Foreign Service Officer

As the lead U.S. foreign affairs agency, the U.S. Department of State advances the interests of the American people, their safety, and economic prosperity.  The Department has Foreign Service employees serving as diplomats in more than 270 locations abroad and throughout the United States. Foreign Service personnel practice diplomacy to advance America’s interests, solve global challenges, build alliances, counter adversaries, promote peace, and find new opportunities for our nation.

They make a difference globally every day through solving intellectually challenging issues, innovating creatively, achieving lifelong learning and professional development, and helping people around the world.

The mission of a U.S. diplomat in the Foreign Service is to promote peace, support prosperity, and protect American citizens while advancing the interests of the U.S. abroad.

If you’re passionate about public service and want to represent the U.S. around the world, a challenging and rewarding career is waiting for you. The opportunity to work abroad and experience cultures, customs and people of different nations is truly a career unlike any other.

The work you’ll do will have an impact on the world. You will be asked to serve at one of any of the more than 270 embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions in The Americas, Africa, Europe and Eurasia, East Asia and Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia. Some of these posts are in difficult and even dangerous environments but serving in them affords great challenges and rewards.

When hiring Foreign Service Officers, we look for motivated individuals with sound judgment and leadership abilities who can retain their composure in times of great stress — or even dire situations, like a military coup or a major environmental disaster. We are looking for individuals dedicated to public service.

A career with the Foreign Service may appear glamorous with travel, government-paid housing, generous pay and benefits. In some instances, though, working as a Foreign Service Officer can be very challenging and sometimes dangerous. In any posting, you may face an irregular schedule or extended work schedule. These posts can be in remote locations, without many U.S.- style amenities; there can be sporadic power outages, unreliable internet service etc. Health and sanitation standards can be below U.S. standards. Some assignments are “unaccompanied,” which means family members may not travel to the post with you.

That’s why it takes a special type of person to represent America abroad, to advance diplomatic initiatives to the benefit of both the U.S. and the host country. Serving as a U.S. diplomat requires fortitude, flexibility, a commitment to public service, and the ability to adapt to changing situations and cultures other than your own.

Whether you want to follow a professional path that grows your management skills, impacts economic policy or helps reunite families, you’ll find  five different career tracks that can direct you towards realizing your goals.

You can take this quiz to assist in considering which track is right for you. After determining which career track is right for you can take the online FSO practice test that is designed to provide you with a realistic preview of the computer-based FSOT and an estimate of your likelihood of passing.