In the heart of Central Florida, magic, mice, Jedis, castles and princesses exist. Here, working in a place with fireworks every night, where stormtroopers walk around without question, and where working for a mouse is normal.
The Disney College Program is an internship where college students can build a resume and gain work experience. Miranda Townson, marketing senior, is taking advantage of this internship and spending her semester working at the “Happiest Place on Earth.”
“I was searching for summer internships and found the Disney College Program online but then realized it was for a full semester but I’m so glad that I applied,” Townson said. “I was a little worried when I applied because about 50,000 students apply for the program and only about 4,000 get accepted. Even before I was accepted I was making plans for when I would be in Orlando.”
All applicants must go through the application and interviewing process, including a web-based interview and a phone interview.
“The application process was very stressful. I applied on Jan. 12 and had my phone interview on Jan. 17. I wasn’t accepted until March 9. We had the longest waiting period for acceptances to go out which made things even more stressful,” Townson said.
There are a variety of different “roles” that a cast member can have. These include merchandise, quick service food and beverage, custodial, attractions, character attendant, vacation planner, character performer, photo pass photographer, or lifeguard. After getting accepted, each cast member is assigned a role.
“I had floral and merchandise as my top two roles, but in my phone interview I mostly talked about how I had experience in merchandise. I really wanted merchandise as my role because that’s how MSU is letting me get the internship and independent study credit. If I had a different role I wouldn’t have been able to get the credits,” Townson said.
The Disney College Program offers housing for its participants. Rent is taken out of participants’ paycheck weekly and the program offers bus transportation for all students.
“I live in Vista Way which was my absolute last choice in housing complexes. My apartment is renovated so I actually really like it,” Townson said. “Rent is $101 a week and my apartment has three bedrooms, two bathrooms and there are six of us in the apartment.”
Before college interns can officially become cast members, they have to go through casting.
“Casting was really quick,” Townson said. “We just went in and found out our work location but I already knew mine so it wasn’t very interesting. Other than that we just filled out paperwork.”
“Traditions” is the last step before becoming a cast member. During traditions, future cast members are taken into the famous “Utilidors” that run underneath the Magic Kingdom. They also receive their company IDs and nametags.
“Traditions was interesting,” Townson said. “I was upset because we didn’t get to go into Magic Kingdom because of lighting. I never got to experience the full tradition of seeing it all.”
The Disney College Program interns are each assigned to a specific work location once they arrive at their housing check-in. Participants may be chosen to work at a resort, one of the theme parks, a water park, or Disney Springs.
“My location is Epcot at towers which are Disney Traders and Ports of Entry right before the World Showcase,” Townson said. “I didn’t really want to work at Epcot because I didn’t know much about the shops before coming, but I did want to be placed in a park.”
Some roles allow cast members to pick up shifts at locations other than their home location, as long as they require the same training. Merchandise is one of the most flexible roles for picking up shifts.
“My home location is Epcot, but I’ve picked up shifts at Magic Kingdom in Tomorrowland, Main Street U.S.A., Fantasyland, and Storybook Circus. I’ve also picked up shifts in Disney Springs at World of Disney and Once Upon A Toy,” Townson said. “It’s nice to work in really busy places like the Emporium but my favorite location so far is Tomorrowland.”
Working and picking up shifts in multiple locations also means having to wear multiple costumes.
“I love them,” Townson said. “It’s like getting to play dress up for Halloween 24/7 and the more ridiculous the better. So far my favorite is the Fantasyland dress because I feel like a princess.”
Working in merchandise has its perks. The one thing that only merchandise cast members get to do is “Pin Trade” with guests. Pin trading was introduced to Disney World in 1999 and it became wildly popular. Merchandise cast members each wear a lanyard around their necks and guests can come up to them and trade pins.
“It’s a cult,” Townson said. “I never knew about it until I got her and I’m obsessed. I become overly attached to some pins and don’t want to trade them away. It’s really cool seeing the guest’s faces light up when they find a pin they’ve been looking for on my lanyard.”
The Disney College Program also offers special classes that participants can take. These classes are usually based around Disney. One of the classes is called Disney Heritage where students learn about Walt Disney before Mickey and through the creation of Disneyland and Disney World.
“The hospitality class is cool because we have guest speakers from the parks come in. The marketing class we get to learn about Disney’s process of how they market themselves, said Townson. Next week we get to go to the Polynesian Resort and go behind the scenes. I’m really excited.”
Being a cast member at Disney World has its perks, including free admission to all of the parks. Townson goes to the parks as a guest as much as she can, especially on her days off.
“I go play in the parks all the time. My favorite park is Magic Kingdom but I hate how much of a struggle it can be to get into the park,” Townson said. “My favorite rides are Expedition Everest, Tower of Terror, and Space Mountain.”
Orlando is known as the “Theme Park Capital of the World.” Disney World is just one of the places that Townson frequents. Universal Studios is another big tourist destination in the heart of Orlando.
“I got an annual pass for Universal Studios my first week in Orlando,” Townson said. “My favorite things at Universal are the Harry Potter sections and the Jurassic Park ride.”
There are certain things that all cast members are required to do while working. The “Disney Point” is probably the most famous. All cast members are required to point with two fingers or their whole hand when giving directions because in some cultures pointing with one finger is considered rude.
“I’m brainwashed,” Townson said. “I do the Disney Point all the time, even off stage and everyone makes fun of me for it.”
About halfway through the five to seven month program, participants have the option to apply for an extension that would last another five to seven months.
“I love the program so want to extend it another semester,” Townson said. “I’m just waiting for the extension email to come.”
Townson hopes that her Disney journey doesn’t end here.
“For me the Disney College Program is a stepping stone to getting to where I want to be in life,” Townson said. “I would love to work for Disney in the long run.”
For college students who love magic, fantasy, and Mickey Mouse, the Disney College Program is an amazing way to begin a career.
“I would recommend this program to others,” Townson said. “There’s just so many perks to it and it truly is an experience of a lifetime. I’m a totally different person because if it already.”