May 2, 2006
NEWSDisney’s Magic Kingdom offers student internships
Students interested in participating in a paid internship at Walt Disney World Florida can attend the Disney College Programs Recruiting Presentation. The presentation will be held at MCC on April 19, at 2:00 pm in the Kiva Room.
This semester-long, fall internship provides an opportunity for students to be paid as Disney cast members and enroll in Disney’s educational courses.
Housing is provided for the interns who will work approximately 35 hours a week. Interns also are enrolled in six hours of Disney-based coursework.
Interns may also continue their program at MCC by taking up to two classes online.
According to Ron Gaschler, Director of Career and Educational Planning at MCC, the Disney internship provides an excellent opportunity for students to gain experience in a wide variety of fields.
“We’ve had students go there and do this who are planning to transfer to a university and major in Hospitality and Tourism Management,” Gaschler said.
Students that are studying hospitality, marketing, communications, and business are not the only ones who can benefit from this internship. With the resort grounds covering 47 square miles, even Administration of Justice students could gain experience in a security position.
“We’ve had students who have interned in Florida end up working later in life when they finish college in California at the [Disney] studios, at corporate, in retail, all kinds of places,” Gaschler explained.
“A lot of students the first time will start off in a remedial kind of a role,” he said, “but it’s to learn the ‘Disney way’ and get their foot in the door. A lot of those will return a second time for an advanced internship.”
There are some fairly high-profile advanced internships available where students might manage the front desk of a major resort.
The Disney College Program is in its 25th year and offers 2,600 intern positions. Fifty were offered this spring to Maricopa College students, and forty-seven were accepted—thirteen of which were filled by MCC students.
One of those MCC students is mortuary science major Cassandra Clark. Her assignment at Disney is food service at Liberty Inn.
She says that her primary goal in the internship is to gain experience in working with people.
19-year-old Aubrey Combs is another student from MCC working in food service at Magic Kingdom.
“Come into this with no expectations,” Combs recommended. “Take advantage of all that they have to offer and you’ll come out far ahead.”
Although students might have a job in food service or playing a character role, Ron Gaschler explained the greater opportunity.
“We’ve had students who were working in quick service food and beverage who were able to job-shadow in the field that they’re really interested in and meet the right people there and then eventually return for an internship in that.”
Disney’s corporate training system is so highly regarded that many corporations hire Disney consultants to train their teams in the same fashion.
The Disney internship can be a valuable experience. Students have the opportunity to work on one of the largest resorts in the world, and they will also be trained in the Disney way.