Last time I left off at the end of the web-based interview. I'm sure you want to know about the next and final step which is the phone interview!
So once again, once you submit your application and pass the web-based interview, you move onto the phone interview. After the phone interview you wait to see if you have been officially accepted into the DCP or not.
The phone interview can be kind of scary and intimidating. I know I was very nervous. I've never been on a serious interview before and I'm not very comfortable talking to strangers on the telephone. I can also be awkward when speaking to new people and don't feel comfortable talking about myself they way you have to during an interview. Anyway I was really nervous and I knew that I needed to really prepare myself more than any normal person would.
I had started preparing before I had even applied to the DCP. I read up on all the details of the program.. I was aware of the work it entails and the learning opportunities and the living conditions. I looked up all the stages of the interview process and I read other people's blogs and watched vlogs with tips on how to handle the interviews.
I set up my interview for about one week after my web-based interview. It was scheduled for March 5th at I think 10:15 pm. In the week leading up to my interview I practiced answering any questions that I heard they will/might ask. If you google it you can find lots of blogs that give you lists of possible interview questions.
The most common questions that is always asked is "Why do you want to do the Disney College Program" or something along those lines so I made sure I knew that answer very well. I was also prepared to tell them my top 3 roles and to answer any questions usually associated with those roles. For example since I wanted to be a Character Attendant, one of the questions I was prepared to answer was, "What would you say, if a character had to take a break and you had to close the line?" I'm not going to list all the possible questions because there are too many, but I did search for them and made sure I knew what my answers would be.
So that whole week I was writing down my answers, making sure they sounded good. I tried to make sure I remembered what I wanted to say. (This might not work for everyone. Some people are great at speaking from the heart off-hand but I can't do that hence all my "studying"). During the few hours I had before my interview I plastered all the answers to my questions around my desk area in post-it's and pieces of papers taped to my desk. My desk was very colorful. I was prepared for anything Disney had to throw at me (or at least I thought I was).
I finished preparing my desk at about 9:30. It was half an hour hour before I expected the call. You have to make sure to be prepared for the call 15 minutes prior to your scheduled time and 15 minutes after. I thought the later time would be better because I would have a lot of time to prepare, but I had gotten really tired. I just laid in bed waiting trying not to fall asleep. At 10:03 pm I got a call from a restricted number and I heard my Game of Thrones ringtone go off. I hurried to answer and sat at my desk at the same time, my heart beating out of my chest.
I answered in my most cheerful voice and the interviewer told me his name. I quickly wrote it down. I was very taken aback by my interviewer. I had always heard that the interviewer is very nice and the interview is like a relaxed conversation. Also every instance I had heard about involved a woman interviewer. I still prepared myself for the possibility of it being guy but it still caught me off guard. But the worst part was that he had a really fake happy voice that you hear on infomercials. I mean I know you are supposed to sound happy when working for Disney but it was a bit much and the whole time I felt like I was talking to a robot. But he was still very nice.
Anyway, I started out being a nervous wreck. I tried hard to keep smiling and to sound happy, even though I was very stressed out. He started with the first big question "Why do you want to do the program?" I was prepared for that. I glanced at my post-it because I was forgetting everything in that moment and then gave him my answer. My answer involved me being excited for all the great opportunities you can gain from the program and the chance to improve my skills working with children because I want to become a teacher. I think that went well though my voice was a little shaky.
The next part was I think the worst. He asked me about my past job experience. I knew this would be a question, but I didn't think this would be one I needed to prepare for because it was very straight forward and easy. Why would I need a post-it for that? Well, do you know that scene from Spongebob, where he empties his mind of everything except for fine dining and breathing and then when someone asks him his name he completely blanks and then all the little Spongebobs in his brain are scrambling to find out his name and they're screaming "We forgot his name!" That's what I felt like when he asked me about previous jobs. I blanked and started spurting out random words like an idiot. It's the worst when you just can't find the words to say and just start stuttering. I'm pretty sure I was able to get across though that I had worked an office job and that I was an art assistant at school.
After that was over he asked me to describe a time that I had to do multiple things at once and how I handled the situation. I told him that the previous semester was especially hard and I was taking 6 classes along with all the clubs I am a part of. I told him that I make to-do lists and try to prioritize what is most important.
He also asked generic questions about tattoos and piercings and he wanted to make sure I was still applying for WDW and not DL. He asked me how I felt about working outside and I said I was fine with it. I don't remember if this was before or after the other questions I mentioned but they are standard questions.
He then asked me what my top 3 roles were. I told him Character Attendant, Attractions, and Merchandise. I was prepared for any questions he might ask about those specific roles but instead he asks me "So what is your interest in Quick Service Food and Beverage?" That took me by surprise because I didn't think we would talk about that and I didn't remember whether I put it as low interest or no interest. I didn't know what to say because I didn't want that job so I told him that I thought I had indicated it as no interest and he was like, "Ok then I'll take that off the list."
But then he started asking me questions about other jobs like recreation, lifeguarding, and transportation and I had no idea what to say because I didn't prepare what I was going to say about those jobs. It was the phrasing of the questions that threw me off. He would say "So what is your interest in ...job?" and I'm just trying to think of anything to say about these jobs that I had little interest in. I guess he could tell that these other jobs weren't for me because then he finally asked some questions that I knew were more geared towards attractions and that I was prepared for. He asked if I had any experience public speaking and I told him about my experiences performing on stage with Chapel Players (my school's drama club) and with Music Performance Club (yes that is the actual name of our club that plays music). I also told him about being an Orientation Leader and Student Ambassador at my school and giving school tours at open house and stuff. I also told him about all the speech classes I take and all the times I have had to give speeches or make presentations in front of class. I think my answer for this went well. I also think he asked me about how I would handle an emergency situation and I said something along the lines of trying to stay calm and making sure to follow protocol.
Soon after we got toward the end of the interview and it was time for me to ask questions. I heard that it is very important to ask questions because it shows them that you are very interested and enthusiastic about working for them. I had prepared a few questions. First I asked if he had any idea of what classes would be best for me to take since I am an education major. His answer was basically that it's up to me and I should look up the classes and choose whatever I think is right. Then I asked him if he did the college program and he told me about how he started with it and worked his way up into the company. Then since he had done it I asked what kind of advice he had for me and he told me to make a lot of connections with other people, to take advantage of everything Disney has to offer, and to have fun. By end the end of the interview I had become a little more comfortable and I was very happy it was almost over and I think I was doing a great job asking questions. I was smiling through the phone and trying to sound very enthusiastic and optimistic. I think this was by far the best part of the interview and it was a good thing it was the last part because that was the lasting impression.
Even though the ending seemed well, after the phone interview I was pretty upset because I thought it went horrible. Other people I've seen or heard from on the internet are like "Yeah it was comfortable and fun , and I had a great time" and I was felt the complete opposite. I was thinking of all the things that went wrong and beating myself up about how I should have said some things instead of other things. Anyway I was kind of a mess and very sad the week after my interview because I was sure I wasn't getting in (and sad because Eric got in and I really didn't want to be apart from him for 4 months).
