted. If I get any kind of news worth sharing I'll definitely post it, but don't expect much until at least August.

Credit Update

I recently got in contact with my financial aid office about my scholarship, since I was really worried about having to balance online classes with work in Disneyland. Luckily I found out that I'd be able to keep my scholarship in the fall without taking 12 credits. Rather than taking 12 at one time, I'll be taking 7 in the spring (may-june) and 6 in the fall. They'll split my scholarship up so that I receive half in the spring and half in the fall, so I'll still get the full amount.

This means that I can focus purely on working and taking a few classes offered by Disney while I'm in California. This is definitely a relief since I feel like I will have much more time to have fun and not be stressed out all the time. I will also be taking a semester off from my Japanese studies while I'm down there, so hopefully the smaller load will give me more time to review so that I don't forget everything by the time I start full-time again in the Winter.

Credit

Since I haven't posted in a while, I figured I'd update you guys on a meeting I had with my advisor recently about what kind of credit I can get on the program.

First of all, I'm only getting three credits for the working part of the program. The reason why it's not more is because I'm doing the program as a co-op (required of my major) which is only 3 credit hours. It requires 600 hours of work experience, so unless I work more than 1200 hours I won't be getting anymore than 3.

Luckily I can get some credit for the classes they offer, but it may not be exactly what you think. My program doesn't really differentiate between the different classes offered, so collegiate courses are worth no more than the lecture series. My advisor said I could receive 3 credits of Independent Study if I take 2 classes while I'm down there. She said it doesn't matter which ones I take, as long I bring back my "Ducktorate" to show her (to prove I actually attended and passed). I'll probably be taking the easiest classes I can, mainly because...

I'll be taking two online classes while I'm down there. I haven't mentioned this yet, but I have a small scholarship at my school and I have to remain a full-time student to maintain it. That means I need to take at least 12 credit hours every semester. I get six from the program itself, so that leaves at least 6 to fill up with online credits. The two classes I plan on taking are a writing class required for my major and a science class which gets rid of the final gen ed required for me to graduate. These definitely wouldn't be my first choices for online classes, but because I'm almost finished with all of my general requirements and my major refuses to offer much in terms of online credits I don't really have much of a choice. I'm hoping these classes won't take up too much of my time, so that I can have the opportunity to at least have a little fun.

I'm kind of bummed that I couldn't just get 12 credits for doing the program, but I also feel lucky since I know some people have schools that don't recognize the program at all (leaving them with no choice but to take 12 credits worth of online classes). I've heard that 2 online classes is manageable on the program, so I'm trying not to let that get me down too much. The only thing I'm worried about is that these classes may be too hard, since I don't really have any "fluff" classes left to take. Nonetheless, I'm still super excited about the program which is approaching very slowly (although with summer coming up, hopefully it will get here faster).

What do you guys think, is two online classes (along with work and two disney classes) too much? Has anyone done the program and taken online classes at the same time? If so, was it hard? I'd love to hear your guy's opinions on the matter.

Purple Folder Vlog and Formspring

LMAO you are such a dork .. but that is why i love you

I know who this is, but um... thanks?


Congrats on the Disneyland program! That is many a person's dream job.

Thank you! I am completely aware of how lucky I am to be accepted into the program. It's been my dream to work at Disney since I was a child and I don't plan on taking it for granted!

EDIT: I had to edit and re-upload my video after someone pointed out that my address was showing. Hence the awkward close-ups of my face.

Accepted Vlog and Formspring

Check out my vlog here.

I figured I'd also post the questions I've been asked on my formspring. They're from before I was accepted so they're kind of outdated, but the answers still apply:

How are you feeling about your interview? Positive I hope. by AlyssaJeanesse

I'm pretty positive that my interview went well, but I felt the same way about my WDW interview before I got rejected. I do think I was able to improve on a few things for my DLR interview since I had an idea of what to expect, but the DLRCP is also much more competitive than the WDWCP. I signed up for a bunch of roles, so hopefully that helps. Right now I'm hoping for the best and trying not to let the wait kill me.

What role where you offered/hope for? Do you have a fave attraction?

My #1 role (that I told them in my interview) is Front Desk. However, I think I would actually be more excited for attractions. Front Desk applies to my major more (Hotel & Restaurant Management) which is why I chose it, but I'd love to be in the parks where all the magic is (not that Disney hotels aren't also magical). I'm still in the hope phase right now, so hopefully I hear back soon.

My favorite attraction at DLR is Matterhorn Bobsleds. It's kind of hard to explain, but it has to do with riding it as a child. I went to Disneyland multiple times when I was young, but didn't get to go back again until I was about 14 (I went to WDW much more often). I always had this weird picture in my head of a ride that looked like Space Mountain, but splashed into water at the end. When I finally got back to Disneyland, I realized I was thinking of Matterhorn Bobsleds. I thought it was funny that I had remembered it from so many years ago and it pretty much immediately became my favorite ride after that.




Obviously I was eventually accepted and offered the role of Ticket Seller. I figured I'd post these to remind people that I have a formspring and everyone is free to ask me questions. There's a box on the side of my blog where you can submit your questions, or you can go directly to my profile.

Accepted!

After being rejected from the Disney World College Program, today I was accepted into the Disneyland College Program! I'm still not sure why I was accepted into the program that accepts hundreds against the thousands that Disney World accepts, but at this point I don't really care. I'm going to Disneyland!

I was accepted as a Ticket Seller (from what I understand it's similar to Disney World's "Vacation Planner"). My arrival date is August 18th and my end date is January 2nd. I will also be staying in the housing (again another surprise, since they accept even less people into housing).

I'm so excited, it's not even funny! Even though I've been to Disneyland multiple times, I'm still not as familiar with it as I am with Disney World. That alone should make it fun to discover new things I didn't get to do on previous visits.

I'll be sure to post more information as my arrival date gets closer, and perhaps I'll post a picture with my purple folder once I receive it ;-)

Disneyland Interview

I just had my Disneyland interview today at 8:45pm. I think it went well, but I thought the same thing about WDW and we all know how that ended. Everything is pretty fresh in my mind, so here's a list of questions they asked:

1. Tell me about your previous work experience.

I didn't get many other previous experience based questions after this, mainly because I talked for so long. It was such a vague question that I figured I may as well get as much out as possible about my previous job.

2. Why do you want to do the Disney College Program?

I simply told them that I've been a huge Disney fan since I was very little and that I wanted to start a career with Disney after I graduate. Obviously I made it sound a little better in my interview.

3. What are your top roles?

At first I listed Front Desk, Attractions, and Stores/Retail. When she asked for more, I ended up listing every role I checked off in order from most to least wanted (I had prepared a list just in case).

4. Tell me about an experience where you had multiple things to do and didn't know how you would possibly get them all done.

I simply talked about multi-tasking and prioritizing in both the work place and at school. I didn't give a specific incident, but I think I gave the kind of answer they were looking for.

5. Have you ever handled an emergency situation before?

I told her about a handicapped child who fell down the stairs at my previous job. I called an ambulance and provided the caretaker with whatever she needed to help. I emphasized that I remained calm during the entire situation and required an incident report to be filled out at the end.

6. Are you comfortable speaking in front of large groups of people?

I feel like I should of mentioned that I spoke in front of groups of people many times at my previous job, but sadly I forgot. Instead I talked about how I've taken multiple public speaking classes and generally enjoy talking in front of people. I also mentioned that I would be very happy memorizing a large spiel for a ride, since I think it would make it more fun. I'm not sure if this was the kind of answer they were looking for, but I don't think my answer was horrible either.

7. What do you think the role of Front Desk entails?

I talked about them being one of the first people that people come in contact with when they enter the resort, so it's important to make a good impression. I also talked about multi-tasking and having a lot of knowledge about the resort.

8. Tell me about a time when you provided a magical moment for a customer.

I honestly was not expecting this at all, but I feel like I did a decent job answering it. I talked about hosting birthday parties at my previous job. We would take the birthday boy/girl behind the counter to pick out a present. As if getting to go behind the counter (it's cooler when your a kid) wasn't awesome enough, you also got a trophy (or a t-shirt which no one ever picked). I said it was always a good feeling to see how happy the kids were when we did this.

9. Working in parking you'll be one of the first people guests come in contact with, how would you make each guest feel special?

I wasn't really sure how to answer this. I said I would greet each guest with a smile and show just how high Disney standards are for customer service. I would make sure to answer any questions the person may have and bid farewell with "Have a magical day".

10. What's your favorite kind of weather?

This was definitely the weirdest question I had. She said something about California weather being different and whether I could handle it or not. I said I like warm weather the best, but I live in Michigan so I'm used to super cold and snow.

11. Do you think you would be able to handle the housing element of the program?

I simply said that even though I've never lived on campus, it's something I always wanted to do. I talked about being outgoing and enjoying meeting new people and making new friends. I also slipped in something about taking Japanese and hoping to travel to Japan in the near future.


So for the most part, I'm happy with my interview. The only odd part was at the end when I was going to thank her and talk about how much the opportunity meant to me. I said "thank you so much for interviewing me", then she interrupted me saying "you're welcome, bye". I said "bye" back and she hung up. It was weird getting cut off like that, but my sister says that's a good thing since it means she got all the information she needed.

Anyways, just wanted to mention Honey and Alyssa who commented on my last post. Your comments definitely helped me remain positive for my interview, thanks!

NOTE: You may notice some changes to this post, as I remember to edit in things I originally forgot.