It is true – the process to prepare and master the Foreign Service Officer Test can be exhausting. In fact, it requires the utmost perseverance to become a Foreign Service Officer successfully. Apart from the essay question, the structure of the Foreign Service Officer Test (FSOT) involves multiple-choice based questions.

Once you finish the test with flying colors, you will have to propose and submit a personalized narrative specifically for the Qualifications Evaluation Panel (QEP). This panel will decide whether or not to invite you to undertake the Foreign Service Oral Assessment. It’s a written assessment that roughly takes a day to complete.

The competitiveness of the FSOT exam speaks to its popularity among the applicants. Contemporarily, more than 20,000 people undergo through FSOT exam every year. What’s even more interesting is that the selection ratio is just 500-700 for the various Foreign Service positions.

U.S. Diplomat as a Foreign Service: What’s the Purpose?

A U.S. diplomat as a foreign officer works hard to maintain and build peace, protection, and prosperity for American citizens. Furthermore, he or she also takes into account the global interests of the U.S.

FSOT is ideal if you have a passion and desire to serve the U.S. on a global scale as a service officer. It might be difficult in the beginning, but there is a multitude of benefits for service officers. The idea is to experience different customs, cultures, and meet new people to build lasting diplomatic relationships.

The work of foreign officers matters more than you might think. It practically leaves behind a positive global impact. If you succeed at your goals, you will get the opportunity to represent the U.S. to any embassy. Apart from assignment to an embassy or consulate, you can get other diplomatic missions in different parts of the world. And the higher the danger, the more reward you can expect.

FSOT History

Over the years, many iterations of the FSOT exam have had a fair share of criticism. However, the good news is that the test continues to evolve and identify the skills of the candidates without biased or unprejudiced judgment. After the class lawsuit in early 1976, the addition of several changes facilitated higher ranking positions.

Also, after the litigation of 1989, the written part of the FSOT exam didn’t discriminate or violate women’s rights. Today, the design of the Foreign Service officer test caters to the interests of the minorities.

According to the Foreign Service Act of 1980, the design and purpose of the test is to ensure that diplomats must represent the American citizens in all respects. The expansion of general and English sections, for instance, is one of the reasons to increase the diversity of the FSOT exam. The goal is to have small portions with almost as much relevance as the job knowledge section.

FSOT Subject Areas

1. English Expression

English language and expression mainly evaluate your abilities to prepare and edit written reports. You will have to incorporate an errorless grammatical structure and excellent writing for sentences and as well as paragraphs.

2. Job Knowledge

Candidates will get two subsections in the job knowledge section. You will cover the subject areas like economics, geography, U.S. political structure, computers, management, communication, and U.S. & world history. Career track, on the other hand, is the second portion of the job knowledge section. Once you finish the items throughout the general section, you instantly should start to solve the career track portion.

Applicants will receive distinctive questions throughout the career track and other portions of every section. Interestingly, the career track part has the same length as the general portion. And that’s why you’ll get a combination of the score for both of the sections.

However, candidates should finish one section at a time. As a result, the time management for both will be quite different. Ideally, you should research extensively before attempting each section. Focus on your area of interest as a Foreign Service officer to conduct better research for the subject matter.

3. Biographic Information

Biographical data questions evaluate your past job performance and tasks. With the accumulation of different parameters, the test predicts your success ratio in the foreseeable future.

4. Written Essay

Under FSO, the written essay area offers a chance to showcase your skills to assess a particular topic. Your goal is to arrange your thought process and develop authentic and readable written material. You will receive 50 minutes to finish your essay section. Additionally, you will have to select one (1) out of three (3) topics to write an essay. Topics can include religion, history, education, economics, international affairs, finance, culture, employment problems, and social problems.

Also, when you start the exam, you will manually write the essay in your booklet. It is vital to show a clear perspective argument that works with your opinion. Your composite score checks your capability to evaluate a specific topic, present supportive arguments, structure grammatically right sentences, and proper usage of syntax. Though punctuation and spelling have a relatively lower level of score margin, don’t make the mistake of completing sideline them.