by Brittany DiCologero and Daniel Buster
With acceptances for the Spring 2017 Disney College Program in full swing, I wanted to take a change of pace from our usual program coverage here at the Outpost to focus on the things that are usually glossed over in blogs and vlogs. Each applicant has his or her own reasons for wanting to do the program, however with all of the excitement in applying and waiting for acceptances, we sometimes lose track of who exactly the students are who apply for the Disney College Program.
When I applied to the Disney College Program for the first time back in 2012, I had initially planned to take a semester off for the program. I was a sophomore at St. Anselm College when I was accepted into the program with an offer for a role in merchandise that I ultimately had to turn down due to the terms of my scholarship not allowing for a leave of absence from college. (Since then my college has begun to offer credit for the program, so this shouldn’t be an issue for future students- I was actually the first student from St. Anselm to apply for an complete a Disney College Program).
Without being able to receive credit for the program, at least without forfeiting the scholarship money that I definitely needed for college, I was forced to put the program on hold until after I graduated. I was ultimately happy that I waited until after I graduated to do the program, however my time interacting with other future Disney College Program interns on social media told me that my situation was not the norm. While I did ironically end up finding roommates who had already graduated as well, most of the people I got to know through social media and the program itself were still working towards a bachelors degree.
For this post, and for a couple of later posts as well, I wanted to get in touch with future-CPs coming to the program with at least a somewhat unique situation. Whether they’ve already graduated and are focused on starting a career with Disney, or they are planning on living outside of Disney housing, or are going to be entirely financially independent during their programs, I feel that these are the stories we don’t hear about enough in the midst of the long wait for acceptances, roommate struggles, and dreaded college financial aid issues.
In my quest to put a face to a future CP (Disney College Program participant), I spoke with Daniel Buster, a graduate student who is currently attending the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). You can check out my full interview with Daniel in the video on his YouTube channel below.
Daniel, who will be participating in the Spring 2017 program, already holds a bachelors degree in Biology also from UNR. Where some other CPs might just be taking a semester to enjoy an internship with Disney, Daniel is currently working towards an MBA and is also strongly considering attending film school. Why film school you ask? And how could the Disney College Program be beneficial for these kind of career goals? In Daniel’s own words:
“I was doing a little introspection with my dad last Christmas concerning what I wanted to do with my life. I was about to start another semester of the MBA program, and I didn’t really know what I would do for work ultimately. He asked me what I loved doing and I said I loved to write and work on creative projects. I have always liked creative writing and telling stories. I soon started doing some research into what it would take to find work in film. I started looking at films schools and what they offered. I also watched a lot of YouTube videos to see what aspiring filmmakers did, and to see if film school was worthwhile. I would eventually write my own screenplay for a short film and do some storyboarding.
More recently, I was able to get in contact with an editor at Pixar. I expressed to him how I was interested in working in film, and asked if I could meet with him at the studios. We arranged a visit, and he was able to address a lot of my questions and concerns. I talked with him about how he landed a job at Pixar, and what course he recommend I take to eventually get a job there. He’s a really awesome guy, and we keep in touch. After all that, I became really inspired to give film-making a serious attempt, and potentially go to film school.”
Something I always stress when I talk to anyone who is on the fence about doing the Disney College Program is that there are solid benefits of participating regardless of one’s major in college or career goals. At a very basic level, the Disney College Program increased my self confidence particularly in public speaking, but more specifically I made some of my most treasured friendships, learned Disney’s excellent guest service model, and completed a course in Disney’s brand-specific marketing techniques, which taught me so many lessons I would never have been able to receive from a college text book. Since I first embarked on my Disney College Program journey more than two years ago now, it was refreshing to speak with someone like Daniel who has not yet done the program, about what he is hoping to get out of it:
“I think the most beneficial part of the program for my career goals is the opportunity to be refined by Disney’s business model. I really want to be influenced by their dedication to quality. It is something that is unmatched by any other company, and I know my abilities professionally will be stretched and expanded by the DCP. Aside from that, I would really like to work for Disney in some way. Specifically, I would love to have a career with the Disney corporation, and put my MBA to use. One thought I had was to work for the business side of Disney, make some money, go to film school, and then get a job with either Disney Animation Studios or Pixar. It’s ambitious, but who knows!”
The Disney College Program is unlike any other internship experience out there. It really is one of those things that you just need to experience for yourself to understand just how *magical* it is, but I think the excitement future CPs have towards to program is a tell-tale sign. When I asked Daniel what he is looking forward to most come January he replied:
“I am most looking forward to meeting cool people. The majority of the stories from my friends who have done the program are not about the parks, but about the friends they made. I want to make a lot of friends, and also connect with some of the people I have been interacting with online. Of course, having completely free access to the parks is going to be pretty great as well!”
We’ll be featuring more CP stories about once a month or so here at the Outpost, but if you’d like to follow Daniel’s adventure in the meantime be sure to subscribe to his YouTube channel, where he’ll be posting more videos leading up to and during his program. At Daniel’s channel, you’ll also be able to catch up on his visit to Pixar, and get a glimpse at his phone interview, which did after all lead to an acceptance into the program!
