Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Moving In

Yesterday was my first day of "official" Disney Professional Internship events. My move in date was January 11th, so we decided to come down the night of the 9th and enjoy some time in the parks on the 10th, which was nice. On the 11th, I had to be at the Patterson Court Housing Complex by 8:00am to start checking in. We were all ushered into a room where we signed some papers and given a number. After that, we were lined up in the order of the number we were assigned and allowed to choose our rooms. We could choose from 2 or 3 bedroom apartments (with 2 interns per room) and, if we knew someone, who we wanted to live with. After we had our apartment numbers assigned, we were given a packet with our parking information, keys, important codes, the rules of the housing complex, etc., which we went over as a group. The entire day was full of new information, but all important. (ooh, and we were given free lunch pails.... bonus!)

After we knew our room assignments, we were allowed to go. Some people were assigned times to go to Disney Casting, but because I was not given a time, I was told I should just go to Casting. Once there, I was given another packet with the time of my Disney Traditions Class as well as the time of a meeting I had with the Animal Programs Coordinators later in the day. We were all led from room to room, filling out tax information, signing papers stating that we would follow the Disney "rules" so-to-speak, and comply with the "Disney Look." We were also fingerprinted and had a background check. It was somewhat of a lengthy process, but Disney seemed pretty organized and people were very friendly. They were there to help you if you needed it, and more than willing to answer any questions you might have. By time I was finished, it was around noon.

I met up with my family and boyfriend and we headed to Earl of Sandwich in Downtown Disney for lunch (which is an AMAZING sandwich shop, in case you were wondering... so good...). We relaxed for a little while and shopped before I had to be back at Casting at 2:00pm for my Animal Programs meeting. 

The meeting was for all of the Disney Professional Interns working in the Animal Programs Department. Most of us were Conservation Education Presenters, but there were also some individuals that would be working in other areas around Animal Kingdom (like Animal Nutrition, Animal Behavior, etc.) and in Epcot at the Seas with Nemo & Friends (working as Chemistry, Marine Mammal, or other Interns). We were quite a diverse group. We all introduced ourselves, stating our colleges, majors, and which program we would be working in, talked about some general information, and then divided up into smaller groups (according to our program) to discuss the specifics of our first week and a half of training. We were given packets with our schedules, a Cast Member atlas of the property, and maps of the specific locations we would have to drive to during our training. It looks like it'll be busy, but exciting and fun at the same time. They seem really relaxed about everything (except stressing that you MUST be ON TIME!, which is completely understandable and favorable for people who would otherwise have to wait for latecomers), and really want us to enjoy ourselves on this internship. I'm so excited to start Traditions tomorrow! I also have costuming afterwards, so I think I'll find out what I'll be wearing on the job. Should be a great day!

After the meeting we were given time to ask questions, and then I met up with the rest of my entourage to move in to my apartment. The Cumberland Park apartments are really nice, much better than the dorms at UW-Whitewater in my opinion. I'm in a 2 bedroom, which also has 2 full bathrooms. Also provided in our apartment is a washer, drier, ironing board, iron, tv, wireless internet, fridge, microwave, oven, dishes and silverware, furniture, and each room has a walk-in closet. I'm not sure if I'm forgetting anything, but the apartments are fully furnished and seem spacious enough for the 4 of us. 
After we unloaded the car we ran to Walmart for the essentials, which is about 2-3 miles away. (I highly recommend a GPS for any new Disney Interns! My Garmin is sooo handy!) The rest of the night I chilled with my parents and boyfriend at their hotel room for a while before heading back to the room to unpack and get to know my roommate. By midnight I was unpacked and settled in.

Today I had the day off and had time to explore. As I didn't have my Disney ID yet, I was unable to get into the parks without buying a ticket, so I explored Downtown Disney and the Monorail Resorts instead. I can't wait for tomorrow! 



16 comments:

  1. very happy for you !!! i wanted 2 ask you if u cld explain a lil bit more about housing. i know theres vista,patterson and chatnam... but like can u choose the floor? and what is whitewater and the other park? is there any difference in the rent money? also whats the diff betw chatnam and patterson?

    sorry for so many questions lol

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  2. I'm not sure about Vista, Patterson, or Chatam. I'm a Professional Intern, so my only option for Disney housing was Cumberland. They did let us choose if we wanted a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment, which is where the difference in housing cost lies. If you have a 2 bedroom its more expensive. We did have some leeway in which floor we were on, but that was limited by our choice of a 2 or 3 bedroom. UW-Whitewater is a college, and which other park are you talking about?

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  3. ohhh ok,nvm about the park lol...
    by choosing 2 bedroom apart, how much more than a 3 bedroom wld it be? i wldnt mind 5 or 10 more.

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  4. It's about $8 more per week. I know the college program housing cost is different though.

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  5. I stumbled upon your blog while I was searching for more information on this internship program. I'm in the process of applying for it, under the Interior Design department. I'm very interested in hearing any information you have on this and the process, if you don't mind sharing.

    -Ashley
    yellowbirdd@hotmail.com

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  6. I've blogged about all of the interviews I've been through:

    http://wdwcollegeprogram2011.blogspot.com/2010/10/accepted.html

    http://wdwcollegeprogram2011.blogspot.com/2010/10/disney-professional-internships-animal.html

    http://wdwcollegeprogram2011.blogspot.com/2010/10/disney-professional-internships.html

    If you have any questions that aren't answered in the blogs, just let me know! Good luck!

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  7. Do you know if you can do housing in Cumberland as coed? two guys, two girls? Thanks! I'll be living in cumberland this spring, I'm a conservation educator for the next round!

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  8. Congratulations!! From what I remember, Cumberland didn't allow co-Ed rooming, but it never hurts to ask I guess. You can contact them beforehand and request roommates if you already know people, but most end up meeting their roommates (and finding out who they are) for the first time on move-in day. Hope that helps a bit... If you have any more questions, feel free to ask! :0)

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  9. Hi! I am another happy person to stumble upon your blog. Do you know what the apartments are on the first floor (2 or 3)?
    Also, what would you say are some pros/cons about Cumberland? Did you drive to work? Do you know about parking? Is there a bus?

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  10. The apartments aren't really divided by size on floors. There are several different buildings that make up Cumberland Park and you're sort of intermixed throughout them all. There are also "normal" tenants at Cumberland as well (people who just live in Florida- they're not part of the internship). When you arrive on move-in day, your asked if you prefer a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment and also which floor you'd like to live on. As long as there's still vacancy, you'll get your request.
    The pros of Cumberland... they have 2 pools, a gym, social events, its a gated community, they have a movie theater you can use to watch movies, it's close to Disney, Publix, Walmart, Target, etc... everything's pretty much there... once a week someone comes to sweep, vacuum, clean counters, toilets, etc... I really enjoyed my time there, though some think that it's expensive...
    The cons of Cumberland... you have to share a room and a bathroom... other than that, I can't think of anything I disliked.
    Yes, you'll have to drive to work. You are required to have a vehicle for this internship. You can carpool with your co-workers however to save on gas, but you must have your own vehicle (and trust me, it's MUCH more convenient to have one). You are given a parking decal to park at Cumberland. You park outside, and though they mention that you can park in guest parking in case you can't find a spot, I never had a problem. They do offer a garage as well... I believe it was $100 for a garage spot, but again, I never had trouble finding a spot outside.
    Cumberland does not have a bus. I know the College Program kids do (their housing complex is across the street) but I'm not sure how the schedule works or where they all go. I wouldn't recommend going that rout. If you end up late for work, it's your fault and you get 1/2 a point on your file. You need your own vehicle.
    If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

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  11. Hey Devon this is some very helpful information. Do you have any idea what full time Disney bar server makes an hour/year? and the and do they deduct your pay to stay Cumberland? and how much? Thanks again for all the info.

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  12. I'm not sure what they make, but I'm sure if you asked during an interview they'd be more than happy to tell you. Yes, if you're staying at Cumberland it is automatically deducted from your pay. How much depends on what type of apartment you choose to stay in. If I remember correctly, it was about $127 per week for a 3 bedroom apartment and $135 per week for a 2 bedroom apartment.

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  13. This info is really helpful! I'm trying to weigh my options right now for the fall...Because it is Disney housing, are you subject to any weird additional rules, such as limitations on guests visiting? (This was the case with CP housing.)

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  14. With the professional internships, you're treated more like an independent adult. The only limitations they have on visitors are enforced by the housing complex. They request that if you are going to have visitors for more than a few days, that you let them know and get approval. Also, you'll have to get the okay from your roommates. Many of the PIs are 21, so as long as you fit the bill, you're okay to drink and have alcohol in your apartment. You'll just need to be aware of the ages of your roommates as well.

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  15. hey can you elaborate on the rules about guests staying over. For example, i know my girlfriend wants to visit and stay for like 2-3 nights. would that be a problem in cumberland?

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  16. You'll want to be sure to check with the complex, since the rules might have changed since I was there, but I don't think it will be a problem. As long as your roommates are okay with it, the complex is usually okay with it. You just really want to make sure that your roommates will be comfortable with the arrangements.

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