Case Studies
- Christopher Loudon
- Christopher More
- Heather Price
- Julia Baum
- Dayna Guay
- Daniel Booth
- Emma Louise Flood
- Helen Baker
- Lorin Adams
- Laura Hannah
- Umair Iqbal
- Kurt Anthony
- Rachel Perry
Christopher Loudon
The Cultural Representative Program is a year like no other, packed full of opportunity. This program at the Walt Disney World Resort brings international participants to the USA to offer guests an authentic and immersive cultural experience. In all roles, providing a cultural exchange with guests is the key component of the program, but you will do this whilst being assigned to a specific role within your work location. For me, this was as a Food and Beverage Host at Epcot’s United Kingdom pavilion in the World Showcase.
In Food and Beverage the work is fun, fast paced and highly interactive. The variety of job roles you get to learn and fulfil is fantastic. From greeting guests as the restaurant’s host, to working as a table server, there is always an exciting challenge waiting for you.
My favourite thing about my role as a Cast Member was simply being a part of the guest vacation experience. I loved talking to guests about Walt Disney World and sharing information to help enrich their time at the resort. It was incredibly rewarding to be able to make a difference, and humbling to see how my own personal service had helped make magic for my guests.
One amazing aspect of being a Cast Member at the Walt Disney World Resort is getting to access the parks whenever you like! The time you spend having fun really helps you to learn the resort inside out, which is invaluable when it comes to answering guest's questions. Take full advantage of this amazing perk and use your free time to experience the parks and resort!
As a program participant there are plenty of activities available for you to get involved in. From the many social events offered by Disney Housing that will enrich your social life, to the workshops that will teach you new skills and help improve existing ones, there are so many components which make up the program experience and it's really up to you to take advantage of them!
Overall I can't recommend this program enough. It really is a very unique opportunity which allows you to grow personally and professionally, and make some amazing life-long friends and memories along the way! The guest service skills you will take away with you are invaluable, and will open up many doors of opportunity in the future.
Throughout the application process the Yummy Jobs team are accessible, approachable and supportive and make your arrival in Orlando an easy one! I felt extremely confident that as long as I followed their carefully provided guidance and instructions then everything would run without a hitch, and it did!
Personally I really valued the individual time and attention I received from the team. You can tell how much they really care about you as a person, and considering how many thousands of people they deal with, the effort they make to get to know you personally is incredibly impressive.
If I could give any participant on this program advice then it would be to never take the experience for granted, because although a year sounds like a long time, it really will fly by. What you get out of the program really does depend on how much of yourself you give to it. Always push yourself outside of your comfort zone and take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way, because you never know where it might lead you.
Never forget that being given the chance to work at the world's number one vacation destination is a great honour, and for me to have been able to participate in is program twice is quite simply a privilege. Everything that I have been able to achieve with the Walt Disney Company to date I owe to the support and commitment I received from the Yummy Jobs team in helping me get to the Walt Disney World Resort.
If you are thinking about applying for this program, then don't hesitate. It's an opportunity not to be missed and will most certainly become one to cherish forever. This experience will definitely give you itchy feet and open your eyes to a world of opportunity! So be prepared to keep wondering: where can Yummy Jobs take me next?
Good luck!
