This post is going to be completely dedicated to Disney
College Program Housing information, so bear with me. As I said in a post
before Disney does have designated housing for College Program participants. There
are three apartment complexes to choose from. Vista Way, Chatham Square, and
Patterson Court. While I ended up living in Patterson I spent many a night in
each apartment complex with friends so I feel fairly educated on the pros and
cons of each place, so here we go.
Vista Way:
Vista Way is the original College Program apartments so that obviously
comes with its advantages and disadvantages. While it is honorable to have
lived in the first, these apartments are also extremely dated. They are also
the cheapest of the apartments. While this may be appealing to some, it also
attracts a very large party crowd. Vista Way is really just a place people use
to lay there head. It is not somewhere you would go if you wanted to create a
home for yourself while you were down there. If you wanted a quiet place to
escape to after work, this place is not for you. That being said Vista Way is
the closest to the strip. It is within walking distance of a Chick Fil A, Wendy’s,
Santa Fe, and a Walgreens. Keeping with the positives here, it is also the home
of the main College Program offices and the bus stop at Vista Way is where the
bus drivers use to switch so you are rarely left waiting like you can be at the
other stops. But keep in mind, even when these conveniences the place is nicknamed
“Vista Lay” for its notoriety in the party scene.
Chatham Square:
Chatham Square is the second most expensive complex (however is differs from
Patterson by just a few dollars) and it certainly the prettiest in regards to
landscaping. There is a bus stop directly in front of the complex and within
walking distance of a large field people use for sports. With Chatham you will
deal with Housing Events. Housing Events are put on by the College Program
people and they are a way of uniting all the students in various activities
throughout your program. You go to wherever the event is located, tents are set
up, you get free food, there are meet and greet characters, and usually some
sort of fun theme. While these might be close they also create quite an inconvenience
the day of and they can be loud. These are also the most coveted of the Housing
so they run out of Chatham quickly (this happened to me and we had lined up at
4:00 in the morning.)
Patterson Court:
Home sweet home. I personally loved living in Patterson. It is the most
expensive of the Housing Complexes, but keep in mind your rent is taken
directly from your paycheck so it’s easy to get used to not missing that money.
It has a pretty pool and it relatively small so it creates easy entrances and
exits. It’s within walking distance of a Publix and most of the Disney Classes
are held in the classrooms on Patterson’s complex. The only strong disadvantage
was not having a bus stop, but the Chatham stop is roughly an 8 minute walk.
There
is something absolutely exhilarating about packing up your life into your
car and driving it to someplace completely different to start a brand
new adventure. On August 14th, 2012 I squeezed everything I could possibly fit
inside my trusty travelling sidekick (including my mother) and we headed for
Disney. From my hometown it's about a 12
hour car ride, but the anticipation stretched it into what felt like 4 days.
My
mom and I stayed in the All
Star Sports hotel the night before check ins which commenced on the 15th. Now let me explain check ins. When you are
accepted to the College Program (or maybe during the application process, I
can't quite remember) you select a start date. This is simply you deciding
which date between a few choices provided works best for you and the time you
wish to spend there. I had decided to do
the program that Fall semester so most of the start dates were in August. The
start date refers to the time you are set to arrive and check in for you
program.
In true Disney fashion, this process isn't mundane and structured like
being assigned to your dorm. If you are participating in the College Program
there is designated housing. Disney
provides three different apartment complexes for students- Vista Way, Chatham
Square, and Patterson Court. (I will designate my next post purely to Housing)
Because housing is first come first serve, people begin lining up for check ins
at 3:00 a.m. Check ins are held Vista Way, the original apartments of the
College Program. You line up at the gate
along with the other participants and wait until 8:00 when the actual
registration process can begin.
The registration process consists of mainly handing
in personal information the Disney Company would need to employ you. You
also receive your photo identification that allows you within the apartment
complex and gives you access to the bussing system provided for the college
students. When you are finished registering you line up outside to load a bus
that takes you to the Casting Castle. The Casting Castle is where you will receive
your role (or job) and the location you will be working. When you arrive as a
College Program student you literally know nothing. You are completely unaware
of where you will be living, what your job will be, and sometimes who you will
be living with. For me, this was exciting, but for some people it was very
unsettling. When we arrived at the Casting Castle we were lined up down a long
hallway (Alice in Wonderland themed, might I add) and we were each handed small
slips of paper and told to wait. When everyone had received there’s we were
allowed to open them all together and the hallway erupted into chatter. Some
were giddy with excitement, some stared at their slips of paper in horror.
Because on these sheets of papers were our new lives. And I looked down to see “Elise
Robinson-Animal Kingdom-Food and Beverage.”
