MCC students seek paid internships at Disney World

By By Georgia E. Frye / staff writer
Octber 14, 2004
Ray Brown spent most of 2003 working as a cashier at Walt Disney World and he enjoyed is so much he hopes to take a semester off from school to do it again next year.
Brown, 21, is a sophomore in the University Transfer Program at Meridian Community College. He plans to transfer to the University of Southern Mississippi to complete his degree in secondary education.
He was one of a handful of MCC students who participated in the Walt Disney World College Program in Orlando, Fla., where he worked mostly in customer service. He is now a member of the Disney Alumni Club.
Students accepted in the program will leave for Florida in January. Some will return in May and some will return in August.
The resort provides paid internships for college students to live and work at Disney World while taking classes that transfer as college credit.
Monica Kindley, senior recruiter for Walt Disney World, said the internship program offers students experience in learning, earning and living on their own.
Kindley travels across colleges in Mississippi and Louisiana recruiting students she believe have "Disney potential."
The cost of the internship for students includes a $60 assessment fee, and the cost of travel to and from Florida. Students will find out in a few weeks if they have an internship.
Kindley also said alumni of the program can apply for advanced internships that include more upper-level positions. She said she is a four-year alumna of the program, and she is still in touch with her roommates.