Table of Contents
Introductory Section 1
Why This Book? Shawn Dorman 1
What Is the Foreign Service? John Naland Susan Johnson 2
U.S. Presence in the World in 2011 4
Map: Department of State Locations 6
Flow Chart: Foreign Affairs Agencies Inside U.S. Embassies 8
Part I Profiles: Who Works in an Embassy? 9
Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch, Embassy Yerevan, Armenia 10
Deputy Chief of Mission Dan Piccuta, Embassy Beijing, China 12
Consul General Elisabeth Millard, Embassy Casablanca, Morocco 15
USAID Mission Director Hilda Arellano, Embassy Cairo, Egypt 17
Commercial Officer (Foreign Commercial Service) Richard Steffens, Embassy Kyiv, Ukraine 20
Agricultural Officer (Foreign Agricultural Service) Holly Higgins, Embassy New Delhi, India 22
Political Officer Dereck J. Hogan, Embassy Moscow, Russia 24
Economic Officer Susannah Cooper, Embassy Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 27
Consular Officer Donald Moore, Embassy Port-au-Prince, Haiti 29
Public Affairs Officer Christopher Teal, Consulate General Guadalajara, Mexico 31
Management Officer Rachna Korhonen, Embassy Kuwait City, Kuwait 34
Regional Security Officer Nicholas Collura, Embassy Sana'a, Yemen 36
Provincial Reconstruction Team Director Jim DeHart, PRT Panjshir, Afghanistan 38
USAID Democracy Officer Bruce Abrams, Embassy Lima, Peru 41
Refugee Coordinator Nancy Cohen, Embassy Belgrade, Serbia 43
Regional Environmental Officer Bruce Hudspeth, Embassy Astana, Kazakhstan 45
Entry-Level Officer Carolyn Dubrovsky, Embassy Kathmandu, Nepal 48
Office Management Specialist Elizabeth Babroski, U.S. Mission to the OSCE, Vienna, Austria 50
Information Management Officer Mark Butchart, Embassy Pretoria, South Africa 53
Facility Manager Gary Hein, Embassy Cairo, Egypt 55
Medical Officer Mark Cohen, Embassy Nairobi, Kenya 58
Diplomatic Courier Edward Bent, Embassy Bangkok, Thailand 60
Locally Employed Staff Mimy Santika, USAID Mission, Jakarta, Indonesia 62
Locally Employed Staff Edgar Zamudio, Consulate General Tijuana, Mexico 65
Part II Foreign Service Work and Life: Embassy, Employee, Family 69
The Embassy and the Country Team 69
Minds Wide Open: The FSN-FSO Relationship Galina Sabeva 71
The Visit: The Foreign Service on Call Matthew A. Cenzer Scott Kofmehl Tristram Perry Michael Mullins 77
Not Just a Job: The Foreign Service Life 83
Twenty-Eight More Weeks: Life in Language Training Brendan M. Wheeler 85
Outside Opportunities: Sabbaticals, Fellowships, and Details Kelly Steve Adams-Smith 89
What If I Disagree? Dissent in the Foreign Service Ambassador Thomas Boyatt 94
The Foreign Service Family 97
Tai Tai: A Diplomat's Wife in the Middle Kingdom Donna Scaramastra Gorman 99
A (Non-Traditional) Tandem in India Clayton Bond 104
Waking Up in Vietnam Benjamin Winnick 106
A Cross Cultural Friendship Rachel Midura 109
A Spouse at Work in the Mission Aryani Manring 114
Part III A Day in the Life of the Foreign Service: One-Day Journals 119
A Consular Officer in Chennai, India Kris Fresonke 120
A Principal Officer in Recife, Brazil Diana Page 122
An Economic Officer in Dhaka, Bangladesh Carter Wilbur 124
A Consul General in Vladivostok, Russia Tom Armbruster 126
An Economic and Commercial Officer in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso Pamela Hamblett 128
A Cultural Affairs Officer in Dushanbe, Tajikistan Anne Benjaminson 130
An Environment, Science, Technology, and Health Officer in Tegucigalpa, Honduras Jason Mclnemey 132
An Office Management Specialist in Stockholm, Sweden Lynn C. Stapleton 135
A Counselor for Public Affairs in Nouakchott, Mauritania Heather Carlin Fabrikant 137
A Consular Officer in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam James P. Du Vernay 139
A Community Liaison Office Coordinator in Buenos Aires, Argentina Candace Brasseur 141
A Political Officer in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo Tracy Whittington 144
A Political Officer and Arms Control Delegate in Vienna, Austria Hugh Neighbour 146
A Foreign Service Spouse in San Jose, Costa Rica Kelly Schierma 148
A Political/Economic Section Chief in Conakry, Guinea Shannon Nagy Cazeau 150
A Political Officer/Stabilization Coordinator in Port-au-Prince, Haiti David Becker 152
A Public Affairs Officer in Baghdad, Iraq Michael McClellan 155
A Commercial Counselor in Mexico City, Mexico Michael Lally 158
A Regional Medical Officer in Moscow, Russia Larry Padget 160
A Public Affairs Officer in Guangzhou, China Ed Dunn 162
A Consular Officer in Guangzhou, China Esther Pan Sloane 164
A Political Officer in Dhi Qar, Iraq Jon Donchner 165
A Consular Officer in Shanghai, China Jaimee Macanas Neel 168
An Ambassador in Harare, Zimbabwe Charles Ray 170
Part IV The Foreign Service in Action: Tales from the Field 173
Democracy Under Construction: Maldives, 2006 Anamika Chakravorty 174
After the Asian Tsunami: Thailand, 2004 Mike Chadwick 176
Ten for a Dollar: Liberia, 1996 Michael Bricker 178
Madonna in Kunduz: Afghanistan, 2008 Matthew Asada 179
Surviving a Terrorist Attack: Yemen, 2008 David Turnbull 182
One Riot, One Ambassador: Macedonia, 1999 Charles A. Stoneripher 184
Anatomy of an Evacuation: Guinea, 2007 Rosemary Motisi 186
Cyclone Sidr Relief: Bangladesh, 2007 Heather Variava 189
A Hot August in Kirkuk: Iraq, 2008 Jeffrey Ashley 190
In the Wake of Terrorist Attacks: Egypt, 2005 Jacqueline Deley 192
Disarming Iran's Nuclear Campaign: Austria, 2005 Matthew Boland 194
A New Country is Born: Kosovo, 2008 Christopher Midura 196
Watching Your Embassy Burn: Serbia, 2008 Rian Harker Harris 198
U.S. Security for the Beijing Olympics: China, 2008 Sean O'Brien 201
Al-Qaida Attack on the Consulate: Saudi Arabia, 2004 Heather E. Kalmbach 202
A Prayer for Democracy: Burma, 1998 Andrew R. Young 204
Part V So You Want to Join the Foreign Service? 207
A Guide to State Department Generalist (FSO) Hiring 207
Disabled and in the Foreign Service Avraham Rabby 209
Which Career Track Is Right for Me? Kelly Adams-Smith 215
Acronyms and Terms for the Assessment Process 223
Weeding Out the Dummies Anonymous 224
The Thirteen Dimensions of Foreign Service Work 229
Preparing for a Career in the Foreign Service: What to Read, Study, and Do Mark Palermo 234
A Guide to State Department Specialist (FSS) Hiring 236
Joining the U.S. Agency for International Development 241
Joining the Foreign Agricultural Service 247
Joining the Foreign Commercial Service 249
Joining the International Broadcasting Bureau 250
Internships and Fellowships Scott Kofmehl Danielle Derbes 251
Appendix 257
Acronyms and Abbreviations 257
Agencies and Organizations 257
Embassy Offices, Positions, and Related Terms 259
Foreign Affairs Online Resources 262
Selected Readings 263
Study Resources for the Foreign Service Officer Test 264
