An application out of the ordinary...

Ok, it's now been two weeks since I applied for a job at Epcot, and since then I've been more or less scouring the net for any kind of info on anything disney/epcot-related.

As a result I've read a lot of posts about people applying/recieving e-mails/waiting for phonecalls/etc...
What I noticed is that for about everyone, everything happened in a similar way. There is a lot of waiting and anxiety involved.

Now, this is where it doesn't happen that way: This is my Application-process (so far),

Let me start by saying that I'm from Norway, I'm 23 years old, and I never heard about Epcot until a couple of weeks ago.
I (like so many others) have on many occasions thought about working for the Mouse, and so when I heard about the CRP, I got ecstatic.
Needless to say, when I got home that night I did a little googling, found out how to apply, translated my CV into English, applied for a position, and promptly fell asleep

Now, so far this might be like everyone elses experience, but here comes the "out of the ordinary part".
The very next day, a couple of hours after I get out of bed (I'm a late riser if i can), I get a phonecall...
The number is +33xxxsomething.
I'm thinking whaat?
Who the?... what the?... France?...
TOTALLY forgot I had applied for the job xD
I answer (Hei!... ehrm, Hello!), and a nice sounding woman introducec herself, and continues to ask me if I really was interested in the job ( Hell yeah!).

At this point I have no Idea that they even 'do' phone-interviews. As I said, I knew nothing about the CRP until I applied.
Caught totally off-guard.
She begin asking me all these questions like;

How long do you wish to stay (Answer: A year/Reponse: Purrfect)
That's kinda long, you won't get homesick? (Not at all, I'm very independent/ Purrfect)
When do you wish to leave (Any time is fine/ Purrfect)
Do you work at the moment? If yes, with what, and will it be a problem quitting? (I work at a cafe/bar, and I will resign the second I get a job for Disney/ Purrfect)
Where would you like to work? F&B, merch, attractions? (f&b would suit me just fine/ Purrfect)
Now, appearances are important to Disney. Do you have any Tattoos and/or Piercings, visible or non? (Nope, no tattoos or piercings/ Purrfect)
And how is your hair? (What?)
How is your hair? (Ehrm, my hair is just fine?)
I mean is it pink, green, blue, really freaky, or really long? ((DOH!) No, it's plain brown, short cut/ Purrfect)
etc
etc
etc
And I can hear that your english is just purrfect.
So, Representatives from Walt Disney World Resort will be coming to Norway to do some face to face interviews with candidates the 25. and 26. of october. Nothing big, just a quick meet so we can get to know you better, but I would recommend a "business-look".
How does Saturday, 25th, 9:30AM sound?
Yeah that works perfectly, I reply. (Correct me if I'm wrong people, but it seems to me that I'm booked as one of the first? That's got to be a good sign, right?)

Purrfect (No pun, the way the lady said perfect all the time, with her french accent making it sound like "purrfect"... almost turned me on...

So about twelve hours after I apply, I'm booked for a F2F-interview, no waiting, no anxiety. All I need to worry about is not screwing up the F2F.
So, that's my story.
Anyone else been lucky enough not to get their nerves destroyed?




btw: When I got home that day I checked my inbox: 2 new messages. One saying something like

"Thank you for your application of employment for the Walt Disney World program!
We would like to discuss your application as soon as possible to consider you for our next selections in Oslo.

[size=10pt]In order to continue with your application, please contact us on the following number[/size] : +33.297.84.84.44 from 2-6pm (or until 5pm on Fridays).

The other one saying:

"We look forward to seeing you at blahblahblah, Details, date, etc"

Nice of them to tell me to make contact, then doing it themselves



So Yeah....
I'm just about freaking out here, because in my head I'm already going to WDW, and I'm so insanely psyched that my friends are already tired of me goin on and on about disney...
sorry... I just needed to rant a little...

Peace

 

Sh*t...

I might have gotten a wee bit carried away

 

Totally normal! Its all about timing!

Also you have to consider that they might be in need of norwegian cast members!

Jx



"Norway is the bomb!"

 

Though I should mention it.
Everyone else seems to wait for weeks.

Well, if they need norwegians, that's good news for me then

 

You are so lucky, i wish that happened to me, getting an unexpected phonecall, but i didnt, i knew when mine was and got nerves and fear and all that jazz!
Good luck for your interview anyway, hope you get the job!

 

It is good, the norwegian pavilion is so good!!! I wish i was norwegian!

 

Wow, really?
That's nice to hear.
So the Norwegians are liked over there?

 

OMG MATE! Out of everyone there I fell in love with the norwegians, They're by far my favourite people i have met on the planet lol.

You will fit right in no problem.

 

Cool, I'm looking forward to it

Hey, do you know if we get to choose our living-arrangements?
Like, I'd like to live with many people, do they take that into consideration?

 

you'd never heard of epcot til a couple of weeks ago?

 

wow that all sounds amazing, it must be pretty difficult to take it all in! Wish that happened to me!

 

Yep, never heard of it. I always knew that DisneyWorld was a lot bigger than DisneyLand, Paris, which I've been to several times, but never knew how much bigger.
Then this summer I saw some article about some norwegians going to work over there.
I just mentioned it to a friend of mine and she told me that a friend of hers had gone too... so it got me thinking, and it got me googling... and now I'm sitting here, tearing my hair out, just waiting for the F2F

It's now 31days, 11hours and 32minutes till my interview... and I'm already picking out my clothes xD

 

That's a neat story. Goodluck in your face to face!

 

not at first you just get put wheres there's room!

But while your there u can request where u want to live.

4 or less is magic

 

Tnx cowz, (and ps: Vanessa Hudgens is quite cute )

Hmm, 4 you say? I'm an extremely social person.
A social cameleon, so to speak, I thrive wherever there are people
How bout 8? total chaos/anarchy?

 

My phone interwiev was just like that, she said perfecct all the time

But she didn't say that my english way perfecct, hehe because I was like a nervous wreak i forgot words and thing like that.. haha..

I wrote her a mail and asked her about my english and she answered me:

You really don't have to worry about your english, no one from Norway has ever been declined because of their english.

So yeeeeha i don't have to worry all that much

 

I have heard of people who found out about the program, applied as one of the last applicants to get in. Had their phone interview, Face to face being a couple of weeks later and then leaving, all within a month. So it is possible but rear. I am glad it went fast for you though. It is always good to get as much of the waiting out of the way. The very worst is unavoidable though. After the Face to Face. So keep occupied during that time, it can literally drive you crazy waiting for the final answer if you don't. It will help that you have not been waiting long.

Good luck at the face to face. It is just as easy going as the phone interview you just had. They just get a little more in depth. (Like when you say you want to do food and beverage, they will ask you a situation like question.) It is all fairly easy and you can take your time. They like it when you stop to think. Also write down some good questions to ask them. There are some on this website's "The Interview" Section.

Also the F2F is an all day thing pretty well. Get there about a half hour early cause you will fill out some paper work, and then they do a presentation. Really fun, they do trivia you watch some videos, they talk about the program. Learn as much as you can from everything they say. It will help you. (If you know little about Disney World try to learn some things about it before you go. There is a great series on youtube that talks a lot about Disney World, the making and behind the scenes of it.) After they are done they will tell you your interview time. It can be any time. We were in the afternoon so me and a few of the (now Disney cast members) went out for lunch together. It was great. Once your interview is done then your free to leave.

http://www.youtube.com/results?sear... scenes&search_type=&aq=0&oq=Disney World Beh

(If this link works it will show the 5 videos of the series there. It is fun for anyone to watch but tells a lot and is rather exciting to think about being part of such a great place. If it does not work, just type "Disney World Behind the Scenes" into the search on youtube.)

Anyway hope that helps you. (And maybe anyone else.) The interview is great, so enjoy it and make some friends while your there. It will help show your a social person who can get along with anyone, if they see you mingling rather then standing alone in the corner. Good luck. Hope it goes well.

Ahhh such a long reply. Sorry about that. LOL. Hope it helps. If you have any questions I am always willing to help from my experiences and such. I have had the long wait. Found out about the program in July 2007 but had to wait till Feb. 2008 for a F2F and then got the last slot to arrive at Disney for my interview group. Dec. 2nd 2008. So almost all the people I met at the interviews are now working in Disney.

 

I think it depends on your country too. The UK is probably one of the most competitive... whereas they are so desparate for people in the French pavillion I know of ICP French people who were asked if they would like to get deployed to the pavillion.

However, saying that the UK pavillion is in a bit of a crisis at the moment. My manager at DS used to work there and she went on vacation a few weeks ago and went to see the managers there at the pavillion (as she still knows them obviously). A lot of people have seemingly left the program early this year and most of the cast there are working 6 days a week with no choice in the matter.

 

@Nykki: The wait must have been horrible. But, think about it this way; You will still be here when they are gone

If we meet up someday, and I hope we will, you will find out that I have a lot of princples and/or mottos... none of which are set in stone.
One is "If you wish to get to the top, you will have to walk uphill"
(No, I'm not trying to be smart, I just like the thought. And yeah, I read it somewhere )
Btw: Saw the videos already. And if there are someone out there who hasn't seen it: www.http://disneyinternationalepresentation.com/j1a/
Extremely "Disney-point-of-view", but I enjoyed it.
I love long replies... did you not see how long my post was?

@cowza: When we sign up for something that only someone from our country is eligible to do... If someone drops out, they're not going to go to the other side of the earth to get replacements, right?...
The more dropouts there are, the more the ones who stay will have to work. It may not be fair, but that's the way it works. It's called logistics... A friend of mine is taking a bachelor in it... I feel sorry for him
Still, as long as I get days off every now and then, I'll work for the mouse!

 

Haha I know what you mean but it just seems a bit of a mystery the UK pavillion is like that at the moment. They have people in the UK on waiting lists there are so many applicants... so it can't be that difficult to get some to start a bit earlier. There are people who post on here who are ready to go now! I suspect most would die for the opportunity haha.