Putting the Disney College Program on Your Resume

So here's a super relevant blog post! I've been spending more time applying to jobs recently than studying for finals...whoops! But here's the general rule of thumb about the DCP on your resume: Disney gets you the interview, but you have to sell yourself to get the job. This of course depends on a few other things as well, but for the most part interviewers and employers are incredibly interested when they see the word "Disney"! They want to know more about you and your job history, because they automatically know you have great customer service experience and should be a great employee. I've actually gotten an interview for every place I've applied for a job, it's just when I get to the interview that things go hit or miss! And we're talking about at least six interviews in the past month or so. So getting the Disney College Program on your resume and having a solid resume is an essential start.

I'm not going to put my resume in here for the sake of privacy, but I made sure that my DCP section was succinct yet thorough. Don't use fluff words in your resume, it's not an essay, it's supposed to be professional! You'd be surprised how many resumes read like a high school English paper. My resume is organized with name/contact info at the top, then my education section, then work experience, and finally community involvement/school clubs/volunteer work. I put the DCP under work experience and chose to list it as a job rather than an internship. You always have time to clarify what exactly it is in your interview! So mine is organized on the first line with "Walt Disney Parks & Resorts", "Orlando, FL" (in the middle), and "September 2014 - January 2015" (on the right). The second line I have my role listed, so "Quick-Service Food & Beverage", and the third line (and below) are my bullet points for what I did/learned. I made sure to include the words safety, courtesy, show, and efficiency, since that was drilled in my brain for how to be a good cast member ;) I used terminology such as "provided excellent guest satisfaction by...", "learned how to efficiently work as a team by...", and "overcame language and culture barriers", etc. My DCP section was 5 lines total, and my other work experience varies from 3-4 lines. I have three other jobs listed under work experience. I also have slightly smaller font for my resume to try fit everything in without looking cluttered!

This is looking super long, so here's a throwback Disney pic to make it look less boring.

My main advice regarding resumes is to stress the customer service aspect, and whatever skills you picked up that will fit the job you are currently applying to. This could be teamwork, language barriers, professionalism, safety, enthusiasm, really whatever fits your job you're looking at. Make sure that you are thorough enough that you cover your bases, but don't overwhelm the person reading it. Make sure it's an accurate and succinct overview, unique/detailed enough to pique interest. Also have at least five people read it from different areas (family, friends, professors, current/past employers, etc.) not just your parents. This will act as a spelling and grammar check, and make sure it makes sense and reads well! Sometimes we cram too much detail in and it ends up looking cluttered, so having other people look at it really helps! Also if your school has a career center, those are incredibly helpful for resumes.

When it comes to the interview you can explain the DCP in more detail, it's a paid internship that gave participants the unique chance to take seminars from Disney professionals, and provided extensive networking opportunities, etc. This is where you can really tailor your program highlights to the job you're applying for. And it's always good to talk about the guest interaction experiences, and things that will vouch for your character/work ethic. Employers aren't JUST looking for relevant work experience, they want to know you'll be a good fit personality wise too!

Okay well that pretty much covers what I've experienced with using the DCP to help me professionally! It really does help you stand out in a pile of resumes, so take advantage of that :) I really hope this was helpful!! Best of luck in your job hunt <3

Does Post-Disney Depression Get Easier?

First of all, Happy Thanksgiving! I had a wonderful time being home for five days :) Luckily while I was home I got to see Lindsey, my DCP roomie!! We had LOTS of reminiscing and that's what brought on this post for me :) In the (almost) year since I've been out of the program I'll kind of go over the ups and downs, and what I anticipate for the future. 

The first six months or so were the hardest. You have to go back to school, or home, or (in my case) New Zealand, and it's a hard adjustment! You're SO used to going to the parks when you're bored, eating whatever the heck you want (hello chicken nuggets!!) and not gaining weight because you walk and sweat so much, and being able to use your annual pass at Universal just because you're craving a Butterbeer. The hardest part for me, being in New Zealand, is that I was no longer surrounded by these wonderful and POSITIVE human beings that are genuinely thrilled to be working, and that I was in a tiny town with so little to do on the weekdays. It's SO easy in the DCP to get to the parks, or the resorts to check out the gingerbread houses, or Downtown Disney (sorry, Disney Springs) to get a Starbucks and window shop. You just go from this amazing semester of constantly doing fun things with happy people, to normal life with some happy people and many angry/sad/bored people. So the adjustment was incredibly hard, but I had a constant group message going with my roommates that always cheered me up :) 

It's easier now that I'm back in my normal schedule (in America) with my good friends, but I'll go through bouts of missing it a ton. Like right now. Lindsey basically said the same thing, it's now bearable, but we still miss it a lot some days! We're both planning on going back for spring 2017! It was so weird for me being back in Magic Kingdom with Sarah, it was like no time had changed, but it was SO weird because we had to try squish as much in as possible rather than just meandering around and enjoying our time! So strange. And so hard to leave. Also weird to see the other CPs at my old work location, but fun to see my old coworkers :) 

Pretty much the first year sucks being away, but you go from craving Disney everyday and kind of hating your life, to still missing Disney but being able to be content with your time away :) Of course everyone has a different experience, but Lindsey and I were pretty much the same. You go through these stages (ESPECIALLY AROUND APPLICATION SEASON OMG) when you're like hmmm....how can I do another program and still graduate on time...but then you realize you can't. And continue with Plan A of doing another program once you graduate :) Can you guys believe I'll probably be doing application blogs less than a year from now?! I REALLY hope it all works out like I want it to <3

Anyway, hopefully this offered a little insight into the year following your program. I miss it all the time, and especially miss blogging my awesome days, but am running out of blog ideas! It's like having a little piece of home to read :) My advice to ANYONE doing a program is to vlog/blog/take videos/document your whole life in pictures because it is SO fun to go back and read/watch/view them. Whenever I'm homesick for Disney I go back and read my old blog posts! It's so much fun to see what I was thinking throughout the program. The first and last few are particularly fun to read. 

Anyhoo, have an amazing week! I plan on going to go see the Good Dinosaur, and of course Star Wars once that comes out <33333333 Until next time, have a magical day :)