Overall soviets are very versatile, with more empathis on anti-infantry than anti-armor. Their moment of glory is therefore in the early and mid game, whereas they tend to be at a disadvantage against late game heavy armor.
Conscripts are more of a utility unit that a frontline fighter. They get loads of doctrinal benefits that can improve them in various roles, but even the "vanilla" version has a lot of potential. Like with all other soviet units, they come in teams of six, which significantly reduce the risk of getting wiped by lucky explosions. They can also build arguably the best green cover in the whole game, so make sure to use this to build protection for your support weapons and at strategic points.
Finally they have the cheap and effective "oorah" ability, granting them unsurpassed flanking potential especially against MGs.
So to sum up about conscripts. never leave home without them, but don't overly rely on them