?'s about working next year

Hey everyone. Its been a few years since I have posted. I visited Cedar Point once back in 2006 and fell in love with it. I am currently 19 and attend the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Go Huskers! Anyways I have been really considering working at Cedar Point next summer and was just wondering a few things like how do you get on one of the coaster teams? What is the average pay, and can you still make a good income after the dorm and food and other living expenses. I'd really appreciate any input from my fellow CP fans out there.
Thanks alot :)

Keeping in mind I've never worked for Cedar Fair (but have some friends that work at Knotts), but from everything I've seen in my 3+ years frequenting this site, similarly to many other entertainment-based professions (as someone who lives in LA) the number one thing is availability!

As for pay, from what I've read it's pretty much near minimum wage levels, BUT you can (if not required to) work well over 40 hours, though, I'm not sure that's all OT pay since "seasonal" personnel have exemptions.

The dorm and living expenses all sounded a little pricey in the sense that you're certainly not living and eating for free, but it wasn't too much out of line from your typical living expenses anyway, working at CP or not. Bottom line, similarly to interning at a studio or production company, it's more about the experience and less about the money. If you want to make money, bartend or serve at the Crossroads Mall Cheesecake Factory in Omaha and you'll pull $5K in cash over the summer!

I worked at cedar point this summer on raptor. I found the pay to be not so good(minmum wage) what makes up for the pay is the hours. i would get about 75 hours a week. I found that while a coaster was nice I actually enjoyed working at planet snoopy just as much as raptor. those were probly my two favorite places to work. Its not what ride you work its the crew you work with. dont be upset if you dont get a coaster its not a bad thing at all.

The housing is crazy cheap, at least compared to most college towns. Its like 30 a week or like 120 a month. Most people I knew worked about 40 hours a week. There were times (beginning and end of season) that I worked more but usually we were pretty overstaffed and 40 normal.

What is the minimum wage? I got 10 an hour this summer working for a local construction company and worked about 30-40 hours a week. I guess I want to do it for the experience, but I also want to make some decent income so I don't have to worry about a job over a school year.

Minimum wage is currently $7.30. How many hours you get largely depends on your department and staffing levels. Last summer some people in merchandise were getting 3 days off a week, while some people in rides or lifeguarding could work 70+ hours a week. So your results can definitely vary.

lladnar said:
Most people I knew worked about 40 hours a week.

I never worked below 60 hours a week.

I guess you two didn't know each other then.

When you apply for the job, it will ask you for your first, second, and third choice of job assignments. I was a lifeguard in soak city this past summer, and my pay was 7.30/hour, however I cannot be certain that it is the same for everyone. I averaged about 60-70 hours a week, and housing is dirt cheap. They do charge for housing according to how much your paycheck is worth, though. If you are good at saving, then you are very capable of making a good amount of money. Food is relatively expensive if you continuously buy at work, but if you pack your own lunches it is much more reasonable.

I highly recommend working at CP. Although it is a love-hate thing, this was one of the best summers I've ever had. You make friendships that will last a lifetime, and your crew becomes like a second family. There is a lot of partying and drama that takes place, but as long as you like to have fun, and are good at avoiding ridiculous high school-like drama, you'll love it. Plus, you have to be ready to work a lot!

^That very accurately describes my summer as well. And once again I was at raptor. I personally was never involved in any highschool drama stuff but it does happen a lot at cedar point.

what do you mean housing goes by how much your pay check is worth? if you get more hours they take more out for housing?

Assuming they don't change rates this year, housing can vary between $16-32 a week depending on what building you're in. If you make below $x for a certain week (I don't know what the cutoff amount is) they will prorate how much they take out of your check. Most people work enough hours that they never see that happen. I took 5 days straight off in 07, and it still only knocked a few bucks off my housing cost.

Being a server though you will either have to pay cp for housing because your checks will be 0 or you wont pay the whole amount for housing because you dont work a lot of hours

Do ride ops usually get a decent amount of hours?

It depends on the staffing. In 08 I worked on Millennium, I was getting about 65 to 79 hours. This past year I was the ATL of maXair and had about 60 hours a week. There was more staff in 09. Sometimes we would have to have more than 1 day a week off.

Like mentioned above, it all depends WHO you work with...not WHERE. This past year at maXair, we were a very close crew. After work we would all go out and get something to eat and talk about the day or whatever was on our mind. Applying to CP was probably one of the best decisions in my life. I made money and friends. One thing a few people don't mention is the people interaction. If you don't have 'people skills' then I suggest applying. This job will force you to interact with outher people from arround the world.

If any of you are even thinking of applying it is defiantly the best decision. You are pretty much forced to interact with your crew and guests. Trust us you can make it the best summer of your life. Or summers!

We wouldnt keep coming back if it wasnt fun....

Just letting everyone know that I found out today from my hiring manager that housing rates are indeed going up by $4.

Well that's disappointing, but I guess they had to Chels. I would recommend if you get hired to join the groups on Facebook made for ride crews and park operations. It's a great way to get to know everyone. And like David said, that's important.