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A Career As A Foreign Service Officer

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Homeland security main focus is to keep the nation safe from the many threats we face. There are many jobs that help the department of homeland security help them work towards that goal and one of them is a Foreign Service officer. The purpose of a Foreign Service officer also known as a United States diplomat in the Foreign Service is to support prosperity, promote peace, and protect American citizens while proceeding to attain the interests of the United States abroad (DOS, 2016). In this essay I will discuss the objectives Foreign Service officers encompass, the positive and negative aspects of working for the Foreign Service, as well as how this in turn helps our homeland security here in the United States. Becoming a Foreign Service officer …show more content…

A consular officer is one of the tracks you are able to choose while being a Foreign Service officer. This is because, not all diplomats do the exact same job. There are five tracks you can choose from when you become a Foreign Service officer. Those five are as follows: consular, economic, management, political, and public diplomacy. The one mentioned before, consular, combats fraud to protect our borders, can facilitate adoptions, help evacuate Americans, and fights human trafficking (Kopp, 2008). Economic officers work with United State government agencies on science, technology, environmental issues, energy, and trade both overseas and domestically as well as working with NGOs, foreign governments, and international organizations (DOS, 2016). Management officers tend to deal with the human resource aspects of embassies and consulates by making budgets and security operations. Political officers write reports for political events and communicate with foreign government officials to seek support for shared goals. Public Diplomacy officers network and connect with the full range of governments and host national societies to shape perceptions and the public message about the United …show more content…

One great thing about becoming a Foreign Service officer is the ability to see the world, traveling is a must when you become a diplomat. Another positive aspect is when you are living abroad all of your housing is paid for as well as your children's education. But just as there are pros, the life of a diplomat isn't all jet setting and free rent. Your tours are usually two years so moving will be frequent and living out of boxes will become more familiar (SYWMJ, 2013). Making friends and keeping them is always hard as well because you never stay in the same place for too long. Family life is very different than here in the states and depending on your post your spouse may not be able to keep a steady job if they too do not work for the Foreign Service. If you can be flexible then this job may be perfect even with its

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