What is a Foreign Policy Professional? I’m using the phrase as someone who works to create and affect foreign policy. I know, there are a lot of journalists, academics, and, yes, even bloggers who deal in foreign affairs and are very professional. There’s a difference in working for a government and working for something else though. Here’s a quote from a man who has worked extensively in foreign affairs from both sides, Henry Kissinger (from his book Diplomacy) to make my point.
“Intellectuals analyze the operations of international systems; statesmen build
them. And there is a vast difference between the perspective of an analyst and
that of a statesman. The analyst can choose which problem he wishes to study,
whereas the statesman’s problems are imposed on him. The analyst can allot
whatever time is necessary to come to a clear conclusion; the overwhelming
challenge to the statesman is the pressure of time. The analyst runs no risk. If
his conclusions prove wrong, he can write another treatise. The statesman is
permitted only one guess; his mistakes are irretrievable. The analyst has
available to him all the facts; he will be judged on his intellectual power. The
statesman must act on assessments that cannot be proved at the time that his
making them; he will be judged by history on the basis of how wisely he managed
the inevitable change and, above all, by how well he preserves the peace.”
So this month we’ll be looking at how to get a job in the foreign affairs community. I plan to look extensively at the Foreign Service first (diplomats are the first thing that spring into most people’s minds when this topic comes up), and will look into other options later in the month. I apologize to those who do not live in the U.S.; this month is only for citizens of the hegemon. I’m also suspending my three times a week rule in order to bring content daily, so stay tuned!
This post is part of my unofficial Guide to the Foreign Service Exam.
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“Measured” and not “measures” sorry.
Believe it or not, I flirted with the idea of joining the Canadian foreign services. I have a friend who recently joined the ranks. Heaven knows how many times it was suggested to me. Meh.
On the intellectual side, I find that blogging can help out diplomacy skills. Many times you have to deal with people outside your culture. Your responses have to be thoughtful (and sometimes measures) lest something gets lost in translation (which can lead to inadvertent insult.) It can be a nuanced endeavour.
I stumbled upon your blog while trying to prepare for my own FSO exam.. in Singapore. Couldn’t find prep material for the Singapore foreign ministry, so decided to search and found yours. I think it’ll turn out very helpful. Thanks for the tips!
I am taking the Oral Assessment in June, in Chicago. I really appreciate your site.
Preparing for the FSOT in S. Korea while teaching English. This information is invaluable.
Thank You.
Hi, like you, my new year resolution is to take FSO exam. I really appreciate the valuable information that you put out here. A BIG thank you.
-Dew
Anybody here taking the exam in late Feb/early March? I was wondering if all the sections on the written exam are equally weighed, or do some sections, ie, English Expression, count for more?
all sections count the same
Thanks. How long is the exam and are there any breaks?
It lasts a few hours and there are no breaks.
Thanks for sharing in this great site. I am a Landscape Architect, in my late 30s and grew up overseas and am taking the FSO Exam in early March. Do you think it would be helpful to join a study group? Currently I am reading the Economist and other daily/weekly publications. Would you recommend reading Henry Kissinger’s ‘Diplomacy’? I hear the fail rate is very high - 80%! Do you think that is true?
Thanks so much!!
What?!? 80% failure rate? Is there anyone on here who recently took the exam, passed, and can give us some pointers as to what is best to do to prepare for it? Plus, can anyone tell me what pay grade incentives are given for graduate degrees, proficiency in a foreign language, etc.? Any advice greatly appreciated!
I took the exam and got notice earlier this week that I passed. It was easy. To give you an idea of how easy it is, if you did well in high school it would be relatively easy for you. Just focus on memorizing the Constitution and some basic world geography.
I stumbled upon this website a few days ago, and while searching through it, I tried to find the answer to my one main question. While registering for the FSOT on the ACT website, I’ve found I’m unable to change any information besides my name, address, phone, and e-mail address. Why am I not able to add any new professional experience or languages? If anyone could help me with this, I’d be much obliged.
I am preparing myself to sit for FSO exam, I am so nervous for many reason, I am second languge learner, a lot of information need to cover, I need help from the people who already took the exam and passed it or the people they have an idea about it, I need to know which topic specifcally need to cover to pass it. I apprecaite if you email me with all the information.
thanks
Good luck to everyone taking the test. I’ll be taking it in October and have found several study guides available. Cliffs Test Prep is an extensive guide with sample questions and complete explanations of the answers. There is also a study guide available at the state department careers website; just google foreign service officer. I’m going to start with those two and attend the study prep session in DC this August. I hope that’s enough to get by.
Question: does knowing two foreign languages look better than knowing just one foreign language? I already speak German but most Germans speak English so I am considering picking up Spanish this year as additional prep.
Any opinions???
THANKS
I joined the military about two years ago with the hope of traveling around the world. The military in fact did take me half way around the world to Iraq. I hated coming here in the fashion I did. I do not get to interact with the people, no cultural experience, and I don’t get to just explore…for good reason. It is a war zone. Nonetheless, I do not get to do what I love. I just recently found out about FSO’s…it caught my attention right off the bat. Right now I am studying for this exam and I am finishing my degree. Will it hurt if I have not finished my degree?
Q,
The Foreign Service Officer Test is designed to be equally accessible to Americans of many levels of education. Your formal educational experience is not a factor that would preclude you from a position.
I would take the practice test available at state.gov, and see how comfortable you feel. Best of luck to you.
Hi Anonymous,
I’ve encountered the same problems with my application, so I contacted FSOT. I was informed that once you have submitted your application, you can no longer amend it until it expires–which is a year since you submitted it. Hope this helps!
Correction: I contacted ACT.
Also, Anon., do note that these new experiences and languages should not drastically affect your candidacy. You’ll have a chance to mention them in the SI portion of the Oral Exam, if you really feel they’re relevant to the work you would be doing.
A FS candidate is allowed to test in one foreign language, for a gain of up to .4 points on their OA score. A candidate may only accept points for one language, however, so even if you speak French, German, and Portugese fluently, you’ll need to pick one of those languages, and accept the .17 bonus it confers. Aside from that, listing languages wouldn’t give you much of a head start.