The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2016

8 JULY-AUGUST 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Career Diplomacy Today BY SHAWN DORMAN W Shawn Dorman is the editor of The Foreign Service Journal. Thrive,” Ambassador (ret.) Stephen McFarland presents a set of sugges- tions—a permanent To-Do list—for developing the unique attributes of a Foreign Service professional. Finally, we look at the intake process, how to join the Foreign Service. Becom- ing an FSO for State is one of the most competitive processes for any career. In 2008, the process was revamped and a “total candidate” approach was adopted. We are grateful to the Board of Examiners—the people who run the hiring process—for providing a guide from the source in “Examining State’s Foreign Service Officer Hiring Today,” by FSO and BEX Assessor Glenn Gui- mond. This is the article to share with friends who are considering the career. And for our student readers consider- ing this path, we offer a three-page list of “State Department Opportunities for Students.” This month’s Speaking Out column addresses the career, too, as entry-level officer Andrew Kelly suggests ways to reform entry-level assignments. Following on our coverage of mental health care issues in the January-Feb- ruary issue, retired FSO Angela Dickey shares ideas for addressing the effects of work in high-stress environments. And, as promised, we bring you Part II of “Life After the Foreign Service: What We’re Doing Now.” Part I’s 22 essays, published in the May issue, proved popular with readers, and Part II (25 essays) will surely also resonate. n elcome to the summer double issue of the Jour- nal . This month we focus on various aspects of the Foreign Service career. First, we take a close look at the state of family member employment, an issue that can and sometimes does determine whether a member of the Foreign Ser- vice stays or goes. One major barrier to employment at post has long been the wait for security clearance approval. Each new posting has required a new clearance, which always takes months and, in some cases, can take as long as a full tour to get. But as former FSJ associate editor and family member Debra Blome was working on the article, State announced the Foreign Service Family Reserve Corps, which may offer a real step forward. The bottom-line benefit is that once family members do get that secu- rity clearance, they will be able to carry it with them from post to post. What about when both spouses are in the Foreign Service? Tandems have their own set of unique challenges, as described in “Tandem Couples: Serving Together, Apart,” by FSOs Fred Odisho and Whitney Dubinsky. They argue for more creative policies to help ensure that tandems can be assigned to the same post at the same time. In “A Roadmap for New Hires: 30 Rules to Survive and