Nitz Enjoying College Life at “The Most Magical Place on Earth”

Growing up, Julia Nitz ’27 and her family frequently visited “The Most Magical Place on Earth”, Disney World. As Disney Vacation Club members, they would make the trip to Orlando, Fla., once or twice a year, usually around the holidays.

“I’m a Disney kid at heart,” Nitz said.

Now as a third-year media and communication studies student at Ursinus College, Nitz is getting to live out a childhood dream this fall as a part of the Disney College Program.

The program is an internship lasting four to six months, during which college students work as front-line workers at one of Walt Disney World Resort’s parks. Students from across the world live on-site, take classes, and earn college credits while working for Disney.

Nitz initially figured out about the program while on one of her family trips to Florida when she noticed workers’ nametags had their colleges and universities and not their hometowns.

“I remember asking one of the cast members why it said their college and she was so nice and explained the Disney College Program to me,” Nitz said.

Nitz discussed the idea of participating in the program with her first-year advisor Professor of Physics Lew Riley and one of her student mentors, Aidan Nadell ’25. Nadell had previously participated in the Hershey College Program, which is a similar program to the one Disney offers. After talking with both Reily and Nadell, Nitz thought it was worth a shot.

“Once the application rolled around, I sort of applied on a whim,” Nitz said. “I honestly thought I wasn’t going to get in, but when I did, I knew this wasn’t an opportunity that I could pass up.”

Nitz currently works as a merchandise cast member at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on Hollywood Boulevard. She is responsible for sales at two of the stores in that area of the park, as well as working at the mobility station where the park rents out strollers, wheelchairs, and electric vehicles. Nitz started the program on Aug. 12 and will return on Jan. 2 before beginning the spring semester back at Ursinus.

For Nitz, the Disney program is a dream come true and a culmination of the love she and her family have for Disney. Her favorite part of it all is making people smile and maintaining Disney World’s tagline of being “The Most Magical Place on Earth”.

“As cast members, we make the magic, and having those magical moments with the guests is my favorite part,” Nitz said.