Folks–

The State Department has opened its application season for internships — domestic and foreign — for Summer 2014.  As I’ve said before, an internship at an embassy abroad is the best way to see if you really do want to work as an FSO.  You will have 10 weeks serving in a various capacities in a foreign mission, frequently in a developing country.

When I was DCM in Uganda, we had excellent interns during my three years there, including some who went on to join the Foreign Service, the Civil Service working in the State Department as well as overseas development NGOs.

In Kampala, we treated the interns as if they were officers, well, because they were officers.  No joke.  We were typically shorthanded over the summer — transfer season and R&R trips — so we relied the interns to fill the vacant positions.  Most served in the political and economic sections, but we did have some in the consular, public diplomacy and management sections.  

We also put the interns up in embassy housing which was open awaiting new officers or those gone for the summer.  This helped to defray the costs for the interns.

Why defray the costs? Because these are unpaid internships for undergraduate and graduate students.  These days, there’s a lot of controversy surrounding unpaid internships, likening them to slavery, but if you’re serious about the Foreign Service or Civil Service you reall should take part in this program, which the Department correctly points out is the only way for an undergraduate or graduate student to work in a U.S. Mission abroad.

About half of those accepted serve in Washington, DC or other cities around the country and the other 50% serve at embassies or consulates overseas.

All travel expenses, e.g., airfare, visa, passport, etc., are borne by the intern.

There are a bunch of requirements — at least a 2.5 GPA, for instance — and you can find instructions here.

You must complete the online application on the USAJOBS website and in addition to your biographical and education data complete the following:

• Select up to two (2) bureaus or posts abroad
• Specify a country or countries
• Include a well-written Statement of Interest
• Provide all required documents

NOTE: A couple of words of advice

— if you want to go overseas as an intern, pick a larger post abroad so you can be sure they’ll have empty slots to fill (Not all missions host interns every year).  In Africa, for instance, I’d recommend picking Ghana or Senegal over Togo, Kenya or Uganda over Burundi.

— if you speak or are studying a foreign language, put it on your application.  If you have an interest in a country or region, put it on your application and weave it into your statement of interest.  (On writing, remember no boring, stuffy academic writing in your statement, go for active voice, power verbs, clarity and succinctness.)

— FINALLY AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, file for your security clearance ASAP.  too many students get tripped up here.  You need a security clearance and that process takes months.  You need to be able to handle documents and information classified at the SECRET and CONFIDENTIAL levels.

Good luck, and as always let me know if you have any questions in the comment box.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The statistics are pretty bleak.  Amb. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the then-director general of the Foreign Service, told a Savannah audience in April the following startling fact:

• in 2012, out of 22,000 applicants took the Foreign Service Exam, the State Department hired only 425 FSOs.

What does this mean?  Well, your chances of actually getting hired by the Foreign Service are pretty slim.  In short, you have a 1.9% chance of passing the exams and being offered a job.  Ouch.  It also means that it’s time for Plan B for most applicants.

Plan B is not something to be ashamed of…  We’ve all fallen back on Plan B in our lives.  I applied to Georgetown for undergraduate studies.  I didn’t get in (didn’t even get wait-listed!) so I decided to go to a school where I was accepted, the University of Chicago.  It was my Plan B school.

I want the features offered by a $2,500 a month 1-BR apartment in Washington, DC. I couldn’t cut the price so a I fell back on my Plan B, a $1,500 a month studio apartment in Washington, DC.  We fall back on our Plan B’s multiple times every day.

Of course, career choices are a big thing, a huge thing, really.  So falling back on your Plan B is the stuff of angst, pain and depression.  Okay, you can pick yourself up now.  And get on with your life.

But think about what you wanted from your Foreign Service career:

• living overseas
• an interesting and satisfying job
• helping American citizens or people in general
• advocating policy positions
• a well-paying job with good benefits
• the prestige of being a U.S. diplomat
  

Well, I would argue that except for the last tic you can — right now — apply for an international job that will give you all of the same lifestyle and benefits that you would earn as an FSO.

Think about it.  Yes, there is  a job out there for you that will get you out of the States, push you into a new culture, have you work with smart and funny and bright folks, and make decent, sometimes more money then you would in the ForeignHow Service.

What’s the catch?  Well, you’ve got to find these jobs and get off your butt and apply for these jobs.  And seriously there are thousands of such jobs around the world.

And I promise to help you find them.  This is for Katie helping me to get off my butt and write it.

 

Yes and No.  Technically, you can switch “cones” (FS Speak for career tracks) during your Foreign Service career.  The Foreign Service use to call the delightful process “Conal Rectification.”  Bureaucratese at it’s best…

Anyway, in responding to a question from a reader earlier in the week, I realized that my earlier post wasn’t complete.  This fellow felt so trapped by the process he was delaying his registration for the June Foreign Service Exam while he debated which career track was right for him (Political, Economic or Public Diplomacy).

I agree with him that it’s a big decision.  In my day, you got your written scores broken down by career track (except for PD, which was still under the US Information Agency), and as I recall the higher your score the more likely you’d get a job offer.  You still had to pass the oral exam, medical tests and security clearance, but the cone choice was farther along in the process.  Unlike today, it gave you a rational reason to pick a cone.

Now, of course, you’re selecting a career track as part of the first step of registering for the FSOT.  Some, perhaps many, applicants don’t have a clue about the differences between cones.  And why should you?  You could be lucky and have a friend or family member who’s been an FSO or you’ve reached out to form a network of FSO mentors.  The correspondent fit the latter category, and I guess I became a member of his network.

Anyway, I’ve included my response below.  I hope it helps:

 

It’s a tough decision.  The Department made a bad choice in forcing the career track decision before you actually take the FSOT.  How is a newcomer going to know what type of work they want to do.

Anyway, here’s my advice:

1) Reach out to the nearest diplomat-in-residence to ask your questions.   Also, if you know any other active duty or retired FSOs, post the questions to them. The more FSOs you talk the better you will understand the career tracks and the better your decision will be;

 2) Read all of the advice on Careers.State.Gov.  It really is an excellent website.

 3) Don’t count on being able to switch career tracks after you join in the Foreign Service, especially moving into the Political career track.  I came in as a consular officer because I like managing people and helping Americans.  My background was as a journalist and editor and the consular “cone” began to chafe during my second tour in Zambia, where I was head of the consular section.  Fortunately I had a compassionate DCM who took pity on me and began to throw parts of econ and political portfolios to me, including health (HIV/AIDS) and environmental issues like wildlife poaching and that sort of thing.  I still liked consular work but I wanted more writing and analysis.

After an okay tour in DC, I bid on a Pol/Econ slot in Mali, one of the toughest places to serve in the Foreign Service.  I say that because I thought it wasn’t going to be high on anyone’s bid list.  Indeed, there was only one other bidder on the position.  She didn’t want to go to Mali — but she was a political officer. Normally, the assignments panel would automatically place her in the position.  Luckily, the head of junior assignments was (is) a great guy.  He saw how much I wanted the job, had the background and the French.  He went pleaded my case before the panel.  The assignment went to a “shoot out” (sorry for the FS lingo; you’ll learn it quickly when you join.) between me and the political officer.  Again, the junior assignments guy was very persuasive, and I squeaked by.  Remember, however, that I had to fight like crazy to serve in one of the least glamorous posts in the world.

There is a formal process for switching cones, which does work between Consular and Management cones, and even with the more sought after tracks, like PD and Econ.  However, it’s virtually impossible to switch into the Political career track.  At least in my 25 years, I never heard about someone successfully shifting career tracks into Political.

The Political career track remains the Holy Grail of the Foreign Service. Most people aspiring to join the Foreign Service want to serve as a political officer.  In my 25 years in the Service, I never heard of someone successfully switching into the Political cone.  So if you’re eager to become a political officer, put it down as your choice when you register.

The Economics and Public Diplomacy career tracks are less sought after, although PD is growing in popularity.  There is some movement between these two cones.  Likewise at entry and mid levels, there are a lot of Political/Economic jobs that Economic officers can bid on and compete with Political officers.  (Anyone wanting to switch into the Consular or Management career tracks usually has no difficulty.  It doesn’t happen that much).

Now on your specific questions:

— you should take the June test, even if you’re still not sure.  Pick a career track and sit for the exam.  I can’t tell you which one, but it’s time to make a choice.  My own career was a bit haphazard — the plus for consular is that you get promoted faster and manage a lot more people.  When I reached -02 I took a DCM job at a small African mission.  A DCM job is mixture of all of the cones, and it was a fantastic experience. Some FSOs say that the DCM job is the best in the Foreign Service.  My last year I was the chargé, basically the acting ambassador.  Next tour, I went to Uganda, and again was chargé for the last year.  By the time I retired last year, I went for 12 years without a consular post.  Everyone’s career in the Foreign Service ends up being so different.

— on the environment jobs, yes, it can and should make up a lot of what an Econ officer does, but sadly it was my experience that it was frequently overlooked in favor of micro- and macro-economic issues.  There are regional officer positions that focus entirely on environmental concerns.  Surprisingly, those jobs don’t attract a lot of bidders, probably because FSOs are concerned that such a job won’t help them get promoted.  An interested PD or Pol  (or Consular or Management) officer could have a good shot.  They are typically at the -02 or -01 levels.

If you have any other questions, please let me know.  Good luck.