Foreign Service Specialist Positions

A recruiting priority for the U.S. Department of State's Foreign Service (Diplomatic Corps) is for Foreign Service Specialist positions. These are positions in certain fields where the Corps is looking for people with relevant on-the-job experience. Foreign Service Specialists staff U.S. Embassies and Consulates overseas and rotate positions every 2-3 years.

Foreign Service Specialist Position Descriptions:

Administration

• Financial Management Officers -- develop budgets and financial plans, control obligations and expenditures, prepare and audit payment vouchers, administer payroll plans, approve salary and allowance payments and monitor cash operations. (Needs 1-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education. Applicants with finance-related higher education and specific experience in financial management or accounting are preferred.)

• General Services Officers (Logistics Officers) -- manage physical resources and logistical functions to include procurement and contracting, warehouse operations, inventory/property, leasing services, travel and transportation, motor pool and vehicle maintenance, space management and supervision of staff. (Needs 2-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education. Needs specialized experience in three or more of the following areas: procurement, contracts, customs and shipping, supervision of inventory, supervision of motor pool operations, negotiating for purchase and lease of real estate, managing a housing pool, or managing an employee travel program)

• Human Resources Officers -- responsible for recruitment, employee training and development, performance management, employee relations, salary and benefits administration, employee policies and procedures and position classification. (Needs 3-5 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education. Applicants must have experience in the field of HR. Experience in a multicultural, diverse, or international environment and applicants with certification(s) from professional human resources societies, associations, or organizations are preferred. )

• Office Management Specialists -- duties include general office management, conference and visitor support, administrative and secretarial support. (Needs 1-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education)

Construction Engineering 

• Construction Engineers -- monitor and report on contract work overseas to ensure that the construction of new properties and renovation of existing properties are completed properly, on time and within budget. (Needs a minimum of 3 years of relevant work experience, along with relevant bachelors or masters degree. Specialized experience MUST have been obtained through assignments to field sites on vertical construction projects.)

Facility Management

• Facility Managers -- administer the upkeep of buildings, grounds, fixtures and utilities overseas while supervising one of the largest and most diverse work forces domestically or at our posts overseas. (Needs 2-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education; or no experience needed if you have a Bachelors or Masters degree in Facility Management or Facilities Engineering)

  
  

  Information Technology 

• Information Management Technical Specialist (Radio) -- duties include performing site surveys, installation and maintenance of associated hardware and software for UHF/VHF land mobile systems. (Needs 1-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education; U.S. Military Technical Training accepted)
   
  
• Information Management Technical Specialists (Unified Communications) -- are responsible for the installation, repair, and maintenance of a wide range of telecommunications and computer systems. (Needs 1-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education; U.S. Military Technical Training accepted)
  
  
• Information Management Specialists -- manage and operate worldwide information technology infrastructure, including PC local and wide area networks, telecommunications systems, telephone and UHF/VHF programs, and diplomatic pouch and mail services. (Needs 2 years of relevant work experience w/ a non-IT degree, no work experience needed with an IT degree, or 2-years of U.S. military IT-related training or specialty) 

Law Enforcement and Security 

• Diplomatic Security Special Agents -- sworn federal law enforcement officers and specially trained Foreign Service security professionals. While serving overseas as a Regional Security Officer, a DS Special Agent advises the U.S. Ambassador on all security matters and manages a complex range of security programs designed to protect personnel, facilities, and information. DS Special Agents protect the U.S. Secretary of State and visiting foreign dignitaries, investigate passport and visa fraud, and conduct personnel security investigations. (Applicants must have at least one year of work experience and/or academic achievements that reflect progressively increasing levels of responsibility. At the time of application, applicants must possess at least a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university. Applicants with 18 credit hours of graduate level study may substitute that academic achievement for a year of work experience.) 

• Diplomatic Couriers -- travel throughout the far reaches of the world to ensure the safe and secure transfer of diplomatic pouches containing classified and sensitive materials. It is not unusual for pouch shipments to contain thousands of pounds of equipment and construction materials bound for sensitive posts. With travel and independence highlighting their careers, Diplomatic Couriers accept the challenges as well as the benefits of serving under all kinds of conditions. (Needs 1-3 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education)

• Security Engineering Officers -- provide technical security support and engineering expertise to protect U.S. Foreign Service posts overseas and in domestic locations. Responsibilities include working with all aspects of security systems – from design, development and analysis to installation and testing. Security Engineering Officers conduct security assessments for U.S. overseas missions, conduct technical surveillance countermeasure inspections, implement computer security measures, and support dignitary travel. (Applicants must have a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree, Master of Science (MS), or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Physics or in an Engineering program)

• Security Technical Specialists -- provide support and assist in worldwide technical security programs which provide protection for U.S. Department of State facilities and personnel from technical espionage, acts of terrorism, and crime. Their work is incredibly varied – managing projects and people, supporting dignitary travel, exploring the use of new technology, and installing, maintaining, and repairing a vast array of complex technical security equipment. (Needs up to 2 years of relevant work experience, depending on highest level of education)
  

Medical and Health 

• Medical Provider (MP – NP/PA) -- Our certified Family Nurse Practitioners or Physician Assistants provide primary, acute and emergency care to U.S. government employees and their eligible family members abroad. Medical Providers spend about 80 percent of their careers abroad, generally in austere or remote countries and relocate every 2-4 years. Medical Providers receive AMA PRA Category 1 credits each year through Department of State-sponsored CME programs. (Applicants must be currently licensed as a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) or Physician Assistant (PA) in a state, a territory of the U.S., Puerto Rico, or the District of Columbia and must have current national certification as a FNP or the PA-equivalent. Applicants must have a minimum of five (5) years of full-time clinical experience within the past seven (7) years, post NP or PA family practice certification, with at least 75% of the time involved in direct primary care.) 

• Regional Medical Laboratory Scientists -- provide invaluable support to medical units for U.S. government medical specialists, employees, and eligible family members. Responsibilities include managing laboratories at assigned posts in a given region, providing technical consulting and performing competency assessments, evaluating quality assurance, and implementing health/safety programs for laboratories and post populations. Regional Medical Laboratory Scientists receive continuing education credits by attending national laboratory CME programs each year. (Applicants must have a minimum of five (5) years of full-time post-certification laboratory experience within the last seven (7) years in the Chemistry, Hematology and Immunology areas of the laboratory. Applicants must possess a relevant Bachelor’s degree, must demonstrate completion of a National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS) Program for a Medical Laboratory Scientist, or Medical Technologist, and must have a current national certification as a Medical Laboratory Scientist or Medical Technologist.) 
  
  
• Regional Medical Officer -- These board-certified physicians provide primary medical, acute and emergency care to U.S. government employees and their eligible family members abroad. Regional Medical Officers are required to travel throughout assigned regions. Benefits include an annual Physicians Comparability Allowance (PCA) of $14,000 to $30,000. Regional Medical Officers also receive AMA PRA Category 1 credits each year through Department of State-sponsored CME programs. (Applicants must be currently board certified in Family Practice (preferred) or Internal Medicine or Emergency Medicine (accepted) by the American Board of Medical Specialties or Osteopathic Board. Applicants must have a minimum of five (5) years of full time post-residency clinical experience within the past seven (7) years, in providing primary care to adults, children, and infants, with at least 75% of the time involved in direct patient care. Applicants must possess a Doctor of Medicine (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathy (DO) degree from a school in the U.S. or Canada that was approved by a recognized U.S. accrediting body).
   
  
• Regional Medical Officers/Psychiatrists -- provide primary psychiatric care to U.S. government employees and their eligible family members abroad. Regional Medical Officers/Psychiatrists are required to travel extensively throughout assigned regions. Benefits include an annual Physicians Comparability Allowance (PCA) of $14,000 to $30,000. Regional Medical Officers/ Psychiatrists also receive continuing education credits each year through Department of State-sponsored CME programs. (Applicants must possess a Doctor of Medicine (MD) or Doctor of Osteopathy (DO) degree from a school in the U.S. or Canada that was approved by a recognized U.S. accrediting body. Applicants must have a current, valid, and unrestricted license to practice medicine in a state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States. Applicant must have a current board certification by the ABPN and have a minimum of five years post-residency clinical experience within the past seven years, in adult or child/adolescent psychiatry with at least 50% of the applicant’s time involved in direct patient care during the last five years.)

International Information and English Language Programs 

• Regional English Language Officers -- work with U.S. embassies and consulates to develop long-term English language programming strategic plans. They develop sustained partnerships with English language professionals, encourage their membership in a mutually supportive global network, support their professional growth, and enhance their ability to influence positively the lives of their students. (Applicants must have a Master’s degree in a relevant or closely related field such as TESOL or Applied Linguistics, and 10 years out of the last 15 years of Specialized Experience) 
  
  
• Regional Public Engagement Specialists -- counsel Mission Officials on effective information program resources and services, assess staff needs, carry out regional training programs, demonstrate and promote U.S. electronic information resources, and establish contacts with host country information and library institutions. (Applicants must have a Masters’ degree in Library Science, Media, Culture and Communication, or Media and Strategic Communication, and three years of Specialized Experience in the last 10 years.)