Disney College Program: How to Get Accepted

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This post is all about the Disney College Program!

I thought it would be fun to talk about the Disney College Program. If you found this blog post that means that you are interested or curious about the Disney college program.
I was chosen for the Disney college program for fall 2022 as a cast member. A little back story, I applied to the DCP 3 times and got accepted each time but unfortunately was not able to go until now!
I am so excited about this magical journey. I was a nervous wreck each time I applied, and I wanted to share my advice on how to get accepted on your first try.

Disney College Program

What is the Disney College Programs?

If you don't know what the Disney College Program, DCP, is it's a 4-6 month paid "internship" that takes place in Walt Disney World or Disneyland

The DCP allows students to work at Disney parks. The DCP allows you to earn school credit, but it just depends on your school. My school does not accept DCP as credit, so I suggest looking into that with your academic advisor to see if you could earn credit.

How can you apply and when?

The DCP has five programs that students could apply to:

Fall advantage: May-August
Fall: August-January
Spring advantage: January-August
Spring: January-May
Summer for alumni: May-July

If you're interested in applying for the fall you have to apply in the spring and vice-versa.

Application Requirements

Students must be currently enrolled and taking classes and have completed at least one semester
- Or have graduated within the last year
Must meet any school requirements.
- You are encouraged to speak to your advisor if applicable
Must be at least 18 years of age
Possess unrestricted work authorization
Former DCP participants may not return to a program sooner than four months before their last departure date.
(UPDATE: COVID VACCINATED)

For more information on the requirements for applying to the college program you can go on the Disney Program website .

What's the Disney College Program acceptance rate?

The acceptace rate for the DCP varies depending on the program and the park. There is no specific amount but nearly 12,000 students apply each program and about 20% gets accepted.

How much does the Disney College Program cost?

Once you get accpepted for the DCP in order to save your place you must pay a fee, which includes porgram participation and housing fee.

Disneyworld: $420
Disneyland: $940 (Disneyland is not back yet)

Please keep in mind that once you get there if you decide to do the housing provided they will take the money out of your pay check weekly. Rent can be between $114–$205 a week depending on where you are staying and how many roommates you have. (you do get paid weekly!)

If you are waiting for applications to drop I would do some research on the roles that you might find interesting. Here is the list of roles that you can apply for.

Now the first part of the application process is the initial application.

Application Process

Now just as a disclamer: This is not a magical potion that if you do this you'll get in automatically this is what worked for me.

The first step is the basic job application which includes work experience and education.

For past work experience Disney wants to know where you worked, title,how long, and the responsibilities of your job. When doing the responsibilities part do not over think it. You can put either bullets or paragraphs it does not matter.

Another thing I've learned that helps is when your apply put work experience that relates to the role you want.

Here's what one of my experiences looked like:

Then there is an option for you to submit a resume, and that is up to you. I know some people that have gotten accepted with or without the resume.

Do not think that you have to have this or that in your application. When I first applied I didn't even know that there were keywords and I got accepted.

Role Ranking

Role Ranking has officially been removed from the application. Disney College Program will choose your role for you and you will receive a notification of your role a month beforehand.

Then the final steps will ask whether you're interested in Disneyland or Disneyworld.

Disneyland accepts very few people compared to Walt Disney World. Another thing to keep in mind is that the Disneyland program is the most expensive.

I would apply for both or just Walt Disney World to increase your chances. But that decision is completely your own.

Now it's finally time to submit it. The next step is the web-based interview, which you could receive instantly or wait a bit.

Web Based Interview

Now it's finally the web-based interview. The web-based interview ,WBI, is a series of personality question whether or not to see if you can move to the next step.

The WBI is not hard, but it shows what kind of worker you would be. Make sure that you take your time and read the questions carefully. But don't take too much time because the test is timed.

You want to make sure that your answers are consistent and honest. Just breathe and relax and know you got this.

The questions that the WBI will ask is repetitive. It will ask similar questions but phrased differently. That's why it's important to remain consistent throughout the interview.

For example:

I am always late for work.
I am always on time for work.

After finishing the WBI you could get congratulations you moved on to the next step which is acceptance or no longer in consideration (NLIC).

The Waiting Game

Now it's just a waiting game. You will hear back from Disney whether it's a thank you for the interview or no longer in consideration.

If you recieve a thank you letter for your interview you have to wait for your decision if you got accepted.

Please do not give up if you get no longer in consideration, because I know people who applied the next time and got accepted.

My advice is not to wait next to your phone for your answer and go out and do something that makes you happy while you wait for your decision. If you're wondering how to know there's a wave you can follow Recruiter Christy on Twitter.

In the meantime, you can connect with people and make friends or meet potential roommates on Facebook groups for your program.

Remember that everybody's journey is different. The second time I apply for the Disney college program I did the phone interview application opened and got accepted the very last day. This time I got accepted three weeks after my phone interview.

Please keep me updated on your application journey. If you have any questions about the Disney college program please leave a comment down below or contact me on my contact page!