Just applied and soooo many questions!!

Hello!!

I have just resubmitted my CV to The Agency as they didnt recieve it on March 15th Hopefully they got it this time!!

I am sooo excited that there is a possibility of an interview soon - Im keeping everything crossed and staying positive - Lets just hope that doesnt lead to tears soon...

I have spent the morning not doing the jobs that I am meant to be doing but playing again on the dcljobs website! I am lucky enough to have already worked on the WDWIP in 06 - 07 and have also applied for that again too - my crossed fingers will ache soon!!

The questions that I have thought of so far are:

• What is the interview process in the UK? Is it Phone interview then F2F like IP?
• The contracts are on average 6 months, with 2 months off between contracts if it is renewed - I am presuming this time is unpaid?
• What are the costs involved in getting the job? e.g - visa, CRB check...?

I am sure i will keep thinking of more... if anyone else can think of any I have missed that they can submit and or answer that would be great!!

I need to calm down... I havent been offered an interview yet, never mind a position!!!

Gemma

 

haha I'm feeling your excitement!!

I think I'm one of the only ones that posts around here that has actually worked on the ships for a significant amount of time. So will try my best to answer any questions you have. I've worked both ships and both the Caribbean and Europe so that broadens my knowledge a little more ;D

Interview process. Usually the Agency call you first to offer you a face to face interview with Disney. Usually in London in the same location as the ICP/CP programs but I believe more recently they have been travelling around other locations in the UK.

It works largely the same in that you watch a presentation of 'life as a crew member'. I've heard of some people doing 'ice breaker' activities while others (myself included) have had a very quick process. I literally watched about 15 minutes of the video and then got called into the interview room with 2 other people.

There were three separate interviewers... each of us, one to ourselves and we were simultaneously interviewed in the same room.

Contracts completely depends on what position you apply for. Typically the mass recruited entertainment sections (i.e Youth Activities, Cruise Staff, Stage Technicians) would be four months with an eight week break between contracts. Anything else along the lines of bar servers, dining, housekeeping is typically six month contracts.

Every persons contract is different though but is roughly around that time frame.

Any costs incurred are reimbursed by Disney, except for the visa. I can't remember the exact cost of that but I don't remember it costing that much, and a UK citizen has one that is valid for 10 years.

I did feel a lot more like a disney employee with cruise line. You get all the proper benefits like any other regular US cast member and they don't make up rules because you are 'international'. They also pay for all your flights. So it really is a job.

I wish you all the best in your journey and if you have anything else you'd like to know about just ask.

 

Thank you very much for all of your answers!!

I havent had a confirmation email from the Agency... should i be worried that they didnt get my CV....again?!?! Thought i could maybe ring them on tuesday if i havent heard anything by then?

its a much shorter interview process than the CP then?! I have worked for the Disney Company for 8.5 years so I am sooo hopeful that this will help me get a role!

Im trying to not get too excited though!!

Are there any hints or tips that you can give me? I have applied for merch - what did you work/?

How come you left? What is the chances of getting kept on for more than the contract?

Im sure theres a million more questions to ask ... thank you very much! (sorry if this isnt a normal happy email... im very tired and think im going to take a Disney DVD to bed!!)

Nite nite

 

No problem!

The thing with the Agency is, they do not hire for Disney all the time. It is only certain times of the year when the recruiters are in town. When I applied there was specifically an advertisement in 'The Stage' so heard back quite quickly.

Did you just send them your resume or did you see an advertisement first? I wouldn't panic about not hearing from them. But you could always email inquiring when the next set of interviews would be taking place.

I'm sure working for Disney before will help you. It certainly won't do any harm coz I guess one of their top priorities is knowing that you can trained 'their way'.

I started out as a Youth Activities Counsellor for one contract and then became an Entertainment Host for the kids. Did four contracts in total. Had a blast.

My main reason for leaving was the isolated existence you live in while on board. It's a really great experience but you miss out on a whole lot of opportunity in the world whilst you're there. It's completely outside reality. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's a very safe environment in that you don't hear so much about all the terrible things going on in the real world haha. It's a testing environment though. You definitely gain a lot of confidence in terms of openness and maintaining some level of privacy.

I'm a musician first and foremost so all these great auditions people told me I should go to... I never could because I was on the ship haha.

I'm pretty sure you could do as many contracts as you want. As long as you don't do anything bad they would normally automatically offer you another contract.

Best advice for the interview is to think about scenarios involving ship life. They will ask you a lot of questions about how you think you would feel about it. Ship life isn't for everyone and I guess they ask a lot of questions to screen the weak from the strong minded. It costs them quite a lot of money to bring in a new hire. If they sense you wouldn't be able to handle the challenging living conditions I think they would be reluctant to hire. I'm sure you've already accomplished some of them though if you worked in disney world i.e sharing a room with someone who might not have the same living habits as you

There are not so many positions available in merchandise but I think your experience will be of great benefit to you in that area so I wouldn't worry about it.

 

Thank you for all your advise again!! I had just submitted my CV without seeing anything on their front page as I had called and they had said that they do not have closing dates, but the front page is now saying:

March 2011
We will be interviewing in late April and early May for positions on board some of the finest vessels at sea! If you would like to apply for any of the following roles we'd like to hear from you now. Please send your cv to the address on our contact page. We look forward to hearing from you soon!



Assistant Dining Room Servers

Bar Servers

Merchandise Hosts and Manager

Guest Services Assistant and Manager

Concierge Manager


So Im checking my email every day as I really do NOT want to miss out on this amazing opportunity!!! Just booked the Disney Magic NYC - Bahamas 8 night cruise...(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) if I get the job and have a holiday already booked how does that work?!

I am hoping that my experience in the Commons will help prepare me for any of those type of questions!! Just need an interview!!

 

Oh that's cool. Just be aware the agency don't exclusively deal with Disney... they do recruit for other cruise lines. So make sure it is for Disney when they call you haha.

Holidays booked? Tricky one. They won't accommodate that unfortunately.

There are a few options you can consider but not guaranteed to work. If you are working and your work contract is going to clash with your holiday you can

a) Request to switch contracts with someone (so you take their end date/vice versa... this is tricky though and would need to be someone who was relatively close to your leaving date because I don't think you are legally allowed to work more than a 7 month contract).
b) You can request through shoreside via your managers on the ship to have your contract shortened or extended. This is never guaranteed to be approved though. All depends on timing and business needs at that point.

Seen as you know the date of your holiday though you can have a rough idea of the ideal month to start. Unfortunately though you could be called to work at any time. It all depends on 'lines' and when a line is available they will be looking for someone to fill it. You can opt to wait for another line but you can never know when that will be... typically in merchandise they wait a long time for a line to become available.

 

Thank you,

I have just called them, and they have received my CV this time - which is always a good start! I asked if there was an approximate time line and they said no.... this could be a long agonising wait!! especially after been told no to a phone interview for the IP! Spose it is only fair to let new people have a go! And that would of only been a year, at least with the cruise it is a career path...! I just want to know now!! hah!

Until then I will just have to count down the days til my holidays!! and keep everything crossed....!!

 

Here's a question for you, between contracts are you still considered a "crew member" or cast member? Such as, if I finished 4 months and have 8 weeks off would I still have my Disney ID to go to WDW to get in the park?

 

Yup yup. Unless you resign you retain all privileges while on vacation. You get two IDS. A maingate and a pass like you got at Disney World that gets you in by yourself 365 days a year. The only thing you are not covered with on vacation is medical assistance.

 

Cowza I see you're kind of in the same boat as me. You worked at World and now for DCL... What are your opinions on DCL compared to World? :-\

 

Yup yup man!! Well despite not ever getting a day off I think you get treated better at DCL. While I enjoyed my time at world I felt there were a lot of things that weren't fair just because you were 'college program'. Getting paid less... paying a lot for rent... being subjected to termination for choices you make in your personal time off... just a few of them.

I also did merchandise at world where I always wanted, and was more suited to entertainment. So I enjoyed the job a hell of a lot more at DCL. I was always a bit bitter because I didn't even get to audition at world.

Saying that, no offence to people who do entertainment there but it is not on the same scale of professionalism as DCL. They will pretty much take anyone as long as you fit the height. They screen you a lot more at DCL so it really does make you feel lucky to get picked!! I made good friends with lots of the characters over the years and they all come from heavy dance and theatre backgrounds for the most part.

How about you? What are your thoughts? I guess you have just finished one contract so it's probably still a bit of a whirlwind? Haha.

 

I agree with the housing downsides. Does DCL give you the opportunity to work your way up within the cruise line? Obviously something we can't do on the CP or Cultural Rep programs. Do you also keep the same Perner number as WDW?

 

Yes you keep the same perner number. Once you have worked for Disney and been giving one that is like a thing for life haha.

Working your way up? That is an interesting topic. There is definitely more potential to work your way up to management positions at DCL but to every crew members frustration you'll frequently see new hires arriving in management positions. So I guess promotion is an option but whether it happens fairly is a different debate I'm afraid. I think that comes from a long history of miscommunication between the authority figures on the ship and the shoreside team.

 

Cool stuff. I have one more big question. Do you get medical/dental/vision benefits? If so, what do they look like?

 

They will pretty much take care of any medical/dental needs as and when you need it while on board. You won't get any assistance towards things like eye tests and glasses and contact lenses though.

 

just been offered a merch position on dcl! yay i did ICP in 09 but wondered about shoes... can I wear these?
http://www.sportsdirect.com/nike-court-tradition-ii-ladies-231148

or is the logo an issue .... I dont wanna wear walmart shoes again! HAHA

 

Those shoes are okay. It's pretty much impossible to get white trainers without a brand marking. As long as it is white or light colour brand mark you will be fine.

 

You can get all white trainers from Shoes for Crews!

http://www.shoesforcrews.com/welcome.cfm

That's where I've got mine from for my next contract (I had Primark ones for the first three weeks until they fell apart and then I bought Rebok classics from Merritt Mall...they had a little logo of the Union Jack on them but no one has said anything! A lot of people on the Magic tend to wear Sketchers but to me they're not really Disney Look)

Shoes for Crews are really comfy, non-slip and not that expensive either (at least the trainers aren't!). I bought a pair of Mary Janes on my CRP in 2009 and they're still going strong! The only thing I'd recommend is getting them in plenty of time; I ordered mine a few weeks before my contract and they still didn't turn up on time, hence using them this time around!

 

Hello Everyone!

I have some random questions I was hoping someone might be able to answer.

I have heard the walls of the cabins are magnetic, is that true for the wonder and magic?

Also, is there an electrical outlet and room in the bathroom for an electric toothbrush?

And does the cruise line have incentive bonus'? Either for completing a contract or starting a new one?

I am super excited about potentially working for the cruise line. I have a phone meeting on Thursday to start the whole medical process!

 

The walls on the Dream cabins for crew are magnetic, not so on the the wonder/magic (the doors are though).

There is an electrical outlet in the bathroom but it is for shavers only because it is a weaker voltage. You could try the electrical toothbrush but it may not work. There are electrical outlets in the rooms (2 US, 2 European). When you get on board they will take you to get your electrical things checked and tagged (you can get disciplined if you don't have them tagged).

The cruise line used to have incentive bonuses to finish contracts depending on you department. They changed this a while back and put those bonuses in your actual pay. Anyways, when you complete your contract they will most likely offer you another contract. There isn't really an incentive of money to sign it - but you will get to keep all your perks and seniority over your break.