U.S. Department of State Announces Reforms to the U.S. Foreign Service

Today the U.S. Department of State announces a series of reforms to the United States Foreign Service to ensure that America’s diplomats are prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century and effectively advocate for our national interests across the globe.

These modernization reforms impact both the selection and orientation processes for the Foreign Service. Applicants will be tested on American history, foreign policy concepts, and logical reasoning, while questions intended to test alignment with ideological agendas have been eliminated. Foreign Service orientation will now focus on training on core skills, including public speaking and negotiation, as well as lectures on essential topics like economic strategy, commercial diplomacy, and diplomatic history.

The State Department invites patriotic Americans to apply to join the Foreign Service. Testing registration is now open. Tests will be held from May 15th to May 22nd.

“The Trump administration is modernizing the Foreign Service to prepare America’s diplomats to advocate for our national interest on a dynamically changing world stage,” Department of State Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said. “In this revamped program, Foreign Service Officers will be trained in crucial skills like public speaking and negotiation and engage with international relations theory on topics ranging from commercial diplomacy to grand strategy. The State Department encourages the many patriotic Americans from across the country looking to serve their country to apply to join the Foreign Service.”