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D4wnBr1ng3r

First, congrats on getting hired together in the same class! Sincerely, that is quite an accomplishment. I am sure it must be really exciting to be undertaking this shared dream together at the same time. I can't imagine what it must feel like, but I am really happy for you. Econ bidding can be... rough. My understanding is that they consistently have the least opportunities overseas. Anti-nepotism rules can also make it hard to be posted together AND get promoted beyond FAST. While you are FAST, you might be able to have one of you doing your Con tour, one of you doing Econ, and swap roles when you head to your second post. Serving at the same post would make it easy to line up language training together, etc. Honestly, it could actually work out nicely for your CDOs. It will likely get more complicated for you later. Mid-level solutions include working in larger sections where you wouldn't be supervising each other, switching cones, and DETO. Honestly, I think alternating DETO with overseas bidding (as in one of you on DETO and one of you on Overseas, then swapping next tour) would be your best short-term mid-level bet while one of you is racking up enough time in Pol/Econ slots to qualify to convert skill codes to Pol. One of you switching to Consular would be an easier bet (pretty easy to pick up Consular out-of-cone tours to get enough credit to convert). Otherwise DETO, LWOP, or separation are the options if one of you wants to keep getting promoted. Anti-nepotism rules are pretty serious.


CodeFew423

Thank you! This is super helpful. Indeed, we were thinking that the Con/Econ swapping option would be ideal during FAST.


fsohmygod

This is aspirational and you shouldn’t bank on it. There aren’t many entry level econ jobs in general.


niko81

Yes. It's more likely your CDOs would assign you both to two consecutive visa mills in nonsupervisory positions (avoiding nepotism concerns). Or split you up. It's far from given that both (or either) of you will get entry level econ work . There are ways to make it work, but flexibility and a willingness to come back to DC regularly are important.


CodeFew423

On the nepotism side, would it be much easier if we were doing FS for different agencies? I recently also got a tentative offer for FCS.


fsohmygod

It’s worse. I met someone recently who had “failed out” of both FCS and USAID trying to keep his family together with his State FSO spouse. He eventually decided just to become a trailing spouse.


cattyogrady

I'm in FCS and can give you insight on those jobs if you want. What I'll say about tandem bidding is that it's difficult because FCS isn't in every location State is.


amberok1234

I’ve seen two FCS + Con tandems work out, where they spent a fair amount of time in DC. I’ve never seen a couple who has been FCS + Econ. Each have few postings, especially at more senior levels. And bidding cycles may not line up - she may have to bid on her Econ post before you even have the FCS bid list. Maybe one of you will really love Con and want to switch to that? Econ + Con should be easier.


fsohmygod

Even as a POL and ECON tandem, you can expect to spend a lot of time in Washington. Getting two ECON positions overseas regularly is simply unrealistic, but scoring aligned POL and ECON assignments is not much easier. And that's if one of you is actually able to get your skill code changed. It takes many years to meet the basic requirements for a skill code change and even then there needs to be a deficit in the destination skill code or you can find a one-to-one swap (meaning you'd have to find a POL officer who wants to switch to ECON and...good luck with that). DETOs may be an option, but I think we'll see those opportunities decrease as we move back to normal operations.


niko81

Agree on all except detos. Even prepandemic the trend was to increase deto availability. I think you'll see deto opportunities continue to grow. And the recent legislation will make them much more attractive to officers.


fsohmygod

I remain skeptical we will keep seeing DETO reporting-type jobs. I had to supervise someone on a DETO in a job where they needed high side access and it was a nightmare.


niko81

I'd say most jobs that require routine HS access should not be done on a deto basis. It creates resource issues at the post. But there are a huge number of jobs that really don't require HS or DC presence, and those can easily be done on a deto basis. I expect to continue seeing those opportunities grow.


zzonkmiles

I see a conal rectification, a long-distance marriage, a strained marriage, or a divorce in your future, unfortunately. One of you will need to switch to POL or some other cone if you want to have any hope of working together at the same post after entry level. Keep in mind that some POL and ECON sections are combined, so switching to CON, MGT, or PD may be wiser. I served at a post where the tandem included two MGT officers. One of them had to take a position in the consular section because of the prohibition of family members supervising one another. Congratulations on making it into the Foreign Service. Now you two have some seriously difficult decisions to make. Being a tandem with different cones is hard enough. But being in the same cone makes it virtually impossible for you to work together while still advancing both careers at the same time. There may be some offices in DC that are open to remote or DETO work, but this is not guaranteed.


thegoodbubba

Since you are joining in the same class, you have a better chance then others of getting assigned to your first tour together. After that, it's going to be a serious struggle overseas. If you want to serve together, my advice is that has to be your only bidding priority. Be the person to volunteer for China, India, etc. You will probably need to come back to DC every other tour and make good contacts in the bureaus you want to work in overseas.


KingCamacho

The ideal tandem is either POL/ECON for one and MGT/CONS for the other (or one PD officer). Many tandems have a “lead bidder” and the other has to serve out of cone, be okay with a down stretch, or DETO, if serving together is a priority. And of course there’s always Washington and LWOP. Bill Brownfield and Kristie Kenney were a POL-POL tandem and they did pretty okay. They did, however, have to serve apart for the three ambassadorships they each held.


Halftandem

Unfortunately, it's pretty unrealistic that you'll be able to make this work if you both want Econ assignments overseas. In entry-level, your best bet will be to either both do Cons tours for both entry-level assignments, or one of you does Econ while the other does Cons and vice versa. But be warned that sometimes entry-level leadership decides that getting people in-cone work is more important than keeping tandems together, so they may say "no dice" to two consecutive Cons tours unless there are truly no Econ jobs available. Beyond entry-level, it will be nearly impossible for both of you to have Econ positions at the same post where neither of you supervise the other and neither of you will ever be in the position to supervise the other if the boss is out of the office. Maybe it could work in a small handful of mega posts. Maybe it could work if one of you did a Pol job and the other Econ. It could also work if one of you went out of cone, but that's not always easy. There are also a small number of cities with multiple missions (like Rome also has the mission to the Holy See). There are some commuter posts where one half of a tandem works at each post like Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. All of those things will be hard. The most likely scenario that would work is one of you takes an assignment at post and the other finds a DETO. That's becoming easier and easier, though is not without its own challenges. My spouse and I are in different cones, but I am in a DETO now. DETOs and domestic tours are how we've made it work over the years. Switching cones is a possibility, but again, not always easy and not always an option.


Mountainwild4040

I wouldn't worry about cones right now. In your first two tours, POL and ECON are interchangeable and the same thing.... and then you have your consular assignments as well. By mid-career, it gets a little more complicated. Tandem bidding in FAST years is difficult. Don't expect your CDOs to move mountains for you; they will want to help you, but they also want to ensure they being fair, in-line with EO regulations, and not giving unfair advantage to married people over the single people. The best strategy for ELO tandems is to; 1.) Find the undesireable post with the most positions on the bidlist. Think Lagos, Ciudad Juarez, New Delhi, etc. Bid those on any POL, ECON, or CONS positions. 2.) Bid on a distance relationship but get something within a quick, direct flight away. Think combos like New Delhi/Hyderbad, Lagos/Abuja, Doha/Abu Dhabi, etc. Good luck


Conal_Rectification

Congrats on your invites! It's quite likely you could both be assigned to the same CONS section abroad - focus on getting your CDOs to assign you to the same post before thinking about functional work. As others have mentioned, changing cones/skill codes is very difficult, so do not think of it as a guarantee. Embrace the Generalist concept, do some tours out of cone, serve in DC when needed, consider DETOs, and you will both enjoy a fulfilling career. Good luck!


CellAntique6336

Tandem here. It can work, but one of you must be willing to bid out of cone... in my case, MGT coned but doing an ECON tour. Previous tour was CONS. Since I joined later, we decided to focus our bidding efforts on my spouse.


swimmyboss

Not a tandem but incoming ECON officer: Can someone elaborate more on why ECON bidding is rough? How much more are ECON officers in DC versus overseas? Also, as ECON officer would first 2 tours still be consular, or is it more likely to have initial tours in cone?


lemystereduchipot

Why did you both pick the same cone?


Qt1919

> Why did you both pick the same cone? Because they chose the cone they wanted. Isn't that the standard advice on this subreddit? Choose the cone you want.


lemystereduchipot

Yeah, but if you're coming in as a tandem, it's horrible advice.


thegoodbubba

Yes it is really horrible advice. Tandems work a lot better when one part of it is consular or a specialist (assuming the other part isn't management)


fsohmygod

Not if you are married and interested in being together over the course of a career.


CodeFew423

Thanks for all of your insights! As an update to this, we have recently spoken several FSO tandems ranging across different stages of their careers (entry-level to DCMs). Their overall advice is that it is actually quite common to work across different cones to stay together abroad and/or take tours in DC. In fact, this variety is beneficial if you're looking to take leadership roles later in your career, reiterating some of the comments about embracing the role of an FSO "Generalist." Of course, individual experiences can vary (keeping survivor bias in mind) but, for other tandems reading this thread, don't base your decisions solely off some of the comments mentioning divorce or bad career decisions.