Post: #1

Hey guys,

I am 25 years old and I am thinking of taking the FSOT to become a Foreign Service officer. Can anyone provide any advice from the forum for people who have thought about it or know any officers/diplomats and their experiences? Any advice or guidance would be helpful.

Post: #2

Good idea! Only problem is it's very competitive.

I'm assuming you haven't taken the test yet. Sign-up for the next available test date. You can take it once a year so no problem if you fail once, or even 6 times for that matter as one FSO I know did.

I've taken the test twice, and do well on the academic or 'job knowledge portion' but dont do well on the experience portion. That's because when I took it I was early 20's with virtually no experience. Remember, you're going up against people in their 30's and 40's who have lived abroad, worked abroad, in the military, Peace Corps etc.

I interned with State at an embassy abroad and am in the IR field. PM me if you want to chat more!

Post: #3

Oh shieeet. Can we get an IR (majors, in the "industry) group going?

I took one FSOT for fun, I can't get a clearance so my dreams are shattered.

Post: #4

Being an FSO was the reason I went to college. Then, as Seth_Rose mentioned, I realized that most FSOs are already well established professionals in other fields that transition to a career in the State Department later on. My current worry is that the longer I decide to live and work in Canada, the less and less desirable of an applicant I would be due to concerns of 'foreign preference' since I'm a dual national.

I figure I'll just try to do other work that interests me then try to join the State Department once I'm a more established professional and feel confident. Apparently being a competent manager is an important skill they want in an applicant.

Post: #5

Don't know too much; just some second-hand knowledge from people who are FSOs but it doesn't seem like a great gig honestly given the moving requirements. It might SOUND exciting to move around the world but the gov't is going to be sending you where THEY need you for years at a time. This could be somewhere in Eastern Europe; could be a third world shit hole. Its like the military in many respects. Being in a shit location for years is soul-draining if you have never dealt with it.

I have also heard rumblings that there is a lot of PC-ness in the hiring process (beyond the typical AA/PC HR non-sense) and a 22 year female minority gets significant points over a more accomplished white male. Given that Hillary Clinton was the former SoS, wouldn't surprise me one bit if that turned out to be the case. As a result, the quality of people that you work with will reflect that.

Again, just second hand rumblings.

Post: #6

How NOT to take the FSOT:

Post: #7

(11-14-2015 10:05 PM)The Black Knight Wrote:  Don't know too much; just some second-hand knowledge from people who are FSOs but it doesn't seem like a great gig honestly given the moving requirements. It might SOUND exciting to move around the world but the gov't is going to be sending you where THEY need you for years at a time. This could be somewhere in Eastern Europe; could be a third world shit hole. Its like the military in many respects. Being in a shit location for years is soul-draining if you have never dealt with it.

I have also heard rumblings that there is a lot of PC-ness in the hiring process (beyond the typical AA/PC HR non-sense) and a 22 year female minority gets significant points over a more accomplished white male. Given that Hillary Clinton was the former SoS, wouldn't surprise me one bit if that turned out to be the case. As a result, the quality of people that you work with will reflect that.

Again, just second hand rumblings.

There is truth to this. Also one should realize your job as an FSO is to promote the policies and view of the president, not your own views or the views of any other government entity. I think the starting salary is still like $35,000.

Post: #8

I'm also very interested in becoming a FSO. But since it seems like a long shot and I have to decide what to go to college for soon, what other options are there in the field of International Relations if I choose to go that route (which I'm leaning toward)?

I'm american but I spent a year in Norway to learn norwegian so that I could go to university there for free, and my current plan is to study Russian at the university of oslo for my bachelors degree. This is partially because my grades weren't enough to get in for International Studies at Oslo but I could still do it at some other less prestigious school and then do a masters in IR in some other country. Does anyone in the know have any advice for me?

Post: #9

I have taken and passed the FSOT twice, and I interned at an embassy abroad. The real challenge of the process comes after the written test, where you submit your personal narratives and hope for a shot at the oral exam. I speak a few languages and have a really solid education but have never continued the process to that level. It's my eventual dream to be a great diplomat but the timing is not right for me just yet.

The FSOs I have met are all extremely smart, very nuanced in that they all had very interesting backgrounds, and just a little weird. For example, one of the diplomats I met had just finished assignment in Afghanistan and spent part of his 20s traveling with Central Asian nomads. If your eventual goal is to be a diplomat then you should enrich yourself with as many international and multicultural experiences as time and opportunity allow.

My personal plan is to develop experience in the field of business/finance and then transition to the Economic track once I have some cash and awareness of how business works. It doesn't seem wise to join State without real industry experience, for three reasons. First, your local counterparts will respect you more if you have firsthand experience with what they do day-to-day. Second, your State counterparts will think of you in the context of your skill set. Third, internal politics are a part of the job, and you learn how to play that game by necessity in the corporate world.

Post: #10

I've been thinking about taking the FSOT at some point but haven't signed up for it yet.

I'm kind of curious, what other opportunities do people know of in the IR field beyond State, the UN, etc...?

Post: #11

(11-15-2015 03:21 PM)polymath Wrote:  The FSOs I have met are all extremely smart, very nuanced in that they all had very interesting backgrounds, and just a little weird. For example, one of the diplomats I met had just finished assignment in Afghanistan and spent part of his 20s traveling with Central Asian nomads. If your eventual goal is to be a diplomat then you should enrich yourself with as many international and multicultural experiences as time and opportunity allow.

I second everything that has been said here.

I did an internship at an embassy, too, but more so did it for the experience than out of a desire to go into diplomacy later on. If you're keen about becoming a FSO I'd highly recommend such a stint. Not only because it will help you better understand what the job is all about, but also because it is a very nice parachute to have for later on should you decide to enter the private sector-- there's still a decent amount of prestige attached to having work experience from an embassy/the MFA of a country.

The MFA of my country recruits its future diplomats through a process that is way different from that of State, but all good diplomats have some universal traits. As polymath already mentioned, cultural understanding and interpersonal skills especially hold true.

I worked under an ambassador who almost always sealed the deal, so to say. I'd argue that close to always it was because of his people skills-- he could literally befriend anybody. Talk about any topic. In five different languages. Fluently. As a bonus, he was redpill to the bone.

From the diplomats I've met, those of his kind are the best ones. He got appointments in the MFA on the very same day our embassy requested them, developed a personal friendship with the FM of the country, got wasted with members of parliament..you name it. All of this he managed to do because of his people skills, which of course came on top of a wealth of knowledge. But my point is that people skills are the most important ones for a diplomat, because you are basically a salesman for your government.

So as polymath wrote, go travel, spend time in places that are nothing like home, learn languages that are not Spanish/French/German and, most importantly, get to know how people from different cultures think and how they behave. Bang a lot of foreign chicks (you'd be surprised at how frequent hookups are within the diplomatic corps in a country). This is the best preparation that you could get.

(11-15-2015 09:21 PM)Osiris Wrote:  I'm kind of curious, what other opportunities do people know of in the IR field beyond State, the UN, etc...?

You have a load of think tanks, a billion of different NGOs, private intelligence agencies (Stratfor etc), and many, many international organizations that aren't part of the UN umbrella. Check out sites like Devex to get a better idea.

Post: #12

(11-15-2015 10:14 PM)pipercub Wrote:  Bang a lot of foreign chicks (you'd be surprised at how frequent hookups are within the diplomatic corps in a country). This is the best preparation that you could get.

I'm not interested in being a foreign service officer, but I'll take your advice and start preparing for foreign service regardless.

It's my duty to my country.

Post: #13

I figured I had to give an otherwise dull post some RVF flavor. A little patriotism never hurts as you say.

Post: #14

Does anyone else have job sites that they can recommend to me and other guys which will be moving into the IR field. I am talking about private bodies and governmental ones. Preferably European and not just American based. If you are European based I highly recommend trying for the EU. Even if you do not agree with the idea and construction of the EU. It can still provide you with a perfect opportunity and experience, to move on to bigger things.

Post: #15

(11-23-2015 06:38 PM)Constitution45 Wrote:  Does anyone else have job sites that they can recommend to me and other guys which will be moving into the IR field. I am talking about private bodies and governmental ones. Preferably European and not just American based. If you are European based I highly recommend trying for the EU. Even if you do not agree with the idea and construction of the EU. It can still provide you with a perfect opportunity and experience, to move on to bigger things.

http://www.internationaljobs.org/

and

http://www.devnetjobs.org/

Post: #16

You're much better off starting a business that enables you to live anywhere you want, both from a financial standpoint and from a travel/foreign experience standpoint. FSO pay is quite poor, and you're not the one choosing where you go.

What people don't realize is working for the government overseas is actually quite an insular experience, you'll end of spending the majority of your time with colleagues and even beyond that your social circle tends to be of like minds. It's just the nature of the job.

If you want to do it because you like the idea of the work you'll be doing, then go for it. If you're doing it to really experience another culture then I'd suggest choosing something else, like I mentioned above.

Post: #17

A blogging couple known as Two Crabs has a good blog post regarding how "Mr. Crab" passed the FSOT, his work beforehand and his adventures after being hired as an FSO.

Probably the best post can be found here or there's another here.

They also link to other FSO blogs, and a ton of resources regarding taking the FSOT, books, movies, etc.. detailing life in the American foreign service.