Walt Disney once said, “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” Two students had the courage to apply for the Disney College Program and they had the chance to explore a kingdom of hard work and magical moments.

The Disney College Program is available to undergraduate students to take a semester off of classes and participate in an incredible, paid internship experience with the Fortune 500 company. Students have the chance to work at either the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida or the Disneyland Resort in California where they can work in the parks and hotels, but also network with leaders, experience career development classes, and develop a large continuum of skills.

From working the attractions to serving food in the quick services restaurants to performing in parades and stage shows, college program participants can assume an active role within the company.

Juniors Rachael Stone and Frankie DiCesare, who now serve as campus representatives for the College Program, wanted to experience the magic and spent an entire semester with the Walt Disney World Company.

After successfully completing the online and phone interviews, Stone and DiCesare made their way to Walt Disney world and prepared to assume their official roles as cast members.

Stone’s main job was at Innovations on the Sum of All Thrills attraction at EPCOT. “My duties and responsibilities included ensuring guest safety, working with guests and as a team, helping guests with any problems, and any other various tasks my managers or coordinators would ask me to do,” said Stone.

DiCesare worked at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at the Beauty and the Beast Stage show, the nighttime production, Fantasmic, and the afternoon parade. “My role was basically crowd control. We were directing guests on where to go. But there were sometimes when I walked around the park and I had to be prepared to answer any question related to Disney,” said DiCesare.

Besides the expected responsibilities, Stone enjoyed creating some extra magic with the guests. “Sometimes I would just hand Mickey stickers to little kids and make them smile!” said Stone.

Moving to a new state and working for a company with so many iconic characters, movies, and attractions may be intimidating, but the opportunity was too good to pass up.

“I wanted to do the program because I love Disney and it just sounded like a great opportunity. One of my friends encouraged me to apply and I’m so glad she did! It changed my life!” said Stone.

Being immerse in such a great experience, Stone and DiCesare agreed that their favorite part of the internship was meeting such a diverse group of people.

“I met so many people during my internship and I keep in touch with a lot of my friends. It’s great to know so many different and amazing people from across the country and world,” said Stone.

“My favorite part by far was meeting all kinds of different people. Some of my best friends there were from Australia and Honduras and just seeing the different culture and seeing how a company can make different people come and work together was just great,” said DiCesare.

Working for such a prestigious company is quite the experience and Stone loved working for such a big corporation: “I got to see how the corporate ladder works and how you can work your way up. I feel inspired and honored that I was able to work for a world renown company!”

“It was great! I learned a lot and it made me think about my future. If I still want to work for the company, which I do, I had a chance to learn about the ins and outs of the company, which was a great experience,” said DiCesare.

If students are curious about the Disney College Program and want to learn how to create magic, Stone encourages everyone interested to apply.

“My advice is apply! Go for it. Be prepared for the best semester of your life. Take risks. Sign up for classes, go to the parks after work, see the shows and network! Use this program to the best of your ability and you will honestly love it,” said Stone.

DiCesare agrees. “It’s a good program. You learn a lot not only about the company, but also about yourself. The opportunity came knocking for me and I just had to go for it.”

If students want to work in the place where dreams come true, they can log onto the Disney College Program’s website for more details about the internship experience. If students continue to have questions, they can contact Rachael Stone or Frankie DiCesare.