I have been enjoying your TR and loved your honesty in regards to the College Program. It is so competitive (I'm an older college student and have tried twice to get accepted and turned down both times and I have a ton of experience to offer). I love that you don't sugarcoat it but yet show the fun positive side as well. I do notice that the CM's at WDW are much more upbeat and interactive with guests than those at DL. I've visit DL with my annual pass 3 times now and only once do I remember a CM actually interacting with guests or making eye contact. They seem to mull around together chatting with other CM's and it's hard to get their attention whereas at WDW they seem much more interactive.
Congrats to your son for being accepted a second time - hope he has a grand time!
Hi heaven2dc,
I'm so glad you're reading along. I can see by your signature, you have a family similar in age to mine, so I hear you about being an older candidate. My son's roommate is 35 which is younger than us, but considered old by a lot of the kids down there. He's from Puerto Rico.
This guy had a heck of a time finding a roommate to match up with before checking in and runs into problems from time to time with being ostracized socially because of his age. I'm glad my son has such a great spirit and doesn't discriminate.. Being a dork has its' merits in life.
I told Mark the worst thing he wanted was a roommate who parties. A lot of them come from college campuses and are accustomed to underage drinking, excessive drinking, hooking up - you name it. They are prime targets for getting in trouble with housing and could get a roommate termed through no fault of their own.
Mark commutes to our local community college campus. he's not part of this click and doesn't fit in most of the time. He's not a big partier and not a "player". I keep telling him, "don't get fired". I am deathly afraid of him becoming one of the 'lost boys' of his generation.
Thanks for sharing your story. Since you've been trying to get hired, and haven't succeeded yet, I want to tell you, don't give up. I'll tell you my son's challenges to give you a better idea of the recruiting process.
Mark did the program successfully in spring 2011. he applied online, practiced his interview with us for a week straight, and was immediately accepted 3 days after his phone interview. he told them he was willing to work anywhere - including QSFB.
He was stationed at the All Star Movies, which has no sizzle and not the happiest of management. It's a value resort and it's a big food court and it's a tough assignment. He worked hard but this was his first "real job" and he made a ton of mistakes of course. He had points on his record as a result - mostly for attendance, But in the end he was commended for the tremendous strides he made in his job improvement when he graduated. His one manager said he was impressed at how far he had come and how well he succeeded with his job being on the line months earlier.
he applied again in spring 2012 and a week later was pended. He lasted through three rounds before being listed as no longer in consideration. I told him it may have something to do with his attendance record or phone interview as he winged it this time and in my opinion was ill-prepared.
he applied again for fall of 2012 and the same thing happened. pended one week after his interview, through three rounds before being listed as no longer in consideration. This time I told him it may have to do with his course schedule since he wasn't technically matriculated or it was his work record or his interview again or all of the above.
Enter 2013. he had just been laid off after the holiday season having worked 6 mos in retail and was having the worst time finding a job. A lot of adults had gotten hired for the season, and of course beat him out when the layoff cycles came. He's got a lot of competition these days for entry level positions against career adults who are unfortunately now forced to applying in his job market arena.
He had been actively pursuing a job working concessions at the Stadiums in Phila. This is not an easy place to tap into! There is a system they use to hire, mainly thru word of mouth. I'm guessing it's to bypass the ridiculous influx of applicants out there who want to work that junket. Mark happened to be lucky enough to have a lead.
He also, and unbeknownst to me applied again for the DCP.
Both were happening at the same time. He filled out paperwork for Aramark and had his phone interview for DCP. This time he worked hard on that interview. But got nervous and panicked and his mind went blank about a 1/2 hr. before the call was scheduled to come in. By the grace of God, I found this remote youtube video from a "hokey" guy who recorded and posted his interview online and I played it for Mark. We joked about the over the top style and how this guy somehow sold it enough to get hired. Mark relaxed immediately and handled his phonecall perfectly.
The very next day following his phone interview, he gets a pended email. I told him, that's it. I don't know the reason this was sent out so quickly, but something is going on. I reminded him he's already completed the program which is a big accomplishment, and really needs to finish school and focus on building his career.
That same week he landed the job to start with Aramark when the Phillies came back from Spring Training. He was thrilled!!!
About a month into working at the stadium, he get's an email from Disney that he's been accepted into the DCP. We couldn't believe it! He loved his job at Citizens Bank Park and now he had to decide if he wanted to go back to FL.
To this day I have no idea how he got accepted. I believe it was his persistence in applying and the phone interviewer who made the recommendation and his willingness to again work QSFB.
JQ told him he wished he had his choices.
I know DL is different than WDW for the CP but I have seen similar attitudes. I can't imagine how it must feel to see CM's disengaged and disinterested in a job you are working so hard at getting.
Honestly, I wonder if Disney doesn't rely heavily on the attrition here, knowing that if they pooled more of the older applicants, there was a high probability these employees would be the most successful in terms of job performance and well deserving of placement within the company for positions they may not have to offer.
But seriously, don't give up. Especially if this is something you really want. I'd keep at it.
And please keep me posted. I wish you all the best.
BTW - What are your thoughts about part-time? We think about it every time we visit.
Christine
You'd be surprised at how often it's ordered. 
But a double dip makes it doubly fabulous! Have a great trip!!
