Caroline Coplen was not sure what type of career she wanted when she enrolled in the University’s College of Agriculture in 2006. Eleven years later she now works a dream job with Disney, something she would not have been able to do if she had gone to another school.
Coplen graduated from the University in 2011 and now works as a costume buyer at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Coplen grew up in New Orleans and attended the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, developing her background in theatre. She came from a family of University graduates and followed her older sister to campus. Unsure of what career she wanted to pursue, she chose the College of Agriculture, believing it to be the most in touch with her interests.
Coplen was able to gain some experience as a costume buyer for Disney before she even finished school. She spent six months interning as a costume buyer. The costumes Coplen deals with are not for the characters who take pictures with children at breakfast but instead are for cast members such as the hotel bellhops at the Tower of Terror.
Coplen’s team provides costumes for all of Walt Disney World, as well as Disneyland Park, local hotels, Disney cruises and more. She said she would not have this job today if not for her internship, which she was able to get through a University faculty member. She also interned in Colonial Williamsburg, studied abroad in England and visited China with students and faculty while a student. She said taking advantage of these kinds of opportunities is important for current students.
“The best thing you can do is put yourself out there. Get to know your faculty because they can help you find the things you are most passionate about,” Coplen said. “Things like doing internships and [studying] abroad are once in a lifetime opportunities that, once you leave college, you don’t have the luxury of experimenting with things you like to do.”
Coplen especially encouraged students who are unsure of what kind of career they want to have as adults to try new things and use the resources provided for college students to learn more about potential jobs.
“The curiosity of learning new things is going to help you. It might not help you find out what you want to do, but it will help you find out what you don’t want to do,” Coplen said. “Buying costumes for Disney is something I never even thought of as a possibility, but doing that internship really opened my eyes to a lot of different ways to apply my degree.”