My Face-To-Face Interview Experience

*** Prepare for another long post I struggled to keep this brief too. Sorry!! ***

On the 14th October I found out I GOT THROUGH TO THE FACE TO FACE INTERVIEWS ahhhh!!!

Receiving the email saying I had made it to the Face-To-Face interviews was the best feeling EVER!!! I was completely gobsmacked. I had to read it over at least a hundred times and get family to read it before it truly sank in. I thought my chances were over I'd been preparing all my family and friends for the rejection email, I honestly thought they wouldn't put me through to the next stage after I thought I totally failed my Pre-Screen Interview.

The email came through from Disney just after The Apprentice had finished so around 10pm on October 14th. (After the Pre-Screen interviews I would check my email daily but as their office hours are the usual 9-5pm I adopted the philosophy of if I hadn't heard by 5pm I wouldn't hear from them so would stop checking/refreshing my emails after this point so the email came as a total shock). The subject lines from Yummy Jobs never give much away, the subject literally just read 'Your Yummy Jobs Application' so I prepped myself for the rejection email I thought was coming my way. However after the first few lines the email read:

The Yummy Jobs Team very much enjoyed our conversation with you and would be delighted to invite you to the final stage of recruitment.

I immediately ran around the house like a crazy wide-eyed, heart pumping out of my chest, crazy loon, showing the email to my Mum and Sister and called up my Dad to tell him the good news. My parents then both asked so when are the interviews then? I was so excited to see I had passed that I hadn't bothered to read the rest of the email haha. 

Within the email was a link to visit Disney's Online Application, as it is at this point Yummy Jobs start to take a step back in the application process and Disney start coming forward. The application itself is very straightforward, filling in information of your employment, personal details and re-uploading your Cover Letter and CV so Disney have their own copy. Disney then ask you to register online to DOC (Disney Onboarding Central) to upload your passport and any previous VISAS stamped on our passport e.t.c. We were then told to wait for an email from Disney which would outline further details of the interview such as the date and time and other bits and bobs.

A Disney email came through asking us to complete a Role Checklist to indicate which roles we were most interested in, so this could be discussed at interview. The list listed all the available roles at the Walt Disney World park in Florida but sadly as a UK Disney CRP applicant you only have 3 main roles to choose from; Merchandise (They also listed Kidcot as a separate role but this is part of Merchandise), Food & Beverage or HRC (I think you need to have a History degree for this or a very keen interest in history, not too sure so don't quote me on this, it also is a bit more complex this role but that can be discussed at a later time). I selected Merchandise as high interest (alongside Kidcot) then put Food & Beverage as moderate interest.

Another email then arrived from Disney asking us to schedule in our interviews which would take place on 8th November 2014. This email came in whilst I was at work and sadly the booking of interview slots is a first come-first served situation. So all the early time slots had gone. I was panicking that I would be left with the latest slot available but thankfully there was space left on the penultimate time slot of 3-4pm so I quickly booked my place on that! Disney ask you to arrive 30mins before the scheduled presentation time of 9.30am, so ideally I didn't want to be waiting around all day after the presentation until 5pm to have my interview so I was grateful to have the 3-4pm time slot.


Interview Day!!!

On Facebook some of us had sorted out meeting at Starbucks at 8am by Hammersmith Tube Station before hand. This was so nice to not only calm the nerves and have people to walk over with but also to meet up with friends made at the Pre-Screen Interviews and meet new people too.

After our drinks we all headed over to WALT DISNEY HQ!!!! Eeeeeeeek excitement overload! Upon entering the building security ask to take your photo and hand over a lanyard for you to wear and ask you to be seated (Next to a diamante Mickey Mouse)

It's Mickey Mouse all sparkly!!

and wait for someone from Disney to call you over and escort you up the staircase (I like to call it the staircase of dreams, however cheesy that sounds) and on the bannister there are hidden Mickeys!!! I LOVE Disney and how they pay such close attention to detail!

You then show your passport to Louise or Katie from Yummy Jobs to register/sign in. As you are waiting for everyone to do this you get to soak in all the wonderful Disney items and memorabilia around you. Ahh heaven/childood dream come true! Then we were called into the cinema room....yes they have an actual CINEMA in Disney HQ amazing...and the seats were super comfy! The presentation began and we were introduced to three Disney Representatives who had flown over from the USA especially for this eeek! At my interview we had Sue who is Disney's International Recruiter focussing on Africa, United Kingdom, Netherlands and Ireland, then we had Reggie the owner of the All-Star Resorts complex at WDW, then Alesya/Alyssa (I know it had a y in the name but can't for the life of me remember how she spelt it :/) who is the Merchandise Manager for the UK, France and Canada?! All were super friendly and had amazing American accents ;). They started off the presentation after the introductions with a Disney related quiz where of course like the Pre-Screen there were some amazing Disney goodies up for grabs, if you got the answer correct to the questions. Then throughout the presentation in between speakers they insert clips of a film which is just simply magical and overwhelming, I definitely had a few tears in my eyes, but most people did. The presentation covered areas such as housing, pay, the opportunities available to you on the programme and other things. We also had a Disney alumni called Katie who gave us an insight into her CRP year which was lovely to hear how she enjoyed it so much and was going through the application process again just to get back out there. It was really helpful.

So, after the presentation and having a later interview time slot a big group of us wondered over to a traditional UK pub which became our kind of waiting room where we had lunch and chatted about all things Disney related and we also went on such an emotional rollercoaster during this time I must admit. As people left for their interviews the nerves would heighten in thinking 'oh my gosh this is real, don't mess this up, you've come so far' then after a few chats about our favourite Disney films or rides at WDW my nerves would calm down again and I would feel quite relaxed and I would end up thinking 'it's okay Rachael you can do this, it's just a friendly chat, no biggy'. Then people started to come back from their interviews all saying the same thing, that their interviews were over super quick and they weren't sure if this was a good or bad thing. I wasn't sure what this meant either, so as per our group would go over and analyse this in our heads.

My interview time slot came, so back to Walt Disney HQ I went, where Louise and Katie were sat upstairs with the rest of the Disney CRP interviewees. I have to say this also was so nice as we all talked amongst ourselves swapping stories e.t.c. Although a bit odd as where we were sat was in the same room as one interview which was taking place so we had to talk quietly although they were at the opposite end of this big room/hallway thing we were in and we couldn't hear what was being said, it just felt a bit weird. Louise from Yummy Jobs let me know that Alyssa/Alyessa would be taking my interview as I had stated Merchandise being my preferred role and being the Merchandise manager it just made sense. So Alyssa/Aleyssa came over to our waiting area and called my name and off I went with her to my interview. My interview took place in a room which had Spider Man hanging off the ceiling you know just a casual room to have a job interview in haha oh Disney I love you! However, in this room 2 interviews were taking place mine and another persons, which surprisingly wasn't a problem as although it was a fairly small room you are so focussed on your own interview you barely notice the other people in the room so it was totally fine. 


The interview only lasted around 15 minutes and in that time I got asked a few quick fire questions such as; Do you have any tattoos or piercings? Are you okay doing a drug test if asked? How will you cope in the heat? Then she asked a few more questions which required longer answers to but to be honest the interview was such a blur I am struggling to remember exactly what they were but something along the lines of, How did you hear about this program? What would you tell someone about your hometown? What do you expect to get/take/learn from this program? and something to do with what are your future career plans? The interview was over quite quickly I had a lovely time talking to Alyessa/Alyssa and am so excited that now with the knowledge that I am going she will be my manager when I am out there YAY!!!!!

So after saying goodbye to the friends I had made on the day, I was on my way back home on the train after a truly magical Disney filled day! I came home to a courtesy email from Disney saying:

And so the waiting began.....

My Pre-Screen Interview Experience

*** Prepare for a long post I struggled to keep this brief. Sorry!! ***

The Pre-Screen Interview is an event held by Yummy Jobs which in my application cycle took place at a French Restaurant on the South Bank; Brasserie Blanc on Sunday 5th October 2014. There were two time slots one at 9am and one at 2pm.

Mine was at 9am. I decided as it was a Sunday and there was only one train that I could get that would ensure I'd arrive in plenty of time, I didn't want to risk it with the train and have the stress. So very fortunately I have a friend called Nathalie who has moved to London and I asked her if I could stay the night so I could just tube it over to Waterloo in the morning with no stress. Thank you Nathalie!

Thought I would insert a photo here of the preparation I made for this interview, having been successful at last to make it to the Pre-Screen interview I made sure I did my research by reading many people's blogs about the interview so I was as prepared as I could be. I even made myself a little booklet, because yes I am that sad :/.

Pre-Screen Interview Prep

The Night Before The Pre-Screen Interview
As with most things nowadays there was a Facebook group already set up for those going to the Pre-Screen Interviews for the different time slots. In my 9am Facebook group a girl called Holly had organised a meet up the evening before for those staying the night on the Saturday to have dinner at Pizza Express (which is located right next to the restaurant we would have our interviews in the following day - Perfect!). Not only was it nice to meet up before hand to calm the nerves with people who were all feeling the same, but it was just so nice to instantly have that bond over Disney. There were no awkward silences just free flowing conversation, obviously mainly around Disney ;). I cannot tell you just how nice it is to talk about your passion with like-minded individuals who share the same enthusiasm as you do. Priceless!

Pre-Screen Interview Day!

Oh boy! Interview day arrived. I felt like how I normally feel the morning of an exam, butterflies in my stomach, not wanting to eat, mind racing, frantically re-reading notes I had made and triple checking I had everything I needed and reading good luck texts from my very lovely supportive friends and family (thank you all, it meant a lot!).

On my tube journey to Waterloo I got talking to a guy on my carriage who could see I was reading over notes, probably looking a little flustered to say the least and in business attire. Now at 8am on a Sunday, the tube was practically void of people so I definitely stood out! He was such a friendly guy asking me where I was heading and wished me all the best with my interview. He really helped to calm my nerves! Having arrived at Waterloo I bumped into Holly who I had met the night before (perfect timing!) and we headed over to Brasserie Blanc to be there nice and early. It was nice to be able to walk over to the place with someone. We sat with everyone in the waiting area for a bit and it was so nice to meet new people, find out where everyone was from and discover who had the longest journey or earliest wake up time haha!

The Presentation
Louise from Yummy Jobs then called everyone over to register/sign in and to take a seat in the presentation area. After brief introductions from the Yummy Jobs team introducing themselves they started with a quiz. Now some of the questions were straightforward but one question had the whole room guessing, which was; what does the latin message under the Rose & Crown sign say? (Talk about a toughy hey!) For those interested: The latin phrase reads 'Otium cum Dignitate' which is latin for 'leisure with dignity'. Prizes were handed out to those that got picked to answer the questions and got them correct. 

After the quiz, Louise and Katie from Yummy Jobs took it in turns to talk through the details of the program such as what the role entails, what are some of the benefits you get to experience/be a part of, and what opportunities are available should you get accepted. In amongst the talk some footage is shown which is simply magical showing you what you could experience all in the best Disney way imaginable. Top marks to the person who created the videos you managed to make the whole room super excited even more than they already were (myself included haha)!

After the presentation, interview groups and times were read out and of course with it being a Disney job interview each of the groups were given a Disney themed name, my group was 'Team Elsa' and it is ridiculous how happy this made me haha!! Yay for Frozen <3!!!

The Interview
My Interview group was scheduled for 10minutes after the presentation = no time to prep/panic/think but I believe this was a blessing in disguise. You get interviewed in groups of 6/7 and the seats were layed out in a semi-circle facing the interviewers, my group had Nick and Katie other groups had Louise. They asked us to in pairs or threes find out the other person/s name, their age, where they lived and then an interesting fact. This was a great way to find out who everyone was and interesting to see how far some people had travelled too! 

They then had to ask some 'Disney Look' related questions such as Do you have any tattoos? Any Piercings? and if you don't have your natural hair colour you'll be reminded that if accepted you'll need to dye it back to it's natural colour. Then questions were asked to the group but everyone was given the opportunity to answer so there were no concerns about anyone dominating the group and not getting an opportunity to speak, they were very fair in who they asked and so was my group in letting people have their time to answer (My group really were lovely it has to be said).

Jane Austen's House

Each of us were asked to bring in an item which we felt authentically represented our hometowns or the United Kingdom. I chose to bring the book Mansfield Park because; 1) Mansfield Park was celebrating it's bicentenary and was one of the first books to be written entirely at her home in Alton, Hampshire not too far from where I live. 2) Jane Austen is one of the best well known 19th Century English Novelist who was born and raised in Hampshire. 3) Where she lived in Alton represents quintessential England, with its vast open green spaces and typical English Pubs and houses built with wooden beams being the feature.

Our interview group were also asked to think of an attraction which could go in the United Kingdom Pavilion. We were divided into small groups and this really helped Yummy Jobs to see how well we worked as a team and our communication skills as we were asked to present our ideas to the rest of the group.

At the end of the interview we were asked to stand up one by one and give a 1 minute sales pitch as to why we thought we were the best person for the program. I have never been so nervous, my head was racing as I desperately tried to remember the key points I wanted to make. Upon speaking to other people who were interviewed we seem to be the only interview group who were asked to do this. Each interview group it became apparent had been asked a few different questions or asked to do different things such as sell an item from the Rose and Crown Menu or sell an item from the UK.

To be honest the whole interview felt like it lasted 10 minutes if that, but I was so surprised to discover we had actually over run by about 15 minutes! (I think the interview lasted an hour when it should have been 45minutes? - not actually sure how long the interviews are meant to be). It all was such a blur and I came out thinking I had blown it. I was so sure I came across as a scrambled mess and they wouldn't put me through to the next stage. I came home and literally burst into tears. I thought my dream was over! (dramatic I know but it was at this point I realised just how much this opportunity meant to me and I didn't want to see it pass me by).