silverheadphones

If I may ask: what was the difference between your 1st/4th attempts versus your 2nd/3rd? Was it the test that tripped you up or the personal narrative? Did you prepare any differently between the times you made it to the oral and the times you didn't?

Although new to the FSO hiring process, I am familiar with federal hiring processes and how long they take, as well as how competitive these jobs can be. Most agencies/departments tend to look for candidates with an "edge" or something that they offer that is valuable to them. For instance language skills, certain employment experience, certain degrees/certifications, etc. This seems to be less the case with the FSO process, which is somewhat mysterious to me. Do you have any insight as to what would be something that can give a candidate an "edge" for this process? Or is it a simple matter of merit-over-anything-else for each step? Eg: Those who study the right things pass the written exam, then those who write well and can express their experiences clearly pass the personal narrative, and then those who can present the "13 dimensions" most effectively during the oral assessment pass that portion, etc? I know this isn't a real question so much as I am asking you if you think I am going into this testing process with the correct mindset, but... any insight into this matter would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much for your responses. I do have a follow-up question if I may: I am sure that you did a lot of research of FSO job descriptions before you applied. Did you find the information available on the DOS career website that describes each track to be relatively close to reality? I say "relatively" because it seems like even within the same career track, day-to-day work varies depending on the location / size of the post you are assigned to, as well as a number of other factors. I am trying to collect as much information as I can, and I have found your forum and this blog - http://www.foreignservicetest.com/#sthash.XSKUafIT.mQmFXGjL.dpbs- to be very helpful. Thank you again.

Hello. I haven't even taken the FSOT so I know this question is a huge hypothetical, but: 1) I recently failed a polygraph for the FBI when I applied to them. I know you don't know me, but it really was a "false positive," as they call it. Do you happen to know if this will count against me should I make it as far as the background check portion of the process for FSO? Also, 2) I am interested in the consular track for the following reasons: - I am attracted to work that involves crisis management / dealing with people in distress - I also enjoy work that involves managing day-to-day-whatever-pops-up / putting out "fires" with an especially keen interest in personnel management. - I would like to work in areas that are not-so-U.S. friendly I know I've only given limited information, but am I barking up the wrong tree or do you think the consular track (or being an FSO for that matter) may be the way to go based on the information I've given? I have taken the quiz on the DOS website a few times, and I always come out ahead for the consular track. Not sure if that was around when you applied, but do you have any thoughts as to whether or not that quiz is a pretty reliable indicator of which career track may be the best fit for a person?