Back on the Field

Well, the October 2014 FSOT cohort is the next one up at bat. The testing window is finally open and the registration forms are available for submission. It's been many long months since disaster struck at the OA in Washington. So now I am back at the end of the line, the bottom of the stairs, and the beginning of the process. State's webpage indicates that there are eight steps to becoming an FSO, but for all intents and purposes, there are only five:

1. Pass the Foreign Service Officer Test
2. Pass the Qualifications Evaluation Panel
3. Pass the Oral Assessment
4. Get all your necessary clearances and pass the Final Review Panel
5. Get called from the Register

I have passed the FSOT three times. That makes me a bit anxious about my fourth attempt, actually. I mean, on one hand, I should be quite confident because I know what to expect with this test and I know I should pass relatively easily. But I am a bit ill at ease because there's always a first time for everything. What if I can't complete the essay in time? What if I bomb the Job Knowledge section of the test? What if I run out of time? I mean, my score has increased each time I've taken this test, and I haven't done any sort of studying for any of those attempts. Do I trust myself too much? Am I overconfident? What if my brain is not as sharp as it used to be? Or maybe I'm overanalyzing this.

In reality, it's really the QEP that bothers me the most. The selections seem so arbitrary there. I think failing this step twice forced me to improve my narratives so that I could make them stronger on my more successful third attempt. I still have those narratives printed out. So assuming that I pass the FSOT next month, I'll be ready to go with strong narratives that allowed me to advance once before. I just hope the new crop of candidates is not more stellar than the last time around and that the cutoff score is not even higher. Maybe a less dire budgetary situation will make for a less stringent selection criteria this fall compared to last fall.

The OA's Case Management exercise is all that stood between me and a conditional job offer the last time around. If I can make it back to the OA, I will not bother studying with a group. I know what to expect there, and I can work well in teams. I will spend more of my time trying a new strategy with writing the memos. Instead of taking notes as I read, I will try to read all the documents and keep mental records of any necessary facts or overarching themes. Then I will write the memo from scratch, rather than trying to take a bunch of disparate notes and forming a cohesive argument out of them.

So yeah, I'm ready. I just have to make sure not to look too far ahead because I could very well fail the FSOT, which would be absolutely devastating. The Foreign Service is what I want to do. Mrs. Zz wants me to do this as well. I am choosing the Consular track, which is what I chose last year. This track seems to get a bad rap, but it is the most interesting to me by far. The idea of screening visa applicants and visiting Americans in foreign prisons is something that truly excites me. There are so many countries where I would love to be posted, especially in East and Southeast Asia. I want to make some memories. I want to get my passport stamped. I want to help desperate people abroad. I want to do something that actually matters.

But to do any of this, I have to pass that test next month. I am on a mission. My fourth Foreign Service candidacy will end with an invitation to an A-100 class. Yes.

Stay tuned. It all starts here.