Updated Phone Screen Questions

Hello again!

One of the most popular posts on this blog has been Screening Interview Questions and Tips. I can't believe that I wrote that post 2 and a half years ago! How time flies!

While I don't do it as much as I used to, I still hang around the PI Facebook groups answering questions here and there. Therefore, since it has been so long, I have combed through the last few seasons of groups to put together another list of Phone Screen/Interview Questions. Many of these may be the same as my previous article, but I figured I would update the list to show what has been asked within the last year or so.

Focusing on the phone screen, you will mostly be asked about yourself, your career goals, and general questions about your experience. Listed below are some of the other potential questions that may be asked. Most phone screens last between 10 and 20 minutes, so you will likely only encounter a handful of the questions listed below.

While panel interview or interviews with the individual hiring manager may be more in depth, more internship interviews do not get too detailed. While you may encounter more role specific questions, many of the questions below are just as likely to come up in a second interview as in a phone screen.

Note: These were all taken from different Professional Internship Facebook groups and are all real questions that were asked applicants. 

General Questions
-Specific items listed on your resume
-Current work/school tasks
-Past experience
-Education background
-Talk about your struggles and accomplishments
-What positions have you most enjoyed and why?
-Describe one trait about yourself
-Do you have experience with professional email correspondence?

-Why do you want this role?
-What are your career goals?
-How will this internship help your future goals?
-What do you hope to get out of this internship?
-What are some of your hobbies?
-What you want the hiring managers to know about you?
-Which of your work experiences most aligns with the position?
-Why do you think you are the best candidate for the position?

Disney Specific Questions
-Why Disney? (this is a very common question!)
-Why do you want to come back to Disney (if you previously worked for the company)
-Are you a current cast member?
-What do you bring to our company?
-Do you have any tattoos and piercings? (they need to determine if you can follow Disney Look)
-Can you provide your own housing and transportation (there is limited company sponsored housing for non-MIs)
-What's your favorite Disney character?
-If you did a CP, what did you like and what didn't you like about your experience?


Situational
-Explain a time when you overcame a difficult situation
-Describe a time when I went above and beyond for a customer
-How do you deal with disagreements between co-workers?
-Tell about a time when you went above and beyond for a guest
-Describe a time you worked with a difficult/negative coworker

-Tell me about a difficult guest situation.
-Describe a time that you didn't agree with your leadership
-Tell a magical story and a not so magical one.
-Tell about a story that you turned a bad day into a good day
-How do you deal with conflict resolution with your peers, your superior and with guests?

-What has been your greatest mistake?
-Strength and weakness (may also be referred to as places you excelled or felt overwhelmed in a specific position)
-Talk about a challenge encountered in a project you have worked on
-How do you work on a team?
-Explain a situation where you made a mistake/received correction and how you reacted?

-Tell me about a time you had to lead a group during a team project.
-Tell me about your most encompassing project you have completed in school and what did it involve
-Tell me about a time you were positively recognized at school work/and a time you needed coaching
-What is your favorite/least favorite part of your current job?
-What is something that bothers you at work/in a coworker?

-Describe your communication style.
-Tell me three things about you that would be important for this role that we haven't discussed.
-How do you deal with working in a busy, fast-paced environment?
-How do you balance tasks when it’s busy?

-What is your main strength and what is your main weakness?

Leadership Questions (mostly for Management Internships)
-Previous leadership experience
-Management responsibilities
-How do you manage teams
-How do you motivate teams
-Qualities of a good leader
-Why are you interested in a leadership position?
-Why retail? (as a specific area for an MI)
-If I was interested in the 6 months or 12 months program or both
-How do you go about working with a different line of business
-What are the hardest/most enjoyable aspects of being a leader?
-What are some of the challenges of being a leader?
-How long have you had leadership experience? What does it involve?


VIP Tour Specific
-Why VIP Tours?
-What can you provide?
-Level Of safety
-Working with others/independently
-Any coachings or record card issues
-How a Disney professional internship with help your future

WDI Set Decoration:
- Ask for experience with props (i.e. design, handling, installation) and the importance of props and how that applies to the role
- Ask to explain familiarity and experience with hand tools
- Rate skill for Photoshop, Illustrator, and SketchUp
- Ask what you are most proud of in your portfolio and your role in that work

Other Role Questions
Events: What are your experience in events? 

      -Describe an event that you executed from start to finish
Technical roles: What programs are you familiar with and rate your proficiency (e.g. Illustrator, Excel, SAS, PhotoShop, programming experience, etc)

      -Walk me through your experience with Excel.



I know that this is an extensive list, but I didn't want to cut anything out as I know some people like to be as prepared as absolutely possible. I hope that lists like this and other information in my blog is still helpful and relevant to everyone out there applying for PIs that may come across this blog!

Update to Intern Park Passes

One of the greatest perks of being an intern with Disney is the free park admission. Can you imagine being able to enjoy the magic whenever you want!?!?! Even after two years with the Company I have to say it doesn't get old. While, I might not go quite as often as I did during my first internship because I wanted to make the most of my unknown amount of time here, I still go quite often. I love being able to just go for a few hours in the evening after the sun goes down in the summer, grab a bit to eat during Food and Wine at EPCOT, enjoy all of the holiday festivities, and more whenever I want. 

As a cast member, you even get to bring guests in to enjoy with you! While I am very fortunate to be statused in a full time position now so my guest passes work differently, interns (College or Professional ones) still get the same unlimited self admission and get some guest passes as well. I made a post last year about the old way that intern guest passes used to work (Old Intern Park Pass Post) but at the beginning of this calendar year Disney shook up the way intern passes work so I figured it was worth doing an update for those who might be itching to know what to expect.

The self admission main entrance pass still works the same, but instead of getting 3x 6 use passes at the beginning of your internship, interns and seasonal cast members now accrue their guest passes based on hours worked.

Need to actually type how the new passes work. I believe that once you have worked 150 hours you will receive three 1 person park hopper tickets. These could all be used on the same day or different days, it's up to you! Then after you work another 150 hours you get three more 1 person park hoppers. Finally you will recieve 3 more after the 450th hour worked. I believe at that point you will stop accruing so during your internship you will likely get nine 1 person park hoppers. 

If you were to let in the max of 3 people each time you used the old version then technically you got more under the old way (max 18 across 6 days) and could do so from the day you got your main enterence pass was nice. However, the felxibility of when you can use the new passes is nice too! Why did this change happen? Perhaps Disney was trying to avoid people starting a CP/PI using the perks and then quitting and/or trading away shifts as a CP but maintaining their own entrance to the parks. Who knows the exact reason this changed but I haven't heard many complaints about the new system besides when it was first announced, so I assume it has been going well. But let's be honest: who can complain about getting in free to Disney and having the opportunity to intern at such a great company!!!!

Guest Relations Numbers

One of the most popular Alumni Only Professional Internships is the Guest Relations Internship. For Alumni Only you have to have done a CP or PI to be eligible to apply (or currently doing one). Guest relations cast members are very highly regarded in the parks and is perhaps the most coveted front line position. Since this is an internship with such high interest and acceptance should be rolling out in a matter of weeks/days, I decided to look up how many current Guest Relations PIs there are. Note that this is one of those internships that is very likely to vary the numbers by semester. For example, I have heard that while My Disney Experience with the new FP+ system  and magic bands rolled out a lot more interns were accepted than normal to help with what was anticipated to be an extra crazy time in the parks. 

Right now there are currently a total of 32 Guest Relations Professional Interns and here is how they break down by park:
15 Magic Kingdom
7 EPCOT
2 Animal Kingdom
4 Hollywood Studios
4 Disney Springs

It seems to change each semester when Guest Relations PIs find out which park they are in. I remember a semester when the recruiter used to tell you when they were giving the offer. There have also been semesters where your future leaders will reach out a few weeks after your acceptance (similar to how MIs find their placement). I think there have been a few different scenarios as well so who knows how this semester/future semesters will play out. I guess we will all just have to wait a little longer to see! Good luck to all who have applied!

Here is a link if you want to see a similar post about MIs: Management Internship Numbers

Management Internship Panel Interview Questions

Management Internship Panel Interviews are just around the corner! Congrats to everyone who has scheduled their interview, whether it be in person or via video interview.

While I did not apply for Management Internships, I made some friends that were Management Interns while I was doing my professional internship. A big reason I made this blog was to help others through their Professional Internship journey since there is not always a lot of information out there, and there is even less information about Management Internships. Even though I do not really have personal experience with the MI process, I put my googling skills to the test and found a few new blogs with panel questions to combine with other MI blogs I had read in the past and the experiences my friends shared with me.

For your panel interview are scheduled for a 30 minute interview. I have heard/read that many people who interview in person have much shorter interviews that last more around 15-20 minutes. Some have said that it is because the 30 minute slot is the same time they have to do a video interview and it takes longer to set up the video software, etc and they want to interviews to be fair between people interviewing for the position.

You will likely be interviewing with anywhere from 2-5 current area leaders in the areas you applied to. Now if you are extremely amazing/lucky you may still be in consideration for multiple management internships. In the past, sometimes you have one interview for any of the MIs you are still in consideration for at the same time(eg. interviewing with a retail manager and lodging manager at the same time), but I think most people have separate interviews for each MI they are still in consideration for.

Now for the part you have been waiting for...the questions! The interviewers will want to gain an idea of your leadership style and your experience leading others. Expect a lot situational and behavioral questions. Also, if you are applying for a position like Theme Park Operations (TPO) or Lodging, they will probably ask you if you have a preference in areas. Eg. If you applied for TPO do you prefer Custodial, Attractions, or Main Entrance.

Working with a Team

Describe a time when you dealt with a difficult co-worker.

Tell me about a time you had team members disagree with you.

What is your experience working as apart of a diverse team?

What would you do if you had a conflict between cast members?

Describe a time when you motivated a team to complete a task.

Tell us about a time you dealt with a difficult co-worker.

What do you do to recognize your team?

Basic Questions

Why are you pursuing a management internship?

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

What's your favorite Disney character?

Tell me your biggest weakness.

How do you deal with conflict?

Leadership Questions

What is your leadership style?

What leadership qualities have you gained from your past roles?

What are the qualities of a good leader?

What's the difference between a leader and a manager.

Tell me about a time you had a disagreement with a manager about a policy.

Name a time you led a project in a leadership role.

How do you organize yourself before a big project?

Guest Situations

Tell us about a time when you had to deal with two difficult guest situations at one time.

Describe a time when you provided excellent customer service.

Give an example of great guest service.

What would you do if you had multiple angry guests at once and someone wanting to talk to you on the phone?

Other Past Experience Questions

If we asked people you have worked with to describe you what would you say?

When have you had to turn a negative situation into a positive one?

Tell me about a time that you had a difficult situation.

Tell me about a time you were apart of a project from beginning to end.

Tell me about a time that you led a team in good business practices.

How have you promoted safety in past roles.

Tell us about a time that you reached a business goal.

Remember, everyone I know says that there are only going to be around 5-6 questions, because you'd be surprised how fast 15-30 minutes goes by. I think if you can answer these questions and the ones I have complied for the phone screening post (Screening Interview Questions and Tips) then you will be prepared to be in the right mindset for any question you might encounter, whether it is one that I have included on my blog or not. Note: there are overlapping questions on this post and the screening interview post. This is because I am just compiling questions others have been asked at different stages and sometimes Disney interviewers will ask similar questions.

Now remember, you should be proud of yourself for making it this far for such a competitive internship! So take a deep breath and let your personality and experience shine! Now go prepare for your interview, get relaxed beforehand, and rock that interview!

Note: The following blog has one of the best posts on the topic of MI panel interviews, even though they were not ultimately offered the position: MI Panel Interview #1. Most of the other blogs that I used for this post are located in the page "Other PI Blogs" which I really recommend checking out if you haven't already!

Park Passes for Interns

One of the coolest perks of working for Disney is free entry into the parks! Cast members can get into the park almost every day of the year using their Main Entrance Pass (also called their Main Gate). There are a few set day that cast are blocked out, such as 4th of July, New Years, 24 Hour Days, etc.  If the park reaches a certain capacity cast can also be phased out. This usually particularly happens during the holidays. Typically only Magic Kingdom gets blocked out for cast, but occasionally other parks will be hit, too. For example, in October EPCOT is blocked on the day of the Wine and Dine Half Marathon.

The exciting thing is, that not only do you get yourself in for free, you get a certain number of guest passes! That means you can get friends or family in for free, too! When you are an intern (whether it is on a college program, a professional internship, or management internship) you will get 6 guest passes. These 6 passes allow you to get 3 people in at a time. If you only bring 2 people into the park, the 3rd pass expires. Unlike your maingate pass that lets you into the park, your guest pass has a lot more restricted dates. Usually block out dates are posted for 3 months at a time and can be found on the following website: Block Out Dates

Another cool perk, is your Main Gate works at any Disney park in the world, besides Tokyo Disneyland. That means if you are really lucky during your internship you could try and make a long weekend to visit Disneyland! I have even heard that if you use your guest passes there they do not count against your guest pass usage at Disney World! If you go there I have heard you have to go to guest relations to get your passes using your company ID. 

Note: This information is for interns at Walt Disney World. Disneyland is a little different. I heard that interns there do not get guest passes.

Screening Interview Questions and Tips

After applying, people wait for the moment they get the email for their screening interview. This is a big step, but I think people psych themselves out more than they need to. The following is what the Disney Professional Intern recruiters have to say about the first round interviews from the Official Disney Interns Blog 

"First-round interviews with the internship recruiters help weed out those who aren’t qualified. Though they may ask more general questions, you should know exactly what position you’re applying for and steer the conversation in the direction. Help them help you."

So while the screening interview is important, it is largely to help the recruiters get an idea of what positions you are most qualified for so they can pass on truly qualified applicants onto the hiring managers desk. From the experience I have gathered, it is most common to have one screening interview for all of the positions you have applied for. However, it isn't unheard of to have recruiters call back to ask additional questions or even schedule additional interviews (especially if you apply to additional positions after your interview). 

This interview is going to be more to see if your a fit with the company, if you are qualified for the positions you applied for, and is likely to last an average of 20 minutes. However don't worry if yours goes longer or shorter than that. Sometimes recruiters are short on time if they get behind. Sometimes they don't need as many questions to see to an idea of your personality/experience. Sometimes if they have time they would love to talk with you about their Disney experience, etc. 

My recommendations are to be calm, pull up your resume and job descriptions on your computer or print them out so you can refer to them during the interview, listen to a Disney song beforehand, smile, and be yourself. You worked hard to even apply for these positions so be proud of your accomplishments and the positions you've held!

This interview asks typical interview questions so if you Google "possible interview questions" those are likely to be possibilities of things you might be asked. However, I did put in some leg work and scoured some blogs and compiled a list of questions that others have said they have been asked in the past (I barely remember the questions from interview. lol) There is no way you will be asked all of these questions, but if you can answer these, you'll be golden for your interview!

Beginning Questions

-Why do you want to work for Disney?

-What are your career goals?

-What would you like to get out of a professional internship?

-List your top 3 positions that you've applied to. (especially asked for Alumni Only)

Situational Questions

-Tell me about a team project you have worked on and how you accomplished your goals.

-Tell me about a time where you were working on a project and something didn’t go right, how did you react?

-Tell about a time when you had too much to do and not enough time to do it all. How did you handle it?

-Tell me about a time when you had a disagreement with a co-worker, manager, or guest.

-How would you handle a disruptive guest?

-Talk about a time you were in a difficult situation.
-Tell me about a time you had a conflict with a guest, how did you manage the situation?

Leadership Questions (mostly for MIs)

-Tell me about any leadership positions you have held.

-How do you define leadership and what qualities are needed in a leader?

-What do you look for in a leader?

-What is the most challenging part of being a leader?

-Tell me about a project you were a leader and how you handled it?

Other Experience/Personality Questions

-What do you believe you will be doing in this role?

-Tell me about the positions you have held and how have they prepared you?

-How would a past manager describe you in 3 words?

-Who is your favorite Disney character and why?

-How do you you stay organized?

-Name an accomplishment you are most proud of.

-What do you think your biggest strengths are?

-What computer programs are you familiar with?

-Do you prefer to work independently or on a team?

Ending Questions

-Why are you more suited for the job than other applicants?

-Is there anything else you'd like us to know about you, or are there any questions you'd like to ask us?

I'd like to give a quick shout out to these blogs for having a excellent posts on the screening interview and are where I got the majority of the questions found on this list. So check them out if you want to read more about their specific experiences before your interview day! Good luck!

http://wdwcollegeprogram2011.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html

http://professionalmousekeeter.blogspot.com/2013/02/my-phone-interview-for-alumni-only-and.html

https://design2disney.wordpress.com/2014/09/20/typical-interview-questions-for-those-pursuing-a-professional-internship-with-disney/

http://kristyndoesdisney.blogspot.com/2014/03/second-interview-complete.html

http://todisneyandbeyond.blogspot.com/2014_02_01_archive.html

http://sharonmooresmith.blogspot.com/2012/02/disney-professional-internships-step-3.html

PI Timeline Part 2

This timeline is a bit more confusing than the first since I am making it so much later. Additionally, I never got official emails/notifications about not being in consideration any longer about a few of the internships. I also applied to A LOT more internships than the first time around. I applied to internships and got NLICs at across a wide timeline so that makes it confusing. Ultimately, it is just a big mess, but I eventually got an offer and that's what counts, right?

Spring 2015 Professional Internships

5 Sept 14- Applied for Management Internship-Animal, Science, Environment Operation

12 Sept 14- Email request to schedule a phone screening interview

18 Sept 14- Applied for Consumer Insight Market Research, Workforce Management Science, Learning Analytics & Evaluation, Forecasting and Planning, Travel Ops Planning, Analysis, & Optimization 

1 Oct 14-  "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Workforce Management Science 

6 Oct 14- Applied for 3 Animal Programs positions (Conservation Education Instructor, Behavioral Husbandry, Education Project Specialist)

13 Oct 14- Applied for Pricing Strategy and Analytics 

16 Oct 14-"Application Complete" email from Animal Programs team

20 Oct 14- Email to set up Montage video interview for Conservation Education Instructor

29 Oct 14- Email to set up Montage video interview for Education Project Specialist

30 Oct 14- Montage video interview for Education Project Specialist

               - Montage video interview for Conservation Education Instructor

3 Nov 14- Applied for Strategic Initiative & Integration and Consumer Insight

7 Nov 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Learning Analytics & Evaluation 

12 Nov 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Management Internship-Animal, Science, Environment Operation

17 Nov 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Education Project Specialist, Behavioral Husbandry, and Conservation Education Instructor

24 Nov 14- Applied for CMR Tech Solutions, Marketing Campaign/Analytics

26 Nov 14- Animal, Science, and Environment email about NLIC/feedback

28 Nov 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Travel Ops Planning, Analysis, & Optimization 

3 Dec 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Forecasting and Planning 

4 Dec 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Management and Analytics

6 Dec 14- Applied for Travel Operations Reporting Analytics

8 Dec 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Consumer Insight Market Research

11 Dec 14- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for CMR Tech Solutions, Marketing Campaign/Analytics

2 Jan 15- Applied for Merchandise Planning Internships

14 Jan 15- Phone call to schedule a phone interview for Merchandise Planning Internships

15 Jan 15- Phone interview for Merchandise Planning Internships

               -Email from recruiter to set up follow phone call

16 Jan 15- Merchandise Planning Offer Phone Call!!! 

               -Accepted offer

               -Welcome to the Team Email

               -Emailed about being added to Housing Waitlist

19 Jan 15 -Got email about being added to Housing Waitlist

19 Jan 15 -Got email about a spot in Company Sponsored Housing

22 Jan 15- Email about Arrival/Transfer Information 

25 Jan 15- Transfer Date between internships

27 Jan 15- Start date

2 Feb 15- "Thank you for your Interest" NLIC for Travel Operations Reporting Analytics

Background Checks

The Exciting Background Check
One of the last steps before getting an offer is receiving a background check. They do not guarantee that you are going to get a job offer, but it is doubtful that you are going to get an offer without one. I have heard that some people who are currently employed by the Disney company don't always need to get one. In the past it seems like a lot fewer people received background checks and it meant that you were on the short list of consideration for at least one position. However, for the Fall 2014 cycle, A LOT more people seemed to get one on the Facebook group that received offers. In the past it seemed like people generally got them shortly before they got the email to schedule their "brief phone call." This time around a lot of people (especially those who were Alumni only or had screening interviews) got them shortly after their screening interviews.

My Background Check When I got my background check I was on a cruise. I actually received a bunch of movement this week which was stressful. I had internet at our port in Key West since we were in the US and I got on Starbucks WiFi in Cozumel. I had set up an automatic reply just in case, but I filled out the background check email on my iPhone outside Starbucks. I didn't receive any other correspondence for a while so I was worried it didn't go through since you do not get a confirmation it was received after you submit it and if you go back to the email it opens a blank form. Don't worry! 

What it Looks Like When you get the email it asks you to fill out a form titled "Application DWS Pro Intern FL v2" and basically asks if you have applied to work for Disney before, if you have a record or any pending charges, you consent to giving Disney your fingerprints if hired, and if you give Disney consent to do a background check.

After this email, it can be a few days, weeks, or months before more movement, so the waiting game can continue!

Screening Interview

One thing that is pretty common across Professional Internships is a screening interview. However, since I only applied to Science Positions (Animals, Science and Environment and EPCOT Agricultural Science) I did not have to undergo a screening interview. As far as I know, pretty much everyone besides people only applying to Animal Programs or Agriculture internships undergo the screening interview. I think that pretty much everyone that isn't automatically NLIC gets a screening interview.

From my understanding it is a lot like the College Program Interviews. They ask things like why are you applying to do a Professional Internship, make sure you are eligible, which are your top choices, your experience, and various other situational and position specific questions. If you are applying to Management Internships they will ask you leadership type questions, as well. Like I said, since I didn't do one of these interviews, I am not the direct source of this information, but this is what I have come across on other blogs and Facebook. I might apply for some other non-Animal Programs internships for next spring and if I do I will have to have a screening interview for that. 

The Waiting Game: No news is good news

One thing that you will quickly figure out when applying to Professional Internships is that the process involves A LOT of waiting. Some people talk about not liking to wait for College Program acceptances to come out, but PIs are MUCH WORSE. CPs are supposed to hear something back within 3 weeks of their phone interview. Many times they hear back sooner than that, and they are told if they are accepted, no longer in consideration (NLIC), or if they are pended. Those that are pended have to endure waiting, but PIs really trust your ability to be patient. 

There is a common saying on the past few cycles PI Facebook groups: No news is good news. 

This is generally pretty true. Since there are so many different Professional/Management Internships, it is really hard to predict timelines compared to the College Program Application Process. However, I am going to put this as a warning: if you have other opportunities and other people have gotten responses long ago for your position, don't hold your breath. It isn't uncommon for people to never go NLIC for some positions. I think that generally they are good about changing people over on the dashboard, but since applications go between so many departments, I think some positions get looked over. On that note, it isn't uncommon for people to be accepted after the date they say everyone will hear by, and it isn't unheard of for people to get accepted after others have for the same position or even after already going NLIC. This isn't very common, so once again, don't hold your breath, but it does happen. I think people aren't always NLIC right away after others are accepted or after going NLIC is that some people drop out after accepting the position and so they will contact people who where the other top choices.

The PI process involves a TON of waiting, so it can be helpful to join the Facebook groups to connect with others (misery loves company, right?) and to see how the positions you applied to are progressing. Just remember, no news is good news!