Foreign Service Career Cones
You must choose a career track also known as a cone before you take the FSOT. I believe it is on the registration form for the test(correct me if I'm wrong). It is difficult, but not impossible, to change your track after choosing it because of this you should understand the roles and duties of each.
The State Department has a questionnaire that can help you in finding a track similar to your interests, but take its results with a grain of salt.
Like they do with languages, the State Department states what their needs are:
"You should be aware that, in some career tracks (political and public diplomacy) there are many more candidates than openings, and many candidates will not be hired. In other career tracks (economic, management, and consular), there are not enough candidates and most everyone on the register will be hired." DoS
Don't let this discourage you from pursuing political or public diplomacy tracks, but you are sure to increase your likelihood of employment if you are willing to work in an economic, management, or consular career track. Even more so if you speak a Super Critical language on top of that. Again, do what you enjoy most, but keep the State's needs in mind.
The work you do as a FSO is not always exclusive to your career track. Your first two tours will have you do work in other career tracks to help create more well rounded individuals.
Officers of every career track interact with people from other countries and host government officials as well as promote US policies and interests.
Consular
Most FSOs will spend their first tour doing Consular work which involves interviewing for visas and American Citizens services(ACS) among other things. Read more.
Management
Management Officers are what keep the embassies running. They manage housing, transportation, and internal processes of the embassy. Read more.
Political
Political Officers maintain contacts within the country and report on the political state of the host country and changes within the government. Read more.
Economic
Economic Officers are like Political Officers except they report on the economy of the host country and may deal with US business interested in investing in that country. Read more.
Public Diplomacy
Public Diplomacy Officers are the face of the United States. They deal with the press and cultural exchanges. Read more.
Resources and Further Reading
- State.gov
- Others
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