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quote:Goon diplomacy is the best diplomacy. Goons truly are the best face of America 
Slaan fucked around with this message at 07:09 on Jul 14, 2011 |
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Jul 14, 2011 07:04
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| # ? May 11, 2024 15:09 |
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Someone asked me today how I planned on stopping the drought in the Horn of Africa today. "Well, I didn't have any plans, but maybe if I asked really nicely it'll rain."
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Jul 14, 2011 16:13
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1of7 posted:TCD, you are at FSI now? My IMS class is having a happy hour @ Bailey's in Ballston Common. It's Fri. 5:30-8:30 if you want join us. Hey see you have pms disabled. Drop me an email at Apetersousc At Gmail If not I'll wonder around and ask people whom I think are IMSs.
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Jul 15, 2011 04:31
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Woot, wrote my first two cables! -e- also feelin' like a boss when I see sections entitled "Supervisor approval" filled in with "applicant IS the supervisor." Leif. fucked around with this message at 13:58 on Jul 18, 2011 |
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Jul 18, 2011 11:46
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Sent off my PNQs a few days ago, now it's the waiting game again.
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Jul 18, 2011 19:06
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Passed the QEP for the consular adjudicator position... hopefully State remembers I passed the foreign language phone test earlier this year so I don't have to take it again...
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Jul 19, 2011 00:28
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Macunaima posted:Sent off my PNQs a few days ago, now it's the waiting game again. Same. I think the mystery of the QEP and the long feedback time (September??) made it more stressful than it should have been. Anyone want to take a shot at the attrition rate for this step of the process? It seems like the least understood.
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Jul 19, 2011 05:52
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It's quite significant, though statistically probably less now since more people are failing the written test first. The overall attrition rate in the process ranges from 0.5% to about 3% -- that's from signing up for the written to starting your first day at A-100. The numbers that I have heard are around 900-1000 new FSOs a year (though that number will likely go down fairly soon) out of approximately 100,000 testers each year (for the written). Since generally 20-40% of testers at the orals pass, you can probably work backwards from there. -e- those numbers are off the cuff and may be a bit wrong, but are fairly close to correct.
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Jul 19, 2011 06:43
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Diplomaticus posted:It's quite significant, though statistically probably less now since more people are failing the written test first. Just to support this: a diplomat once told me that for every person that makes it throuh, another roughly 10k applied and didn't make it. That figure matches up with yours so it seems about right.
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Jul 19, 2011 08:11
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That last 3 posts have scared the poo poo out of me. Finally time to sign up for the October FSOT. I don't care if it happens around my Master's mid-semester testing. 
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Jul 20, 2011 19:08
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Didn't study; passed the written exam on the second try. Practice writing persuasive essays to cold prompts in thirty minutes. Don't slack on the PNQs. They require a lot of thought, preparation, and notifying your references.
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Jul 21, 2011 03:19
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Diplomaticus posted:Congrats! (Hint: It's probably not going to be done by 7/26). Took them like 2 months to get my TS done, and another few weeks to complete my SCI. What is required to begin work, for FSO's?
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Jul 21, 2011 08:35
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TS. But your clearance gets completed before you ever get placed on the register to even have the clock started on your being hired.
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Jul 21, 2011 08:45
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Diplomaticus posted:TS. But your clearance gets completed before you ever get placed on the register to even have the clock started on your being hired. Care to explain? Also, anyone remember the gap between being 'invited' to the OAs and them actually taking place? Also, does the Final Review Panel disqualify OA-passers for any reason other than medical security? having turned in my PNs has meant relinquishing any power I have over this goddamn sorcery so I'm hungering for information
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Jul 21, 2011 12:38
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The Mantis posted:Care to explain? He means that your top secret clearance has to be done before you're put on the register and your 18 month clock starts ticking. In case that wasn't clear and you didn't know this, if you pass OA with a lower score, 5.3 or such, chances are you will wallow at the bottom of the register. If you aren't selected within 18 months your candidacy expires and you get to start over. Phil Moscowitz fucked around with this message at 13:06 on Jul 21, 2011 |
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Jul 21, 2011 13:00
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Hmm, been a month. Should I check up on my clearance status or just sit & wait? Leaning towards the latter, but I don't want them to think i'm disinterested.. aaa. Also, I was told from a Senior Foreign Service guy that the final panel rarely rejects anyone aside from medical issues, via a serious issue (like, if you punched a former boss), if that helps?
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Jul 21, 2011 15:19
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The Mantis posted:Care to explain? Ok, so once you pass the OAs, you go through a medical clearance, security clearance, and final suitability clearance. If any of those stages fail (barring some limited exceptions in medical) you will not be hired. You must pass all three of these before you are officially placed on the cleared candidate register, given your rank (vs. all the other candidates in your cone) and become eligible to actually be hired. Once you're on that, an 18 month time starts, after which you will expire off the register, and have to start the process over again. IIRC the gap between OA invites and tests ranges 2-4 months. My intern, for instance, is taking the October OA, and already has his invite I believe (or maybe not, but he knows the OA will be in October). Final Suitability Review *generally* doesn't disqualify people, except for behavior problems or NDA-disclosure issues. It normally only takes like 3-7 days; I was stuck in it for 2 months because some vindictive motherfucker made a false claim about me (I was offering NDA-compliant tutoring for cash on the OA. The panel asked for my lesson plans, info for all of the people I tutored, etc. Eventually I was cleared but if it had gone on any longer I probably would not have been hired due to my score being just barely good enough). Final suitability has nothing whatsoever to do with medical. That comes first, and takes all of a couple days. Skandiaavity posted:Hmm, been a month. Should I check up on my clearance status or just sit & wait? Leaning towards the latter, but I don't want them to think i'm disinterested.. aaa. Check on your clearances. Mine was done for 2 weeks and they didn't tell me. Don't bug them like daily, but if it has been 2 or 3 weeks, feel free to ask them. Disinterested doesn't matter, it really makes no difference to them, but if they were sitting on it, they might push it along a bit more.
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Jul 21, 2011 16:53
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Are there any numbers on how many Peace Corps volunteers end up in the Foreign Service?
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Jul 22, 2011 01:13
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Skan, my security took 2 months. Seems like I was told to call after 6 weeks. Probably won't hurt to go ahead, but I wouldn't call more than once a week or two (unless they tell you otherwise.)
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Jul 22, 2011 02:15
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Bellum posted:Are there any numbers on how many Peace Corps volunteers end up in the Foreign Service? At my old post, prior PC or .mil was well over half the Americans. I finally watched my first IMAX 3d movie the other day. Ohh USA how I like you.
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Jul 22, 2011 06:06
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LOL still 2 months until I report to post & they've already emailed me asking me if I want to work on a holiday to proctor the FSOT & provide IT support for it.
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Jul 23, 2011 16:25
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Thanks. I knew how often to call for secclearances, but wasn't sure if it's standard across the board. I'll wait till friday then send off an e-mail. (That would make 6 weeks)
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Jul 25, 2011 18:39
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Man getting a root canal in Africa is no less annoying than in the States, but WAY cheaper. I'm desperately trying to avoid being dentevaced my first month here. At least my doctor is good, German trained.
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Jul 26, 2011 21:19
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So today I walk into the bathroom in the Chancery, and see that the good stall is taken. poo poo. I cram myself into the tiny stall, whisper a quiet prayer to the God-Emperor, and begin the less-than-pleasant process of trying to take a dump at 9000 odd feet. It isn't pretty and it isn't fun when you aren't acclimated to the altitude yet. The guy in the good stall leaves, and in my rush to drop this log, I forget about the other guy in the other tiny stall. "Ngggh.....SKULLS FOR KHORNE!" I have succeeded in my mission, and as I'm basking in today's tiny victory, the guy from the next stall says simply "Heresy." and then leaves the bathroom (without washing his hands....gross). I don't know who he was, but I'll never forget him.
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Jul 27, 2011 07:13
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That man is a patriot through and through. (also I had to look up the word 'Chancery.' I assumed it was a fancy word for 'low altitude plane shitter.')
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Jul 27, 2011 13:58
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Turned in my QEPs a while ago and took my language test today. Had to talk about [stuff], which means I can pretty much say goodbye to a 2.
Weather Chopper 9 fucked around with this message at 22:13 on Aug 14, 2011 |
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Jul 27, 2011 15:30
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Diplomaticus posted:So today I walk into the bathroom in the Chancery, and see that the good stall is taken. poo poo. I cram myself into the tiny stall, whisper a quiet prayer to the God-Emperor, and begin the less-than-pleasant process of trying to take a dump at 9000 odd feet. It isn't pretty and it isn't fun when you aren't acclimated to the altitude yet. The guy in the good stall leaves, and in my rush to drop this log, I forget about the other guy in the other tiny stall. "Ngggh.....SKULLS FOR KHORNE!" I have succeeded in my mission, and as I'm basking in today's tiny victory, the guy from the next stall says simply "Heresy." and then leaves the bathroom (without washing his hands....gross). This whole story makes bidding on Addis sound even more amazing.
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Jul 27, 2011 17:49
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I like working for an organization where IT aren't the biggest geeks
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Jul 27, 2011 17:54
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Weather Chopper 9 posted:Turned in my QEPs a while ago and took my language test today. Had to talk about Chinese, which means I can pretty much say goodbye to a 2. I suggest you edit out a lot of what you just typed.
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Jul 27, 2011 19:27
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Ronald Spiers posted:I suggest you edit out a lot of what you just typed. Has it ever been established that language tests fall under NDA? (I'm not saying they do/don't, I'm asking).
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Jul 27, 2011 19:31
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Diplomaticus posted:Has it ever been established that language tests fall under NDA? (I'm not saying they do/don't, I'm asking). Yes. I think they even told me before I took the test. And here is a link from the forums of State: http://careers.state.gov/engage/forums/careers-state-gov/language-test-nda#idS4mwGgR09EO-SARcUIaZxw
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Jul 27, 2011 19:34
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Ronald Spiers posted:Yes. I think they even told me before I took the test. And here is a link from the forums of State: http://careers.state.gov/engage/forums/careers-state-gov/language-test-nda#idS4mwGgR09EO-SARcUIaZxw Gotcha. Then yeah, you want to edit that out.
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Jul 27, 2011 19:42
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Finally got an invite for the oral assessment in September. I like how the invite email was put in my spam folder, thanks google!
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Jul 29, 2011 02:10
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Ronald Spiers posted:Finally got an invite for the oral assessment in September. I like how the invite email was put in my spam folder, thanks google! When did you take the written exam?
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Jul 29, 2011 03:01
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Ganguro King posted:When did you take the written exam? I'll take it during the OA. I'm applying as a Consular Adjudicator specialist. I did take the written test in February but that was for FSO generalist.
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Jul 29, 2011 03:03
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OK, I've written a few cables now and they're not too bad, they go by pretty fast and clearing things is not a hassle at all (either I'm a good writer or nobody reads them because the changes generally only take a few minutes to implement). Except MemCons. (Memorandum of Conversation -- basically a summary of a conversation between us, and someone else.) Goddamn I hate these things. Even with copious notes I have a hard time getting the nuance of the conversation down effectively. Is that just me, or is that normal? I have no problem knocking out 5-10 pages on a substantive cable, but even 1 or 2 pages of a MemCon is like pulling teeth. (Literally, ask me about my root canal.)
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Jul 29, 2011 17:55
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Diplomaticus posted:OK, I've written a few cables now and they're not too bad, they go by pretty fast and clearing things is not a hassle at all (either I'm a good writer or nobody reads them because the changes generally only take a few minutes to implement).  If you're writing 5-10 page cables, you're doing it wrong. Keep almost every cable to three pages or less. Only rarely surpass that. (To give a sense, out of my last 200 or so substantive cables, only maybe 7-8 were longer than three pages.) Also, if you're writing 5-10 page cables and they're getting cleared with few changes, that probably means you're not getting the feedback you deserve -- is your supervisor I always write memcons like normal cables: organize by subject, and put the most important content first. Nobody cares what order the issues were discussed, and nobody who is willing to read the memcon has the time to look for the important parts. If you're struggling to identify the important issues, ask someone familiar with the topic to explain what our policy priorities are; if you go into a meeting and don't know this, it's a bad thing. Also, when I take notes in a meeting I write literally everything down. Then, before I start drafting, I highlight the important parts. As I write the cable, I cross out the highlighted passages as I use them. Don't know if that will help you, but it works for me. Everyone has their own way to draft, so use what works for you.
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Jul 30, 2011 20:44
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5-10 is an exaggeration; the longest ones were 5 or so.
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Jul 30, 2011 23:06
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Passed my OA last week for IMS... now worrying about how long it'll take for my employer (only been here 6 months) to fire me when they get called by the investigator for my clearance. Still, excited!
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Aug 1, 2011 03:08
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| # ? May 11, 2024 15:09 |
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Wanted to double check a couple assumptions I've made about the application process... 1) At the end of the full day of OAs you're given some feedback and will know if you're passing on to the next round. 2) After the Final Review panel you're given a number, put on a roster, and have somewhat of an idea of if/when you'll be called up (as in "yay I'm towards the top!" or "well poo poo I'd better reapply to Georgetown..") Question: I remember people fawning over single digit, single decimal scores (like 6.3?) that seemed to indicate their competitiveness in the applicant pool. Do those exist, and when do they come into play? mute posted:Passed my OA last week for IMS... now worrying about how long it'll take for my employer (only been here 6 months) to fire me when they get called by the investigator for my clearance. Sounds like a foolproof plan. Grats on passing the OAs!
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Aug 1, 2011 06:59
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