Student who's trying to get professional office experience
Pros
->Flexible schedule allowing one to work based off of their personal lives. Nice to have that aspect while in school. ->Prior experience with years of using POS systems and being within customer service, allowed for a fairly easy transition. ->Manager is kind and understanding. Grateful to be given the opportunity. Really helps with gaining that office experience alongside my internship. ->Some coworkers are nice and will help you when needed. ->Office is not too far away which is convenient. Lucky to stay in one place. ->Get your own name tag. It is a nice touch. It made me feel as if I was a true professional which gave me a confidence boost.
Cons
->Some coworkers can be cranky. Constantly feel judged and shamed. They say fake it till you make it. If you hate your job so much that it shows when you work all the time, why be here doing taxes? ->Working with customers. Need I say more. Run don't walk the opposite way unless you like physically dealing with people on a constant basis. ->Besides online training, prior hands on in office training is next to none. Expect to be thrown in a week before and/or the week of the first peak. ->Seasonal position which means that the job only lasts from December/January to April. Hours fluctuate so they are not consistent meaning financial stability is not guaranteed. Personally feel that it is true when they say that this is something that you do for "fun". As it allows one to make some extra income alongside a regular full-time job. ->Low pay for what we have to deal with and how we get treated by customers. Little to no benefits if part-time as well. ->Overwhelming busy from appointments, walk ins, phone calls, the system, and from the disorganization. I cannot stress this enough. I've been in worse positions. In hospitality you're dealing with 3x more people year round and everyday unlike in the tax world. So the busy time is a breeze! This however, is on another level. ->Limited room to advance in CSP/receptionist position. Only way would be to a tax preparer. Possibly corporate.