Disney Internship Applications: The Inside Scoop

If you're a UIS student living on campus, you've no doubt seen the various advertisements for the Disney College Internship Program. There are flyers, posters, table tents, pamphlets, flyers with the little rip-off tabs, and even some really cool brochures. If you've read any of them, you know that Disney offers a fabulous paid internship in sunny Florida with awesome housing and great opportunities for advancement within the company. You know already that they'll be here on campus on Tuesday, Nov. 18th at Noon. But you probably haven't heard of too many people who have actually gone through the whole application process.

Lucky for you, I got a chance to sit down with Jackie Holl, a Senior English major at UIS who's been there, done that. Here's what she said, in a nice interview format for you.

Q: So how did you find out about the Disney Internship Program?
A: Well, I had a friend who actually did the internship before, and she really liked it. Plus, there are always so many flyers from the Career Development Center around campus. I was curious, so I went to one of their on-campus presentations last year.

Q: What's the application process like?
A: It's actually really simple. The whole thing is online, so all you have to do is fill it out and bring it to the presentation with you. They'll even interview you right afterwards, so it makes the whole process really easy.

Q: How fast does it take for them to get back to you?
A: When I applied last year, I got my acceptance letter back within two weeks! It was super fast.

Q: What if you can't attend the presentation?
A: They have an online option for the presentation as well, but you should try to go to the in person one if you can. If you go to the online one, they'll interview you by phone sometime afterwards.

Q: Do you get to choose which job you get?
A: The application includes a list of possible roles, and you're supposed to prioritize which ones you want. If you have your heart set on a certain one, it's best to single it out and ask about it in the interview to show your interest. That way, you can have a better chance of getting the position you want.

Q: What types of jobs do they have?
A: They really have all sorts of jobs related to running a theme park. You can be placed in anything from janitorial work, ticket collecting, gift shops, restaurants, lifeguards, customer services, housekeeping, or you could even audition to be one of the Disney characters! I've heard the auditions are pretty tough, though.

Q: So do you have to go to Florida?
A: They have internship opportunities in Florida and California, but yes, it is a on-site internship.

Q: What sort of time commitment does the internship require?
A: Well, since you'd be moving out to Florida, Disney wants you to be really committed to the program. You'll work full time too, so it's a little hard to take much time off. Usually, you apply a semester in advance for either the Spring semester or the Fall semester. They do offer the option of a Summer semester, but only if you're already signed up for Spring or Fall.

Q: What are the housing options?
A: Disney actually provides really nice, cheap housing. They have it set up so that the rent comes right out of your paycheck too, so you don't have any bills to pay at all.

Q: What are you most looking forward to about this internship?
A: I'm really excited to leave the cold Illinois weather and go to Florida! Plus, I'm going to get great professional experience while having fun and meeting lots of awesome new people. You even get free admission to the parks in your time off, and if you have friends come to visit, they can get into the park, too!

Q: What opportunities do you have after you complete the internship?
A: Disney really prefers to hire internally, so after you complete the college internship, you've got a much better chance of being accepted into their professional internship program. After that, lots of interns are offered full time jobs with the company.