Walt Disney World Cultural Representative Program: Application Advice

Hey guys! 

So ever since I announced to the world that I'm going to work for the Mouse at Walt Disney World in Florida, I've been bombarded with questions, one of the most frequent being
"How did you manage that?!" 

For that reason I've decided to do a series of blog posts to help those of you who, like myself, fancy earning and learning at the Happiest Place on Earth.

My Disney journey started when applications for the program opened on August 1st 2013. They were supposed to open a month later on 1st September, so I was freaking out a bit that what I planned to write hadn't been as obsessively drafted and re-drafted as I had envisioned in my head in all the time leading up to the applications. However I'd had plenty of time to stew over what I was going to say and do my research, as I'd decided to apply in March soon after I'd broken up with my boyfriend.

My first BIG tip is - read CRP blogs! They are an invaluable tool and a fountain of knowledge. I must've spent hours scouring the web for information and writing down the important bits. I found it truly strengthened my application and made things so much easier. So if you're reading this, you're already doing one thing right :) I'll link to some other useful blogs at the bottom of the page.

A selection of the notes I made

UK applications are made through a recruitment company called Yummy Jobs, who work on behalf of Disney to select appropriate applicants. First things first, create an account and start filling out your form. 

Most of the stuff they ask is pretty standard; personal and contact information, about your education and previous work experience. Always try to be concise and keep it relevant. Think about which aspects of your previous experience would help you if you were to work at Disney and then make sure to highlight these. 

The jobs available to UK applicants are Merchandise, Food & Beverage or working at the Historical Research Centre. Merch means working in the shops selling things like tea and Beatles memorabilia, Food & Beverage entails serving fish and chips or being a barmaid at the Rose & Crown pub and the HRC is involved in looking at a guest's family tree and providing them with coats of arms, specially made swords and the like (usually you need a degree in History or similar to have a good chance here). 

If you know which of these you want to go for, that can also help with your application. A large percentage of applicants get placed in F&B as this is where they need the most people, plus the wages can be very good once you get into a tipped position (after you're about 3 months into your program) so I geared my application towards an F&B role.

The MOST IMPORTANT part of the online application is the Additional Questions section. "Why do you value cultural exchange and interaction?" and "What is your motivation for this program?" are the two boxes that can make you stand out. Focus especially on love of culture - both your own and other peoples. 

Covering Letters never used to be compulsory though now they are. I would have recommended writing one regardless as I think they give you extra brownie points.

We're almost done. Last but not least you will be required to upload a photograph of yourself. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, get one taken especially. Disney don't want to see a cropped Facebook photo, it looks like you've made no effort. I got all freshened up and went to a photo booth myself. 

So that's all you need to know for Stage 1! 

Applications for dates leaving in Autumn/Winter 2014 and Spring 2015 opened on Friday 24th January so get yours in now - you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. Even the application stage is a great experience in itself. I met loads of cool people during my interviews and on the Facebook group, some of whom will be joining me in the Sunshine State and while others will be going on to different adventures. Follow Yummy Jobs on Facebook so you know when applications will be opening and closing for their programs - and good luck!

Useful Links

• WDWIP - The International Program forums, where you can talk with other applicants.
• Working the Magic - Harriet has such a gorgeous blog and has done both the ICP and CRP.
• Dan @ Disney - I was lucky enough to meet Dan at my F2F Interview. He is one of the experts and is extremely knowledgable about all things Disney IP.
• Hattan Times Does Disney - "Hello you lovely lot!" Adam was famous amongst applicants at my interviews, such is his standing in the CRP world, plus his vlogs are stellar.
• Catherine's Magical Year - Catherine has done the ICP twice, CRP and just finished working for Disney Cruises.
• Disney IP YouTube Channel - Lots of informative videos about the programs.
• Jen & The Disney CRP - Jen is great because she has kept up her blog well into her time in Florida - I hope to do the same!

2014: My horoscope was right

A belated Happy New Year to you!

Life has been so busy for me since Big Ben struck midnight. I dove head first into my New Year's Resolutions with even more enthusiasm than usual (I'm a sucker for self improvement as well as lists). Things were going pretty well and I was progressing at a steady pace, until the night of Wednesday 15th January. Just as I was about to tuck myself up in bed with my hot water bottle, I quickly checked my emails on my iPhone after setting my alarm for work the next day. And what did I find there?

The word "CONGRATULATIONS" in enormous letters! It was a job offer from Disney!!!

As you may remember from my posts last year, I had applied to work at the UK Pavilion in EPCOT, one of the parks that make up Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. So my blog is about to become a whole lot more interesting!

My leaving date is Tuesday 29th April 2014 and I will be living, working and playing in the USA for a whole year. I guess my ELLE horoscope was right when it said that 2014 might just be one of the best I'd had in years.

I'm going to splash out on a decent camera before I go so I'll be able to treat you to lots of colourful, good quality photographs of my adventures. So far I've already booked my flight with Yummy Travel (a branch of STA Travel affiliated with Yummy Jobs, who are the middle man between applicants and Disney) and paid my Program Assessment Fee which covers all of the special events that Disney run for Cast Members while we're out there. This means things like pool parties, pizza parties etc.

There's still so much to do, but this blog is about to become one of my top priorities now as I actually have things to write about! However it looks like I'm going to have to extend the date for completion of my 23 Things until my 25th birthday, as I'll be out of the country for so long. Plus I'll have to add two more things to it, to make it 25 Things Before 25 instead :)

I am going for my tour of Big Ben on April 15th, not long before I go, but the Houses of Parliament and Prime Minister's Question Time has been rescheduled for my return in 2015.

Now I've updated you, it's time to get back to my ever-growing to-do list. Enjoy the week ahead! 

I Love Lists

So, October is over and finally my life is going to start settling down again. October was a mad rush of meeting international friends (be they American, Irish or Australian), preparing for and attending Disney interviews, Halloween, work and of course a little ol' place called New York City.

I'm sad to say that New York didn't drive me wild with excitement like I hoped that it would. I don't know whether this was due to the particular circumstances of my trip, but I would definitely return to find out. I did manage to do almost everything I wanted to do, except for the Brooklyn Bridge and the Metropolitan Museum so next time I'll have to catch those. To be fair, I should never reign supreme on the Met steps without my girl, M. I may even add New York to my list of places I want to live for a year.

Speaking of lists, I sure do love to make 'em and now I need one more than ever. I had my Final Face To Face interview with Disney yesterday and as the results won't be emailed out until the first week of December at the earliest, I need lots to keep me distracted. Therefore I present to you:

November's To-Do List

• Watch Season 7 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Catch up with my reading, I'm currently 7 books behind on Goodreads. SEVEN!
• Blog
• Work on my 23 Things list
• Go shopping at Bentalls Annual 20% Evening
• Start preparations for the festive season - Christmas is coming!!
• Continue to be glued to my new favourite blog, The Londoner
• Catch up with M & H at Starbucks, then go and see Catching Fire together
• Cook some new recipes
• Attend my Work Christmas meal on 29th

That should keep me busy for the next four weeks, plus I'll be back to work the day after tomorrow, sob sob. As for today, I have finally unpacked my suitcase, done my usual Sunday chores and now it's only one hour until roast dinner and the Downton Abbey series finale! Enjoy your Sundays everyone. xo

Exciting Times!

October has arrived, and with it has brought not only my favourite holiday (sorry Christmas) but also lots of exciting news to tell you.

First of all, in accordance with Thing #17 of my 23 Things, I have got myself a ticket to a music festival for the first time in 5 years. And not just any festival but the big cheese itself, Glastonbury! I feel very lucky as a lot of people missed out, I didn't even manage to book the tickets myself and must give all credit to my amazing friend Ellie for having three laptops open at once and paying my deposit for me without hesitation. She is a babe. Now just got to cross my fingers for a good line-up.

The next piece of news, relating to Thing #15, I have landed myself an acting job. The best thing was, I didn't even go looking for it, it came to me! 

I was sitting at home on my day off when I received a text from the extras agency that had employed me for Les Miserables, Universal Extras. They were wondering if I could do some filming for the upcoming Stephen Hawking movie The Theory of Everything. Could I?! Considering that only my favourite actor of all time (and dream man) Eddie Redmayne was playing the lead role, I think I could squeeze it in to my busy schedule! Miraculously, the three days that they wanted me all fell on my days off, which was a relief as no way would work ever give me the time off and I'm too much of a good two-shoes (read: coward) to call in sick. So I will be filming in London on 20th October and my costume fitting is this coming Thursday. My scene is set in the 80s so I'm interested to see how they're going to make me look haha. I will take pictures. 

QT PIE

And finally, my Pre-Screen Interview for the Walt Disney World Cultural Representative Programme was yesterday. It was a really fun day and I met loads of interesting and lovely people. 

We met at 11.30 at London Waterloo and spent ages walking around the Southbank area hunting for Brasserie Blanc where the interview was being held. About 40 minutes after initially setting out we finally found it, then had a quick and delicious lunch in Pizza Express next door. 

The Pre-Screen event started with a presentation given by the three Yummy Jobs representatives; Nick, Louise and Jason. They told us about the kind of work we would be doing, told us all the perks being a Disney employee (and my goodness there are a lot) and did a general knowledge quiz. I learnt a lot of interesting facts about Disney World - for example it would take you 67 years to stay in every hotel room in all the Disney hotels if you stayed in a different one every night. Crazy! The presentation made me want a place on the programme even more than before, which in turn made me a touch nervous for the interviews because suddenly I realised how much was riding on them.

However, I genuinely wasn't very nervous. I luckily got the interviewer and the slot that I wanted which was great. During the interview (which was conducted in a group of 8) we were asked the following questions:

• Tell me one interesting fact about yourself
• What brand/company besides Disney do you admire and why?
• Tell me about a time when you've given really good customer service
• Do you have any tattoos or piercings?
• Which role would you prefer?
• Give me one word that you think best describes your personality
• Tell me about the item you brought with you (we had to bring an item with us that we felt represented our hometown or England in general)

I'm sure there were more questions but my memory of them isn't so great, I was concentrating to hard on my answers! It was a really nice interview and although we were in there for nearly an hour, the time flew by and it was more like having a chat. Though of course I think we were all still conscious of saying the right thing and making a good impression.

I will find out in two weeks time whether I am through to the Face to Face Interview which is the final stage of the process. Fortunately my mind has been put at ease as the date for final interview is 9th November which is one of my days off work and it's the day after I get back from New York so I'll definitely be able to go.

So now all there is to do is to keep busy and try not to think about it too much. I am so nervous about the results because I'll be crushed if I don't get a place, but I've done my best and I have a good feeling. Feels like all my prayers are being answered lately :)

I can't make soup

Just a little update blog post tonight. I have good news and I have bad news. Let's start with the bad news:

You may recall that goal #7 of 23 Things was to cook dinner at least once a week, using recipes from recipe books. Well, not only have I not been cooking once a week (nowhere near) but last night when I did attempt to cook from a recipe book, I crashed and burned. The thing is, when I actually set aside some time to cook, I'm usually really good at it.

I have a real thing for Jamie Oliver (in an entirely non-crush way, he's not my type at all) so when I saw a copy of his first ever cookery book, The Naked Chef, peeking out at me from a British Heart Foundation window, I had to have it. I was going to cook my way through it! I would become Julie Powell, of Julie and Julia fame! It would be Olivia cooks Oliver or something equally poorly titled!

Julie and Julia - The Original French Chef Theme

I fell at the first hurdle. Minestrone soup became thick mush with too much cabbage. Who puts a whole cabbage in a soup?! Even if it is supposed to be for 6 people. "Isn't it supposed to be red?" said my poor mother, who lovingly sat and ate two bowls of the stuff afterwards. Feast your eyes on the disheartening mess below:

Looks none to appetising, doesn't it? I'll have to try something a bit easier than soup to boost my morale and then return to defeat my gloopy enemy.

Okay, that's enough of culinary disasters. My GOOD news has been something of a secret up until now. In August, I applied for a job. The job was to work at Walt Disney World in Florida for a year, in the United Kingdom pavilion at EPCOT, as part of a programme called the Cultural Representative Program. I would get to go out to America, live there for a year and represent my country at the happiest place on Earth! As a huge Disney fan and one heck of a patriotic Brit, it seemed like the perfect job for me.

I am proud to share with you that my application was well received, enough for Yummy Jobs (the recruitment company in charge of hiring us) to invite me to a Pre-Screen Interview in London on 6th October!!

This would be my first of many forays into living abroad. I will keep you posted with my progress. I have, of course, a back-up plan. If not Disney then I plan to go to Australia for a year, leaving in July after I complete the academic year in my extra-curricular French class and go to Glastonbury with my friends. Ironically, tickets for Glastonbury go on sale the same day as my Pre-Screen interview. At least I know that either way, there's a light at the end of the tunnel and fun is in the not-so-far future. Something to bear in mind while I'm dragging myself to work each day!

PS - Dear readers, if you're out there and enjoying my blog, I'd really love for you to leave me a comment. I'm happy to keep this blog just for me, but I'm always up for conversation and making friends :)