Great People. Long Hours. Low Pay. Never a Dull Day.
Pros
Great people are working for Kaplan--young, bright, energetic, hardworking, dedicated. There is a lot of autonomy at the center level, so it's a good place to learn decision making, balancing customer wants with company wants, etc. At the entry level, you will probably have more responsibility than people in other entry level jobs, and the scope of responsibility can expand very quickly. Very little chance of getting fired. Sense that you are helping people reach goals they have set for themselves can be very rewarding. Good benefits package. Opportunities for advancement, IF you make it through an entry level job, and company exists nationwide. For-profit education appears to be recession-proof (for now.) Innovation is important and recognized as key component to continuing success as a company.
Cons
The hours will absolutely kill you if you work in a busy center, unless you drink the Kool Aid early and don't look back. Because test preparation is often cyclical and tied to specific test dates, there are times of year when a seven day work week is de rigueur, and I have had many weeks where I put in forty hours by Wednesday. Hours can be somewhat flexible, but that's hardly relevant when you never get time off, even on weekends. This can last for months with little to no relief, as Kaplan is always understaffed. Burnout is common and open positions take months to fill because the pay is really not competitive with similar jobs. Very few people working in the home office have ever worked in the field and have little to no experience working with customers or understanding their needs or wants. Major initiatives are launched with no field testing or input. Kaplan does everything IT related inhouse, which is a disaster, and employees spend a lot of time fighting the technical systems that are supposed to help them do their jobs.
