|
I posted in the general USA Federal Government jobs a while ago, and I'll repost some parts of the information I posted there before dumping my questions. I'm a 20 year old sophomore in college. Political Science major, english literature and philosophy double minor at the moment. Asian, if that's relevant. I speak Chinese (as well as English, obviously.) I was recently pointed to the Law School thread by a friend and I realized that, gently caress, I don't want to go to Law School after all. Now I need options. Options and ideas for a career in order to fend off my family members who seem rather set on me being a lawyer or doctor or something along those lines. I was always interested in a Federal Government job though, and on the recommendation of the general Federal Government Jobs thread, I took a look here and some of the FSO jobs do tickle my fancy, particularly the Political, Public Diplomacy, and Consular tracks, roughly in that order of preference. First off, two questions: How tough is the job market for these positions right now? I realize that the job market in general is poo poo but is this any less poo poo? Second, when should I start my application process, generally speaking?
|
# ¿ Jun 14, 2013 08:08 |
|
|
# ¿ Mar 29, 2024 12:01 |
|
Well, poo poo. Time to get started then. Do you guys have any ideas for possible alternatives if this falls through?
|
# ¿ Jun 14, 2013 08:52 |
|
Nutrimentia posted:This career really should be considered a Plan B just because its so hard and time consuming. The timing isn't bad since you're only a sophomore, you might be able to flow right into. Otherwise, just keep on doing what you're doing. Don't go to Law School though and don't make career choices to please your family. If nothing else, plan on polisci/IR grad school. Oh, yeah. Grad school is a must, I think. Not making career choices to please family is hard though. Blargh. They can make life really tough.
|
# ¿ Jun 14, 2013 09:18 |
|
Does a background check basically just see if you've had a run-in with the police?
|
# ¿ Dec 10, 2013 02:18 |
|
Skandiaavity posted:that & then some. It is your standard TS clearance interview; but they are usually very thorough. Huhm. What's it take to fail one? I'm going through the same anxiety I feel when I see a police officer knowing I've done nothing wrong.
|
# ¿ Dec 10, 2013 03:10 |
|
Why? Is it ISIS shenanigans or something?
|
# ¿ Jul 26, 2014 13:53 |
|
the_chavi posted:Oh man, her blog's demise is seriously one of the saddest thing I've ever seen. I hate-read it all the time. Her husband could have been Bill Burns incarnate and I don't think anyone would hire him out of fear of what his wife would do to Post morale. Is that Comic Sans? Has nobody told this woman what a terrible font it is?
|
# ¿ Aug 5, 2014 12:34 |
|
caberham posted:gently caress yes, this beats E/N falling in love with a homeless girl by far. I'm so glad I lurked here. What? Link?
|
# ¿ Aug 8, 2014 09:35 |
|
Tell me how it goes. I speak Chinese as well and I'd be interested to hear what it is like working in China as a FSO.
|
# ¿ Feb 19, 2015 22:35 |
|
So someone in the Federal Government Jobs thread told me that HR only gives pay step credit for graduate degrees in a certain range of majors/focuses/what have you. Is there a list of degrees they accept anywhere? Or is it varied enough for track/bureau that it is difficult to answer?
|
# ¿ Feb 20, 2015 21:47 |
|
Is there someone I could PM or IRC or skype or whatever and talk about questions I have about my career/education decisions and ideas? Because I've posted here and there in this thread, the US gov jobs thread, and the various education threads on SomethingAwful and that, combined with graduation and a few other things is making me increasingly nervous about whether or not my current plans are anything close to good ideas or not. I'm starting to feel kind of at a loss of what to do and I'm just really uncertain about my job prospects, even. Edit: I've posted this request in this thread because I'm interested in a career in some place like the State Department, and I thought that this would be the best place to look for someone in this field. Artificer fucked around with this message at 03:29 on Jun 1, 2015 |
# ¿ Jun 1, 2015 03:19 |
|
If I wanted to grab a certification along with my Master's in grad school, are there any particularly relevant ones or is it mostly up to where you want to go/what you want to do? Or do the hiring managers just not give a poo poo?
|
# ¿ Jul 23, 2015 05:55 |
|
Bloodnose posted:I think education background is like the least relevant thing to the Foreign Service. Oh. Welp. What sort of jobs at the State Department require these sorts of certificates/graduate degrees, do you know?
|
# ¿ Jul 23, 2015 17:35 |
|
Blooregard posted:Had our flag day on Tuesday, I will be moving to Guangzhou, China! Congratulations, man. I'm sort of hoping to work in China too once I graduate and go through the tests and all the procedures. Do you mind if I PM you questions and such?
|
# ¿ Jul 31, 2015 23:44 |
|
I wonder who comes up with the designs for these?
|
# ¿ Aug 11, 2015 20:43 |
|
TCD posted:A few tips as an IR major. One, do every single internship you possibly can. Paid is better but non-paid in IR related is good too. Two, pick up a useful minor or other major if you can. Some programs offer a dual business/IR degree and that's way better than just a straight IR. Three, you probably need to look at grad school if you want to do IR type work. Four, you could always pick up another trade like I did with IT. Five, state or any other foreign affairs agency should be a dream job. With budgets getting tight, hiring isn't going to be all that good so competition will be very high especially as there's a lot of people who have vet pref points. If poo poo goes to hell, what are some alternatives we might consider looking into with our IR related degrees?
|
# ¿ Aug 13, 2015 21:19 |
|
Skandiaavity posted:(as an IR major) - IR has been fairly large (read: overpopulated) and well-intentioned major, but I found a lot of it is basically theories and wishful thinking, and the reality just circles back to business. In a way it is kind of perceived as the new 'communications' or 'liberal arts degree'. a decade ago when I got my IR degree, it wasn't really defined - it's just diplomacy lumped into one topic where you can specialize in 'regions'. Similar to what TCD said, a Business Admin degree is just general degree (& you have core degrees like Accounting, Logistics, I.T., etc) and is taught about the skills, not localities. But that framework, plus learning about local customs, laws, etc are critical to succeeding in business. To succeed in IR, you need to have a very similar skillset: Logisitics, Drafting, Negotiation, Trend Analysis, (joke: Expertise in Accounting) etc. If that's the case, why limit yourself to only one focus? Get trained in both - you may find yourself happy working for a corporation overseas. So business as usual, get your hands dirty, that sort of thing? I'm planning to apply for Hill internships and such for the Summer. I wanted to ease into my first semester at grad school especially since I'm going to be honing my Chinese skills at the same time. Anything else I should look at? PMF is on the list but that won't be possible for me to apply to until my 2nd year.
|
# ¿ Aug 14, 2015 09:40 |
|
the_chavi posted:Concur. The best part is when snarky assholes chime in and piss people off further... or when Sean Cobb created the world's greatest emoji, which involves an FSO saving a puppy from a burning house while a bald eagle waves an American flag. Hhhhhholy poo poo. Are you allowed to link that?
|
# ¿ Aug 22, 2015 04:32 |
|
Christ. I've got a woman in my program at the moment who has passed both and is going to A-100s. I'm super impressed considering how bonkers hard the tests seem to be.
|
# ¿ Sep 11, 2015 20:36 |
|
So I was talking to someone in the FSO earlier today and as people have said, life for couples is really loving hard. This makes me sad since this means my relationship and career plans run fairly counter to each other. What sort of assistance can the State Department provide? Do you guys have any other general advice? My girlfriend studies Opera Singing so it's not like her field is easily shifted around... Failing all that...is there someplace I can work domestically that also is at least tangentially similar to the FSO? I think I would enjoy the kind of work involved. Research or analysis? Who knows. I'm all ears since I might be taking a sharp turn in my career aspirations sometime in the near future.
|
# ¿ Oct 9, 2015 05:24 |
|
Welp. I wonder what's the over/under on her being able to sing if I get assigned abroad somewhere? Maybe it could be possible in China but probably not if I'm in Africa somewhere...
|
# ¿ Oct 9, 2015 21:48 |
|
I don't suppose any of you fellas know what working as a Domestic Civil Service dude is like? Edit: This is spurred by my continual interest in the field but the realization that I might not be able to reconcile a FSO career with my relationship, with which I'm rather attached to. Artificer fucked around with this message at 06:57 on Oct 12, 2015 |
# ¿ Oct 12, 2015 06:32 |
|
zzonkmiles posted:I'm a Civil Service employee with State. What do you want to know? Well, for starters, what is it that you do? Why did you decide to go into that job? And how's job satisfaction?
|
# ¿ Oct 12, 2015 16:58 |
|
the_chavi posted:Impossible, based on my husband's experience. =/ Welp. That...sucks. drat.
|
# ¿ Oct 13, 2015 01:37 |
|
Business of Ferrets posted:Bidding, a haiku. Where did you get sent to?
|
# ¿ Oct 14, 2015 23:51 |
|
Skandiaavity posted:5. was mentioned above, but Does Student Internship include stuff like the PMF? Oh man those are some intimidating job prospects...
|
# ¿ Oct 16, 2015 18:48 |
|
Leif. posted:That's a good guide. I took my FSOT when it was ACT, not Pearson, so I can't speak to changes. But I can validate that the biographical portion is hugely important. Don't sell yourself short, and while remaining honest, think very broadly about how your life experiences can be construed to give you the highest possible score on any question. This is not a modesty test. You're fighting for a position that is more competitive than Harvard admissions. If you try to be modest or humble you are setting yourself up to fail. This applies throughout all portions of the test, not just the FSWE. gently caress me. The last bit is really hard. Hmm.
|
# ¿ Oct 16, 2015 23:30 |
|
Other than the Boren Fellowship and the PMF, what other stuff should I be looking at. Any summer break opportunities of note for a grad student? Other than the State Department internship which I already applied for?
|
# ¿ Oct 28, 2015 08:46 |
|
The Mantis posted:So it sounds pretty lame and civil side folks can correct me if I'm totally off base, but I would come up with a plan to try and meet as many relevant state people as you can. So who here wants to go grab food in D.C. sometime eh? I figure you guys are all probably super busy though. Thank you for the input. I'll try and do what I can. Recently went to a CSIS panel for the first time and despite the heavy-DOD-centric talking points it was still enjoyable and a new experience.
|
# ¿ Oct 29, 2015 04:48 |
|
Is everyone in Paris in this thread ok?
|
# ¿ Nov 14, 2015 02:45 |
|
zzonkmiles posted:I've actually thought about staying on the Civil Service side of State and abandoning my Foreign Service candidacy for this very reason. I love my bureau, and I love my DASdom within my bureau. And I love the stability of knowing I will be in Washington instead of wondering if I'll be sent off to Turkmenistan in two years. Yeah, this and my girlfriend are the biggest reasons why I'm considering Civil Service. But now she came back from a semester abroad in Vienna and says she loves it there. It's good for her field too. And so now I'm not quite sure what to do. I don't suppose you goons have any advice?
|
# ¿ Jan 3, 2016 08:29 |
|
TCD posted:Will working in AF or Central Asia be okay for her career? What I'm getting at, is it's difficult to do an entire FS career in Western EUR. Africa? Probably not. I suppose I should consider alternatives. Civil Service, again, appeals to me. Not sure where else I could go with my interests that would be good. FS and Civil Service seem right up my alley, hard as they are to find a position in. I hear politics related careers in EUR are also hard to get if you don't speak a word of German or French.
|
# ¿ Jan 3, 2016 12:05 |
|
gently caress. I just had an internship offer withdrawn and clearance process canceled because it took too long and the deadline passed.
|
# ¿ Aug 16, 2016 23:01 |
|
Tyro posted:drat, that really sucks. What happened? The clearance took so long that the hiring office withdrew the internship offer? Really sorry to hear that. Yeah that is exactly it. I don't know why it took so long but I turned everything in on time and before deadlines. Maybe I had too many family members living in China? Or knew too many foreigners. I don't think there was anything I could do to speed it up. I filled out some form for the clearance process like 3 weeks ago too. I thought it was moving along. Artificer fucked around with this message at 23:23 on Aug 16, 2016 |
# ¿ Aug 16, 2016 23:11 |
|
Tyro posted:As a former intern I'm really sorry to hear that. What a bummer, and of course now you probably don't have time to pick up another internship! Thanks man. And it is ok. I have something for this semester at least.
|
# ¿ Aug 16, 2016 23:23 |
|
tismondo posted:Very sorry to hear that. From what I've learned, it isn't uncommon. If things are still done they way they were in 2013, they only give ~3 months to complete the clearance which really isn't long enough for a lot of very very qualified candidates. It's a shame, honestly. Are they more patient with actual job applicants or am I hosed for that too?
|
# ¿ Aug 17, 2016 05:58 |
|
Deathy McDeath posted:Well now this is starting to worry me. I was selected for a fall internship, but State didn't begin moving on my clearance until a few weeks ago, even though I finished eQip and turned in fingerprints less than a week after getting access. While they've told me that I can roll it over to spring, I'm not entirely sure that my clearance will be done in time Good luck, man. Hope it works out.
|
# ¿ Aug 17, 2016 19:31 |
|
I have had friends take their cars in only to be told that they are out of replacement parts and that Honda will notify them when they have the parts....eventually.
|
# ¿ Oct 1, 2016 17:35 |
|
Yorkshire Pudding posted:So PearsonVUE forgot to tell my consulate I was taking this test, so they don't have it ready and I can't take it. I'm also only in this city until Sunday and spent about $700 on travel and accommodations because I live pretty far away from here. That's loving bullshit. Sorry dude.
|
# ¿ Oct 7, 2016 06:05 |
|
|
# ¿ Mar 29, 2024 12:01 |
|
Time to close this thread I guess.
|
# ¿ Jan 23, 2017 20:35 |