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Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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?

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Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
Well, poo poo. Time to get started then. Do you guys have any ideas for possible alternatives if this falls through?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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. :(

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
Does a background check basically just see if you've had a run-in with the police?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

Skandiaavity posted:

that & then some. It is your standard TS clearance interview; but they are usually very thorough.


also, it was mentioned a few hunnerd pages back or such; but does anyone have a copy of a Memorandum of Performance? I need to write one but I haven't a clue where to start.

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. :v:

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
Why? Is it ISIS shenanigans or something?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

If anyone wants a primer in how NOT to blog in this job, here you go. http://missisoda.blogspot.com/

Is that Comic Sans?

Has nobody told this woman what a terrible font it is?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

Bloodnose posted:

I think education background is like the least relevant thing to the Foreign Service.

Even if you have a PhD in Foreign Servicery, you're still gonna spend months at FSI learning how to do your job before you go do your job. And they explicitly say that a bachelor's degree isn't even required to apply.

That said, I've not met an FSO yet who didn't have a bachelor's. But the range of degrees I've encountered goes from theater to nuclear physicsomething.

Oh. Welp. What sort of jobs at the State Department require these sorts of certificates/graduate degrees, do you know?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

Blooregard posted:

Had our flag day on Tuesday, I will be moving to Guangzhou, China!

One funny thing was when they said the Vienna post, the whole room groaned, then applauded when the name was read. I think the guy that got it actually feels a bit guilty.

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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
I wonder who comes up with the designs for these?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

Good luck.

If poo poo goes to hell, what are some alternatives we might consider looking into with our IR related degrees?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

If you're in theories or practicals you have to have connections, especially local ones, to bring in the money. The way it was explained to me was 'it's the difference of wanting to make a difference, and actually doing things to make a difference.' It's easy to write an article about how Africa needs stable electricity (/government) and psychoanalyze why and how to make that happen, but actually getting your boots on the ground and making it a reality could be an allegory for climbing Everest. The NGO/NPO, State, AID, etc are all looking for the latter type of person.

If poo poo goes to hell, know that I.R. is very flexible - possibly one of the most flexible degrees out there depending on how you want to spin it - but also like TCD said, you gotta have experience. Plenty of people will love you and want to hire - but only if you put your time in. You can talk all day about logistics but if you're able to actually get the stuff to people is what they're after.

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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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...

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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? :v:

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

the_chavi posted:

Impossible, based on my husband's experience. =/

Welp. That...sucks. drat.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

Business of Ferrets posted:

Bidding, a haiku.

What am I doing

looking now so far afield

that wasn't the plan


Where did you get sent to?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

Skandiaavity posted:

5. was mentioned above, but
6. is Disability hiring and/or Schedule A "fast track" hiring and,
7. is Student Internship hiring and
8. is Political Appointee.

Not really aware of any other routes. Same is true for most gov't positions.

Does Student Internship include stuff like the PMF?

Oh man those are some intimidating job prospects... :(

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

I don't mean try and shake an assistant secretary's hand once -- more like look at the state bureaucracy, and see if you can meet the working level people who will likely have some input on your application. Not in a super sharky way, but it's a small world and if you're social and go to events you might come across people who are a few steps away from those who are currently doing whatever job you want.

Either way it'd give you good exposure/conversations. Also this may be terrible advice idk

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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
Is everyone in Paris in this thread ok?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

What was the tipping point for you?

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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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. :(

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
gently caress. I just had an internship offer withdrawn and clearance process canceled because it took too long and the deadline passed.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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?

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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 :ohdear:

Good luck, man. Hope it works out. :)

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
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.

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!

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.

Dreams really do come true in the foreign service.

That's loving bullshit. Sorry dude. :(

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Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
Time to close this thread I guess.

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