GENERAL PROGRAM INFO & COSTS | DISNEY ACADEMIC EXCHANGE PROGRAM ADVICE SERIES

*ALL VIEWS ARE MY OWN AND NOT OF THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY, CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY OR YUMMY JOBS*

Hey there, pals!

Since I announced that I was jetting off to the United States to work, live and study at the Walt Disney World Resort, I got a lot of questions about what the Disney Academic Exchange Program is about. To this day, I still get questions about what was entailed on my program! Despite there being a pause in the show and recruitment on hold for the time being, and now that I have completed my program, I have decided to create a little advice series to provide some insight and hopefully some guidance to my readers (hopefully future participants!) who may be interested in the Disney Academic Exchange Program, or possibly thinking of the same questions that I had!

Where better to start off this series than at the very beginning…

Throwing it back to a couple of years ago when I was doing my research for possible internships during my sandwich-year university degree, I can remember an intrigued and mystified 19-year old stumbling across the Disney Academic Exchange Program advertised on my university’s career page and wondered what this was all about. So, you are probably reading this right now either wanting to apply for the Disney Academic Exchange Program, doing some research for getting ready to apply for the program, or you just so happen to be a great pal of mine from across the world and didn’t know what my program was about.

Let me explain.

*a word of warning: these descriptions and information sections are my own observations from completing the recruitment stages in Autumn (Fall) 2018 all the way to completing the Academic Exchange Program itself from July 2019 to March 2020. So, this information may not be accurate in years to come. Any queries about the Academic Exchange Program should to sent to Yummy Jobs directly*

What is the Disney Academic Exchange Program?

Disney’s Academic Exchange Program is one of three Disney International College Programs that UK citizens can embark on to work and study at the Walt Disney World Resort and live in housing complexes run by Disney just offsite from the resort with transportation provided. The program is run by a company called Yummy Jobs, who sort through applications, select candidates for a pre-screen interview and send a small, successful sample of candidates to Hammersmith, London, where they will go through a final interview with recruiters from the Walt Disney Company (more on this to come in the next post!). The Academic Exchange Program is different to all the other UK Disney International College Programs in that this program is strictly focussed on academia from industry leaders at the Walt Disney World Resort and professors from the partnered university in the United States. Currently, the Academic Exchange Program is sponsored by Central Michigan University (CMU) and the Department of Leisure Services created the International College Program (full-time) course, in which participants will receive full academic credit from CMU upon completion of the program. The academic credit is made up of completing online business management courses, attending a series of seminar sessions with a Disney leader or equivalent in the topic of interest chosen by the participant, and writing topical papers about the practical training in one or two different roles at the Walt Disney World Resort for one semester (6-month program) or two semesters (12-month program), depending on the home university (in other words, where you’re studying right now/looking to study).

Eligibility

In addition, the Academic Exchange Program quite possibly is the most exclusive Disney program for citizens of the UK. You have to be 18 years or older, speak & write fluent English, have a valid passport for the duration of the program and must be enrolled on a relevant degree to the industry field of the Walt Disney World Resort at one of the following universities:

• University of Brighton

• Cardiff Metropolitan University

• University of Chester

• University of Central Lancashire

• University of Derby (Buxton Campus)

• Leeds Beckett University

• Manchester Metropolitan University

• Northumbria University

• University of Portsmouth

• Robert Gordon University

• Sheffield Hallam University

• University of Sunderland

If there are any readers outside of the UK that are interested in the Academic Exchange Program, the following international universities are partnered with Yummy Jobs for this program:

• NHTV University of Applied Sciences Breda, The Netherlands

• Fontys Academy, Tilburg, The Netherlands

• St Clair College, Canada

Part of this eligibility shapes the visa that you will obtain, if successful at recruitment, before flying on a magic carpet to the Walt Disney World Resort. Participants will be in the United States on a J-1 student visa further enhancing that the purpose for travelling to the US is fully academic. The visa does mean that you may be contracted a minimum of 30/32 hours per week and a maximum of 36 hours per week, with the exception of weeks that include a US national holiday.

Program Costs

The final part of this post that I’m going to be talking about is how much I actually invested in doing the Disney Academic Exchange Program.

While doing my own research for the Disney Academic Exchange Program, I found that the main costs involved with the program were mainly to do with the actual program/application process, e.g. acceptance fees, visa applications fees, course tuition fees etc., if that makes any sense whatsoever.

But soon after completing those transactions, I realised that there was going to be a lot more that I had to invest in for equipping myself to live abroad in the United States for 12 months… Metaphorically speaking, it’s like building a house – you need solid foundations to be able to build on top of.

Here's a list of the costs that I had for participating in my Disney Academic Exchange Program:

*Please keep in mind that all costs listed in this post are what I paid for my program and are accurate as of September 2020. Overtime, these will increase with inflation. This section is only for providing estimates at how much you might need to save for investing in the program. If you’re serious about doing the Academic Exchange Program, I would highly suggest looking at the Yummy Jobs website and relevant external links for more up to date information about costs, in relation to your program.*

Yummy Jobs costs

o $375.00 (non-refundable) acceptance fee

o £90.00 Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Background Check – previous DBS checks not valid for this program

o $160.00 US Embassy Appointment fee

o $220.00 US SEVIS Fee

o Medical insurance costs vary – I personally got coverage outside of the Yummy Jobs recommendation so I could travel around the United States and still be covered

o Additional charges for applying for new passport, if applicable

CMU course costs:

o Initial $400 payment towards CMU tuition fee – this is deducted from total amount

o 6-month tuition: $2005.00 (accurate for the 2019 program arrivals)

o 12-month tuition: $4010.00 (accurate for the 2019 program arrivals)

Flights & Accommodation:

o Variable depending on the time you book the flights, which airline you’ll travel with, and whether you’re booking a two one-way tickets or a return ticket and just adjust the flying dates accordingly with your program

o £600 - £800 for flights

o Variable depending on the time you book your accommodation and the company you booked your stay with

• Side note: arrange additional costs for a taxi ride from the airport, if not utilising the Disney Magical Express service from Orlando International Airport to a Walt Disney World Resort hotel

o Taxi costs to whichever housing complex you have been allocated

Ancillary items that build the foundations of the house, metaphorically speaking:

o Appropriate luggage

o Business casual clothes

o Casual wear

o Black ‘work style’ shoes

o First aid kit

o Anything else ‘essential’ that you might need during the program

• Another side note: take into account how much you would money you would want to exchange at a bureau prior to leaving for the United States because wages won’t start coming in until the second (sometimes third) week of the program

I hope you all found this Disney Academic Exchange Program information post super informative and intriguing! With so little information out there on the Academic Exchange Program specifically, I do hope this post has helped you out if you are considering applying for the program - you too could be graduating with a mouseter's degree 🎓.

I will be publishing more posts similar to this one with more insights into the program, so be sure follow my social media accounts to not miss any advice posts!

Thank you so much for reading and have a magical day!

-Hannah

DISCLAIMER: this blog is my personal experience on the Disney Academic Exchange Program (DAEP) 2019-2020 and may not reflect everyone’s experience. Other programs and future participants on the DAEP may have slight adjustments to their programs that may not be featured in any of my blog posts. That being said, if you do leave any questions, I will try to answer them as best as I possibly can 😊