All our Dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them!

I haven't had a chance to sit down properly and update my blog as I haven't been functioning like a normal human being for the past few days and as well as the fact that I have been busy! But I am back with another update! and this time I am pleased to announce that I will be continuing by adventures through this blog because I have been ACCEPTED into the program!!! Yay!:):) Its official I am going to DISNEY WORLD!!!:) 

On the 23rd of September at exactly 8:21 am I received my fate, an email with a subject titled CONGRATULATIONS! :):) popped into my inbox. My heart stopped!  An email that kind of looked like this..

After 4 months of waiting, worrying, hoping, dreaming and wishing upon the evening stars, my dreams have finally come true! the agonizing journey with the application process had finally come to a great positive end! The feeling was unbelievable and surreal that I am actually going to be working for the mouse next year in the happiest place on earth!!!! It still hasn't sunk into me. This is a dream come true! It was well worth the wait! I ran out of my room screaming with excitement telling my mum and we hugged and rejoiced together! My dad had called and we had informed him too and he was happy for me. I didn't even eat anything the whole day this exciting news was enough to fill me up!

"No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dreams that you wish will come true.” 

The next thing I did was I accepted my offer on the letter that Disney sent me attached to my congratulations email. My offer letter also contained the links to the immigration papers that Disney sent me, which I will have to print out and show it to the embassy to obtain my J1 Visa. I had to sign into my candidate portal into my dashboard and click "yes" under the offer letter and submit it!  The offer letter showed my role and my pay rate per hr. My role on the program is Operations, this was one of my top role's! so I am very happy I got that! and my pay rate is $9.00 USD per hr. After I accepted my offer Disney sent me an email with a link to pay a one time non-refundable program fee of $154.00 and upload any required documents to DOC if I haven't done so, within the next 14 days of receiving the offer email! but I am up to date with that so I don't need to do anything at this stage. The only two information I am required to update to DOC is my Flight and Visa information, but those aren't due within the next 14 days, so I will get on to that later in the upcoming weeks, when I book my flight and get my visa interview. I paid my program fee on Thursday and as soon as I did that I got my Welcome to the team! email yay! and as well as another email about Mandatory medical insurance coverage, that I would need to get before I depart! My dashboard also changed to the Post-offer stage yay!

 The welcome to the team email contained the links to the on-boarding site and things like pre-arrival checklist that we will need to complete prior to arriving in the United States! I haven't got around to doing any of that. As I have a bit of time to do that so I will keep updating my blog as I go along with the process of my paperwork and all the other things I have to do  within the next few weeks/months before I depart New Zealand. But  for now I will just enjoy the excitement of being accepted! So keep reading!

Welcome to the team email! This picture makes me so happy!!

Have a magical day
Priya

Emotional Rollercoaster

This is not much of an exciting update as I am still waiting to hear from Disney. Its been exactly 5 weeks since I had my Interview with the Disney recruiters. The wait is so painful and agonising. A lot of different emotions are running through me right now. I really don't know what to expect with the wait being this long. Sometimes I get very excited to feeling sad, nervous and hopeless about the fact that what if I got the NLIC (No longer in consideration) email?. The other night I cried thinking  about the fact that what if I don't get in? It's going to be the end of me! but I am trying to think positive. This month is a huge month for me as I have my graduation ceremony coming up on the 30th of September. If I do get an offer from Disney that's going to beat everything it's going to be the best present ever! I badly want it! sure people say that you can try again and again if you don't make it the first time. But I am really hoping to make it in this intake because of the fact that I have met so many amazing people during the whole Journey of my application process so far and I want to be able to go to Disney with them, we have really become a loving Disney family over the past few months.


The recruiters told us that we will hear the results by the end of September and there is only two weeks left till the end of September this week and the next. This week is almost over so it seems very promising. I am really expecting to hear something anytime this week! if not this week, then It definitely has to be early next week and there is no doubt about that.  I have a countdown set on my phone for the possible date for the interview results, but I have a feeling we will hear sooner than that!

Estimated date expecting to hear, but I think it will be sooner than that!

Please keep your fingers crossed for me, I have waited for so long already but they say good things come to those who wait! right! and I really hope when I get the email soon, it will be a positive one and worth the wait!

Have a magical day

Priya

Photography Post (Part 1)

Photography Post ( Part 1): Hello people welcome to my photography page! This wonderful idea was given to me by the lovely Bec! I absolutely love photography! I will be...

Role Checklist!

So I thought while I am waiting to hear the results of my Interview I would do a detailed post on the Roles offered to Australian/ New Zealand applicants on the Disney J1 Australia and New Zealand Cultural Exchange Program  This is the exact copy of the role checklist that I received in my email from Disney recruiting. I had forgotten to copy it down so thanks to my friends and fellow applicants Nichola and Lily who had taken screenshots of the role checklist and copied it down on a word document. 

This is a full list of the roles offered to Australian and New Zealand applicants and what you can expect to do in each of the following roles if you were offered them.

ONE

Operations

·      Working in one of the following areas while monitoring Guest flow and providing a safe Guest experience, retrieving and arranging strollers, and assisting with audience control, including during parades.

Attractions

·      Working at one or more of the "rides" or theater shows

·      Loading and unloading Guests from attractions

·      Operating sophisticated ride systems

·      Memorizing and delivering lengthy narrations to large groups

·      Assisting with emergency evacuations of attractions when necessary

·      Working with FASTPASS®, the ticketing system that distributes attraction ride times

Main Entrance Operations

·      Working at one or more of the following locations: parking, park greeter, ticket operations, and toll plaza areas

·      Greeting all Guests who enter the park and validating their tickets

·      Selling various ticket media at our water parks, Downtown Disney® or Disney's Wide World of Sports® Complex

·      Strong knowledge of Walt Disney World® Resort ticket media

·      Using computerized ticketing systems

TWO

Character Performer

·      Portraying specific costumed character roles

·      Working in hot, confining, heavy costumes with limited range of vision

·      Communicating non-verbally to Guests

·      Signing autographs and posing for photographs

·      Interacting with Guests outside and in dining establishments

·      Must pass audition for this role

THREE

Character Attendant

·      Providing Guests with information about show schedules, character locations and visitation times

·      Providing audience control, including handling challenging Guest situations

·      Ensuring the safety of Character Performers and our Guests

·      Partnering with Photopass photographers

·      Maintaining show quality and character integrity

·      Setting up and removing stanchions, ropes and poles

·      Assisting Character Performers with putting on costumes

·      Retrieving and arranging strollers

FOUR

Merchandise

·      Demonstrating and selling merchandise (including alcohol and tobacco) in indoor and outdoor areas

·      Cash handling - manual and using computerized registers

·      Stocking and cleaning shelves and carts

·      Receiving/putting away stock and deliveries

·      Stroller/wheelchair rental – including repetitive lifting, stacking and pushing strollers and wheelchairs

·      Preparation of food/candy

·      Preparing packages for shipping/delivery

FIVE

Recreation

·      Assisting Guests in one or more recreational areas such as waterslide operations, towel rental, watercraft rental, marina operations, arcades or resort recreational facilities

·      Prolonged exposure to outside weather elements

·      Strong swimming skills

·      Providing first aid and basic life support in the event of injury or illness

·      Keeping recreational areas clean

·      Cash handling - both manual and using computerized registers

·      Maintaining safety standards

·      During off-peak seasons, assisting other operating areas throughout the Walt Disney World Resort

SIX
Resort Hospitality / Front Desk

·      Must be willing to work in all of the following areas but might only work in one: Front Desk, Luggage Services, Dispatch or Telephone Room

·      Checking Guests in and out of resorts and processing payments

·      Assisting Guests with itinerary planning and ticket sales

·      Handling complex Guest situations, problem solving

·      Operating computer-based reservation and ticketing systems

·      Lifting, tagging, and delivering luggage

·      Handling large amounts of cash

·      Answering Guest telephone calls

SEVEN

Concierge

·      Completing check in / check out process for concierge club-level Guests by inputting and retrieving information from resort computer system

·      Proactively greeting Guests, exhibiting the expected high level of Disney show quality

·      Creating individualized ticket packages

·      Being comfortable in a strong sales environment

·      Making reservations and handling any special requests from Guests

·      Handling cash and other forms of payment, including foreign currencies exchange

·      Maintaining cleanliness of common Guest living/dining areas within concierge club-level

·      Assisting with luggage and other deliveries to Guest rooms

·      Working concierge buffet line which can include maintaining overall cleanliness of buffet area and replenishing food, washing dishes, serving alcohol, maintaining inventory of liquor, and partnering with culinary team to ensure food quality

·      Partnering with property VIP tour guides

EIGHT

Quick Service Food and Beverage

·      Selling food and beverages (including alcohol) at outdoor carts and/or indoor restaurants

·      Taking and filling orders, multi-tasking

·      Preparing food items in a kitchen area, including the use of a fryer, grill, broiler and other industrial cooking equipment

·      Cash handling - both manual and using computerized registers

·      Bussing tables, cleaning kitchen equipment and emptying trash cans

·      Setting and stocking tables, outdoor cars and restaurants

·      Heavy lifting, pushing heavy carts

·      Working with cleaning chemicals

NINE

Lifeguard

·      Monitoring Guest's safety in water and on slide/attractions

·      Physically challenging work and prolonged exposure to outside elements

·      Providing first aid and basic life support in the event of Guest injury or illness

·      Strong swimming skills

·      During off-peak seasons, assisting other operating areas throughout the Walt Disney World® Resort, including performing roles other than lifeguarding

·      NOTE: Each individual must be evaluated and certified at the Walt Disney World Resort.  All lifeguards must pass a swim test and a vision screening.  In the event you do not pass the swim test described below, you may be placed in another role based on availability.

o   Swim 200 yards (183 meters) freestyle or breaststroke

o   Retrieve a 10-lb (4.5 kg) brick from the deepest section of the pool

o   Tread water with hands out of the water for two minutes

TEN

Full Service Food and Beverage - non-tipped

·      Greeting and seating Guests in restaurants

·      Managing a seating chart and resolving Guest situations

·      Utilizing a computerized reservation/seating system

·      Cash handling - both manual and using computerized registers

·      Rolling silverware, folding napkins, and keeping area stocked

·      Light cleaning, multi-tasking

ELEVEN

Vacation Planner

·      Selling ticket media to Guests

·      Responsible for achieving monthly sales goals and maintaining minimum sales

·      Working with a computerized ticket system, offering Guests tickets from a menu of over 128 different ticket configurations

·      Strong knowledge of the Walt Disney World Resort and its ticket media

·      Understanding the Guests' needs to help them select the right-fit ticket

·      Be able to work under pressure, overcoming Guest objections

·      Assisting with audience control, including during parades

·      May work at all four Theme Parks in any given week

TWELVE

Costuming

·   

·      Operating computerized costume checkout system

·      Working around performers in various stages of dress

·      Operating basic laundry equipment

·      Repetitive overhead reaching, bending and heavy lifting

·      Moving heavy costumes for location to location

·      Handling and laundering soiled garments

·      Working independently, with minimal to no Guest interaction

THIRTEEN

Custodial

·      High Guest interaction while working independently

·      Extensive cleaning – including restrooms and toilets

·      Working with cleaning chemicals and equipment

·      Bussing tables in restaurants and outdoors

·      Sweeping and mopping

·      Emptying trash cans, lifting heavy garbage bags

·      Driving pargo carts

·      Vacuuming, dusting, and cleaning pool decks

On the Role checklist you are asked to indicate your preferences for each and every role that is on the checklist from High Interest, Moderate Interest, Low Interest or No Interest. All you have to do is just select the options from the little box beside each role on the checklist and when that is done, you electronically sign your name by filling in your full name, date and agreeing to the terms and conditions and click the submit button.

Screenshot of the Role Checklist!