Pended to Death

I am so frustrated with the Facebook group. I realize that I do not have all the answers, and I also realize that I just don't care as much as most people in that group, but I am so. Fucking. Done. Hearing about "pended" statuses and what it means. And yes, I know that I have already posted a thing about people getting a "pending a final decision" but whatever. This is my blog that no one reads and I can say WHATEVER I WANT.

Here's the thing on "pending" statuses. They do mean something. Yes, they DO mean something. There are people in the Facebook group right now saying that people "never" go from interview to accepted without being pended. That is 100% false. In fact, most people who get accepted do not get pended. Do you want to know why? Because they were instantly identified as someone who would be a good cast member. And that's not saying that people who are "pended" or NLIC'd would be bad cast members, but Disney just thinks that they are not what they are looking for at that time.

People are pended are usually good, but Disney thinks their might be someone better. And that is a hard pill to swallow. People say that "pending" means that you are in no different position than you were before you got your "pending a final decision" email, but you are! It means that you might not be exactly what they are looking for! They think there might be someone else out there that is better, but there might not so they are just going to wait before giving you a yes or a no. That's what it means! It's like applying to college, some people get accepted, some people get flat out rejected, and some people get waitlisted for a few months before they decide that they could use someone like you or you're just not going to cut it. And that's what I want people to realize.

And its a harsh reality and that is why people don't want to come right out and say it to each other, but it's the fucking truth as far as I see it. There could be someone better than you and Disney wants to wait it out to see if they find that person, and if they don't, you're good enough. 

And yes, I am a bitch. But I'm a bitch with conviction.

The Mystery of Recruiting

I think it is important to realize that your chances of getting accepted is not impacted by how many times you applied. I see people talking in the Facebook group about how they feel like "first time applicants" never get accepted or that since it is their third (or fourth, or fifth) time applying, they are sure that Disney is going to extend them an offer this time. And here is the cold, hard truth. Disney does not care. Disney does not care if you are applying for the first time, they do not care if you have done three programs already. They don't care. It all matters on how well you interview.

I got accepted the first time I applied, ever. And because of that, it left me with this terrible perception that it's "easy" to get accepted, but on my program I learned that I was wrong. Totally wrong. My friend Blond Luke (not Luke from the previous posts) did not pass his Web-Based Interview the first time he applied (which I thought literally no one failed). My roommate Macie, who is the biggest Disney fan I have ever met, had gotten denied from the program twice and my other roommate Sarah had been denied FOUR TIMES before getting accepted. But Kateland and I were accepted on our first tries out. So was Erin. Erin was an alum when we roomed together and she was 2/2 for on applying/getting accepted. 

But I worked with full/part timers who were former CPs and they would tell me how they had done one CP and then were REJECTED from their second attempt at applying. It all comes down to the interview. But I had worked with other people who had done multiple CPs before going full/part time. One woman I worked with had done three programs and another had done FOUR (which I find really fucking dumb but who am I to talk?). And I understand that people just try to justify what they do not understand. There is hardly any information as to how or why Disney Recruiters determine if someone would be a good fit for the college program. You could scour Google for hours and not find anything that is rooted in solid facts, just second hand information and wild speculation. 

So people try to find their own reasons. Alumni are getting "pended" to give newbies a fighting shot. First time applicants are getting NLIC'd to help give positions to people who have been turned down a couple of times. Baby elephants are given a high priority because baby elephants are cuter than human college students. Whatever. But that's not the case. That's not how it works. I am an alumni and I have not been pended. My sister is a first time applicant and she has made it a week out from her interview without getting pended or NLIC'd. I got accepted on my first time applying, and I applied on a whim. There is no reason, and that is part of the reason why applying for the college program is so terrifying. There is no reason and you have no idea how to help yourself.

Pended or Panicked?

My biggest issue with the application process for the college program is the Facebook Group. I know that Disney has no control over the Facebook group because it exists on it's own as a separate entity. People in the Facebook group are stupid, everyone is. Even me. Being in the Facebook group is a great way to get yourself nervous and anxious unnecessarily. But I am in the group because it also gives me hours of entertainment. It did while trying to get into my first program and it does even more now that I know what to expect personally. But it is also annoying because I feel like a lot of people in there are to psych out others with their anecdotes and analysis of situations that they know nothing about. 

Last night everyone who had a phone interview yesterday got a "Thank You for Interviewing" email. I got one, my sister got one, everyone got one. Now there are a lot of people in the Facebook group that are claiming that they got an email saying they were pended. I cannot figure out if they got the same email that my sister and I got, which for the record is not a "pending a final decision" email which is usually what is associated with a "pended" status, or if they actually got pended. I am not saying it's impossible. There are people who have gone "NLIC" today after their interviews yesterday. Screenshots included. 

But then I thought to myself, "Oh maybe you got pended, dummy, and you were just so confident in your phone interview that you were too dense to realize it." So I consulted my email. I went and re-read the email multiple times, read my sister's email myself, and then I scrolled all the way through my email, way back to the heady days of 2013 to see what email I got following my phone interview for that program. And you know what? It was worded exactly the same way as this one, except the dates are changed. And I know for a fact that I was not pended for my first program. Not once is the phrase "pending a final decision" or anything like that was mentioned in all of my emails from Disney.

So the question is, did people actually get pended or are they panicked? No one has posted their "pended" emails in the group and I don't want to be that person who's like PLS POST YOUR EMAIL. I'S GOTS TAH KNOW. I feel like I already participate in the Facebook group enough trying to squelch the stupidity and blatantly incorrect rumors that fly through that group. 

And yes, I know that I sound like a know-it-all and a bitch, but that's how I get sometimes. I mostly am doing this fact checking mission on my sister's behalf. Despite the fact that I told her not to join the group until after she was accepted, she went and joined yesterday and it makes her so nervous. And I know that it what the group does to a lot of people. I don't think that's fair. So I have taken it upon myself to make it a better place.

Friendly update: It appears that people have actually received "pending final decision" emails. I feel bad for them, but not too bad because I think I lack the sympathy/empathy chemicals in my Disney brain.