|
I hope you guys are sitting down. There's some bad news that will affect many of us.
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2016 22:31
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 28, 2024 05:15 |
|
|
AKA Pseudonym posted:I hope you guys are sitting down. There's some bad news that will affect many of us. God, I walked by it last week and marvelled that it was still open. What a shitshow.
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2016 00:58
|
|
|
Leif. posted:Yeah, I was several weeks in FSR too (they moved offices and lost my case file) and didn't hear much of anything. Definitely worth a followup if you have a point of contact. Managed to get in touch, looks like they requested updated/additional data on something or other and are waiting to hear back. No info other than that though. Hopefully it comes back soon. Waiting is the name of the game I'm discovering (again).
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2016 03:34
|
|
|
AKA Pseudonym posted:I hope you guys are sitting down. There's some bad news that will affect many of us. BUT WHERE WILL A100 GO FOR HAPPY HOUR
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2016 04:49
|
|
|
FSOT June scores are out, and I passed! Time to start working on my personal narratives I guess. I'm blocking off Monday, July 4th to do so for maximum patriotic fervor  And tomorrow night to get drunk on America 
|
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2016 20:04
|
|
|
Cross-post from the BFC federal jobs thread, no idea why I didn't post it here first. Is there a way to tell what the test dates for the FSOT will be before it opens for registration? I'm living in Japan so I know my test dates will be very limited, and I'm also taking the GRE this Fall so I want to make sure the two don't overlap. Right now on my Pearson VUE account it's just telling me to wait until registration opens (On August 24th) before I can move on. Anywhere I can find exact dates of the older tests in my area?
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 01:38
|
|
|
Slaan posted:FSOT June scores are out, and I passed! Congratulations! May this be the first of many successful steps!
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 03:01
|
|
|
Tequila Sunrise posted:Cross-post from the BFC federal jobs thread, no idea why I didn't post it here first. I don't think they tell you until registration is about to open. But normally its about a week state-side. Abroad, it probably depends on how many American there are nearby that would take it. When I was in the Peace Corps, Cotonou offered it for two testing sessions, which were filled solely by other PCVs. I assume Japan will have more as its a decently popular Expat area for Americans.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 03:40
|
|
|
Could somebody rank for me how important these languages would be for entering/performing in the Foreign Service?: Arabic Hindi Korean Mongolian I've been learning Japanese for a few years now, and want to back it up with Mandarin Chinese, a far more "important" language for international politics. I'm trying to decide if I want to learn a third language as well. I've heard, in regards to the Foreign Service that: 1: It's best to learn an unimportant language as you'll end up in a less popular country and have a better position there. (So I'm considering Mongolian.) 2: You get packed into a regional category for almost any job in the State Department. (So there may be no use for me learning Arabic if I'm planning to focus on East Asian affairs.)
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 03:46
|
|
|
The Unholy Ghost posted:Could somebody rank for me how important these languages would be for entering/performing in the Foreign Service?: Well, depends on if your concern is getting in, or what you do once you get there. Arabic, Hindi, and Korean, are all critical needs languages that will give you a higher amount of bump up points. You can get up to .38 bonus points on your app. Other languages I believe cap out at .17 points. I can't understate how big of a deal that is, because of the way that the registers are structure/scored creates clusters of people with the same score (who are then ranked by time-on-register). So if you can bump yourself up even just a little bit, you tend to shoot up in the rankings. For instance, 10-point veterans preference equates to .35 bonus points. Your .38 would put you ahead of every single 10-point veteran with the same score. Remember, a 5.3 is the minimum passing OA score. I scored a 5.5, and then further had .175 added for veterans preference. So my final score was 5.675. If you passed with the bare minimum score + full Arabic points, you'd have a 5.68. On the other hand, by taking the .38 points, you're losing flexibility on the direction of your career by guaranteeing to serve in a position that utilizes that language twice -- once in your first or second assignment, and once again as a mid-level at some point. If you take only the .17 (or none), you don't have this restriction. As for choice of language once you're in, that's a different story because languages and the job positions at a post you want don't necessarily overlap. Is the position language designated? If not, then when you're bidding on the job having the fluency certainly can help. But anyone can bid on the job regardless. If it's language designated, then having the requirements met in advance simply means that you can bid on the position right away, without regards to language training time at FSI. So, if there's a sudden "NOW" opening in Mongolia that is LDP for Mongolian -- great! The stars have aligned for you. Otherwise, it just means that when bidding season comes around, you're factoring in the amount of training time at FSI you'll need (so usually at 9-12 months to the start date). I researched Mongolia a bit when I was an FSO (there was a "NOW" position in Mongolia that I was interested in) and it didn't seem like a terrible post but it didn't sound particularly fun or lively in any way (I recall that there below-average internet). Also keep in mind that lesser important country doesn't necessarily equate better position. Small embassy (most countries are important to the U.S. in some meaningful way to some agency or policy or another) life can be lovely too. The positions available to you are mostly limited by what pay grade they fall under anyway. As a junior officer you're not getting an FS-2 designated position no matter how out of the way the country is. A smaller embassy may simply mean more work, and less free time. Long story short, figure out first what you want to do. Then you can build the path you need around that as best you can. Leif. fucked around with this message at 06:59 on Jul 1, 2016 |
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 06:54
|
|
|
the_chavi posted:God, I walked by it last week and marvelled that it was still open. What a shitshow. eh, what happened to Cafe Asia? it wasn't so bad.. in 2012... :P Leif. posted:Long story short, figure out first what you want to do. Then you can build the path you need around that as best you can. Life advice.txt seriously I think a small post will typically expose you to more specific/technical portions of your work, but a larger post will have more variety of work to be done. 'Soft skills' are absolutely needed in your repertoire regardless of your position though. wrt languages, put it this way: if you put down french, don't expect to go to France or Canada. Ditto Chinese, you may get sent to somewhere Not-China but has a significant Chinese presence. Well, you probably WILL get sent to China once, but it might be a consulate out in the sticks and not Beijing/Hong Kong.
|
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 15:22
|
|
|
Thank you, that's all fantastic advice. Although, I'm not completely sure what you mean by "figure out what you want to do". I'm fairly certain I want to enter the foreign service, and I know I want to focus on east Asia. Is there another internal career choice that I specifically need to make, or are we talking about after my time in the service is up?
The Unholy Ghost fucked around with this message at 16:37 on Jul 1, 2016 |
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 16:35
|
|
|
.
Time Crisis Actor fucked around with this message at 02:55 on Jan 20, 2017 |
|
#
?
Jul 1, 2016 20:46
|
|
|
If FSO reading this are interested in applying for a NOW FS03 POL job in Singapore, let me know. Might be best to email me at my nick on gmail.
|
|
#
?
Jul 2, 2016 22:18
|
|
|
I can't speak for Korean/Arabic/Hindi, but Mongolian is a very difficult language to learn outside of living in Mongolia or having a full-time tutor and people to practice your skills with very regularly. There are precious few good textbooks on learning Mongolian, and even the ones that are better recommended I didn't find super useful. I spent two-years in Mongolia, and I barely used any books or texts to practice, I just talked to people often. There were several occasions where I met people who had spent several years learning Mongolia at University or whatever and their speaking skills were always really difficult for Mongols to understand. I could go into it more, but I just want to warn you that it's a hard language to pick up outside the country.
|
|
#
?
Jul 4, 2016 01:15
|
|
|
Deathy McDeath posted:On this note: say you're a candidate who has both veterans preference and a critical language. Is there any benefit to just claiming one? I seem to remember reading somewhere that you can claim vet preference for a promotion, or FSOT, but not both, however I'm not sure if I'm confusing another federal job with DoS. Absolutely zero reason not to claim veterans preference if you have it. It's straight up free points. I'm not sure what you're referencing about using 5/10-point preference for promotion but that sounds like a civil service thing. For language, there's the aforementioned caveat about needing to serve in an LDP for that language, depending on how many you take (But in that case, just take the lower amount of points).
|
|
#
?
Jul 4, 2016 18:14
|
|
|
Dear DS: Please hurry up. There's still an outside shot at sneaking into the September A-100 if the seats aren't all filled yet, but not if you guys insist on sitting on my file for no apparent reason. Dammit.
|
|
#
?
Jul 6, 2016 16:56
|
|
|
Leif. posted:Absolutely zero reason not to claim veterans preference if you have it. It's straight up free points. I'm not sure what you're referencing about using 5/10-point preference for promotion but that sounds like a civil service thing. Vet preference is not taken into consideration for promotions. There are no reasons for not using your vet points on FSOT.
|
|
#
?
Jul 6, 2016 17:43
|
|
|
BTW if anyone is considering South Sudan, I can give you a solid recommendation on the Ambo. She's spectacular, and she's very good for FAST officers about getting them the opportunities to check the boxes on things like public speaking, travel, cables/reporting for non-reporting officers, cross-training and TDY opportunities, etc. Also, if you're interested in a more defense/mil-oriented/political side of things, she's a good person to know (I've never seen someone walk into a room full of officers and command instant respect like her).
|
|
#
?
Jul 7, 2016 16:52
|
|
|
Leif. posted:Absolutely zero reason not to claim veterans preference if you have it. It's straight up free points. I'm not sure what you're referencing about using 5/10-point preference for promotion but that sounds like a civil service thing. Good to know. Another thing: are there LDPs for Farsi? That happens to be my language, and while I see that it's listed as a critical language for State, I'm wondering what kind of positions would use it since we don't have a diplomatic presence in Iran.
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2016 17:16
|
|
|
Deathy McDeath posted:Good to know. Another thing: are there LDPs for Farsi? That happens to be my language, and while I see that it's listed as a critical language for State, I'm wondering what kind of positions would use it since we don't have a diplomatic presence in Iran. I'd imagine there are posts in Afghanistan and Pakistan that might be Farsi LDPs.
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2016 21:12
|
|
|
Deathy McDeath posted:Good to know. Another thing: are there LDPs for Farsi? That happens to be my language, and while I see that it's listed as a critical language for State, I'm wondering what kind of positions would use it since we don't have a diplomatic presence in Iran. There have been mid-level Iran watcher positions in Baghdad, Baku, Dubai, Paris, London and Berlin, too. Some of those posts might have an entry-level visa position or two, with several in Dubai, which is our main Iran-facing post.
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2016 07:52
|
|
|
Business of Ferrets posted:There have been mid-level Iran watcher positions in Baghdad, Baku, Dubai, Paris, London and Berlin, too. Some of those posts might have an entry-level visa position or two, with several in Dubai, which is our main Iran-facing post. There are quite a few Farsi LDP consular positions in Ankara, London, Yerevan, Baku, and a few other places. Malaysia too I think.
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2016 16:55
|
|
|
zzonkmiles posted:Dear DS: zzonkmiles, you are going for IMS right? I think that there are several spots still, of course who knows when they will fill. I'm hoping to squeak in too  Is anyone starting tomorrow (July 11th) in the specialist class?
|
|
#
?
Jul 10, 2016 21:20
|
|
|
sociablegoldfinch posted:zzonkmiles, you are going for IMS right? I think that there are several spots still, of course who knows when they will fill. I'm hoping to squeak in too Hey friend. No, I'm going for FSO in the Consular track. My OA score would have been high enough to get an invitation for the June and September classes, so I'm not too anxious. If I can't get into the January class, then I'm pretty sure I'll make it in the following class (March?).
|
|
#
?
Jul 11, 2016 03:36
|
|
|
the_chavi posted:There are quite a few Farsi LDP consular positions in Ankara, London, Yerevan, Baku, and a few other places. Malaysia too I think. Good to know. Thanks!
|
|
#
?
Jul 11, 2016 05:20
|
|
|
Hello everyone--I'm a longtime lurker to this forum and just wanted to say thanks to all the contributors for the wealth of information it provides on the FSO/FSS processes. I'm an FSO hopeful, and currently on my third try (made it to OA in 2011, failed the essay in 2014, PNs submitted for the June 2016 cohort). I currently reside in the DC area and am a DoD type. Question for you smart people who have made it all the way through the process: if you were former DoD/military, did you lean on that heavily during the OA? I felt I put it out there a bit too much the last time I went through, and from what I've seen talking to FSOs, there's definitely a different mindset between FSOs and military folk. Of course, during the last OA I participated in, I was operating with under an hour of sleep and probably sounded like a slobbering idiot. Good luck to all those still trying to break in to the DoS ranks! . And to those of you already in, thank you for your service.
|
|
#
?
Jul 12, 2016 17:45
|
|
|
It sounds like you know what you need to do the next time. I came in during the days of double-blind testing, where nobody was allowed to know about your background, but if I had to do it again I would just keep in mind that background and experience only counts in the FS if you bring good value to the table, so focus on that and don't use your DoD background as a reason to do something a certain way. No need to hide it, but the accessors might have differing views and biases toward DoD. At least that's what I would do, but it's been a long time and I very well might not make it in today, so who knows? Also, get more sleep. It makes every single part of life better, including job interviews.
|
|
#
?
Jul 13, 2016 01:25
|
|
|
Great advice, thanks!. The lack of sleep thing was totally my fault--I'd gotten some tickets off of Priceline and the flight times were bad as it was. Combine that with flight delays and it was a recipe for disaster. So, I could either not cheap out on tickets or just move to DC. Good decision to move--DC is not too shabby as far as cities go.
|
|
#
?
Jul 13, 2016 02:12
|
|
|
BoF - I quite imagine you've got your hands full these days.. :P
|
|
#
?
Jul 13, 2016 13:09
|
|
|
Ha, nope! PCSed about ten days ago, so not a care in the world besides enjoying Home Leave in SoCal!
|
|
#
?
Jul 13, 2016 17:55
|
|
|
Just an update - finally made it past FSR and onto the IMS register! Hoping that there are still spots in the September class.
|
|
#
?
Jul 14, 2016 02:22
|
|
|
Trying to fit my answers into these little Twitter-sized boxes is killing me as I've always tended to overwrite stuff. At least the constant editing of my work is making them far better. I hope I pass the PNs and get to the interviews 
|
|
#
?
Jul 14, 2016 02:40
|
|
|
I discovered that the boxes allow you to use bullet points (alt+7), but I'm almost positive that would be frowned upon.
|
|
#
?
Jul 14, 2016 14:50
|
|
|
sociablegoldfinch posted:Just an update - finally made it past FSR and onto the IMS register! Hoping that there are still spots in the September class. Congratulations! How long were you in clearance limbo?
|
|
#
?
Jul 14, 2016 17:46
|
|
|
Business of Ferrets posted:Ha, nope! PCSed about ten days ago, so not a care in the world besides enjoying Home Leave in SoCal! woah. Did not realize your time went by that fast... SoCal is Best Home Leave
|
|
#
?
Jul 15, 2016 06:55
|
|
|
zzonkmiles posted:Congratulations! How long were you in clearance limbo? It took just over a year to the day for security, and two months after that for suitability. Most of my time in security was spent in ajudication. Hope yours goes quick!
|
|
#
?
Jul 15, 2016 17:05
|
|
|
Security clearance limbo was the most annoying part about waiting for the job. Maybe with this Eligible Family Member Reserve Corps thing they're rolling out, they won't need to run through a new security clearance check on family members whenever they apply for a job at a new post, so maybe it will mean fewer clearances need to be processed, so maybe slightly speed up security clearances for everyone! We can hope, anyway.
|
|
#
?
Jul 15, 2016 20:03
|
|
|
Turkey?
|
|
#
?
Jul 15, 2016 21:14
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 28, 2024 05:15 |
|
|
Dang Turkey. Stay safe Goons!
|
|
#
?
Jul 16, 2016 00:24
|
|