Company: Apple
Date: 2016-08-04
Overall rating: 4/5
Employment status: current
Experience level: Confirmed

Not For Everyone
Pros: Great 401k, Stock, and Health Benefits. Pay depends on role, gender, and location, but, for retail, is pretty adequate. You get to learn the basics of computing and troubleshooting which can lead to better jobs down the road. You have access to amazing resources for assistance and learning. The company has really listened to us and has given us more freedom with our scheduling preferences. Tuition reimbursement, discounts, etc. Managers and Leaders can vary but can be pretty amazing both personally and professionally (depending on your store and location).

Unless you're late, do not show up for work, show up drunk (not hungover), steal, or have unprofessional relations with supervisors or subordinates, you won't get fired ;)

Overall, it's the best company in the world and Apple has given me so much with asking very little in return. However...
Cons: If you are driven, focused, determined, goal-oriented, have high standards, and contribute real solutions to real problems... you will not fit in. 

If you're over 30, do not do drugs or drink excessively, do not play Smash Brothers or Pokemon Go, are comfortable with sticking to policies, you're comfortable with delivering bad news to customers, and you get easily annoyed at your borderline teenybopper coworkers... you will not fit in.

You will be told to "smile more".

Your coworkers will call out sick or leave early for being too "lit" from the previous day/night. 

Your teammates will create "science projects" because they cannot diagnose or resolve an issue during an appointment and you will have to start from scratch because they have no idea how to document an issue. Ultimately, you'll have to call and explain to a customer that they simply need to reboot their device more often.

Apple Corporate and Apple Retail are two completely different beasts and it really shows. The Apple Store never used to be a retail job but over the past 5 years or so that is now the culture. You will have days where you actually really prefer to help customers than having to listen to your intellectually devoid coworkers who do not adhere to company standards or even common sense. The "training" that is given has really deteriorated and has created too many instances of customers returning with their issues not resolved or new ones created.

Unless you really want to stick in retail this should be a temporary job where you can learn a trade and then move on to something else.