Pros
The leadership will definitely look out for you and you get a bunch of benefits. Healthcare, free TAP pass, uniform, and it will look good on a resume. This is a very rewarding experience and you are making a genuine difference for our country. You will meet a number of like minded individuals, who are all well educated. You get two vacations during your service year, Thanksgiving, and Winter. You may also request a forbearance on student loans and at the end of your service you receive a 5500 dollar scholarship.
Cons
The amount of pay you receive almost necessitates that you have a family that will back you. You are on food stamps the entire time, you work for less than 5 dollars an hour and if you have love ones you will rarely ever see them. City year requires a lot from a person and the low level of pay makes it almost not worth it. It is a very dangerous job for someone like me who doesn't have anywhere to go back to after the service year is over. I am currently half way through my year and I am so burdened with stress simply because I need to pay rent after service is over and I don't have another job lined up. There are a lot of requirements, including the stifling culture, and the low amount of resources available for you to complete your job. I also feel out of the loop a lot and am expected to do things on the fly most of the time. You are doing a job with no resources, and you must push yourself into the classrooms in ways that the teacher may not want you to. It is a very difficult job.