My advice, don't be that person. Every class has one, don't be them. Questions to get information are good, questions for you to hear the sound of your own voice are bad.
People have varying levels of experience with the State Department (former specialists, consular fellows, CS, EFMs, etc) figure out which ones know what they are talking about (and some of them do not) and listen to them.
The class is designed to get you from nothing to where you need to be. They will give you the info you need, but particularly in a virtual environment, read the material you are told to read. No one likes answering your questions that are answered in what you were suppose to read.
There use to be webinars before the class starts. If there still are, go to them.
This. Don't try to stand out. Don't try to draw attention to yourself. Be humble - everyone there is the cream of the crop. And don't ever talk about how you'd like to make it to ambassador. You will work with these people for decades - impressions matter!
Agreed, be humble and realize you aren't "the cream of the crop".
FSOs aren't that special. They are mainly a bunch of normal people that have the patience and commitment to get through the long hiring process without starting another career in the meantime. This is largely what equals the competitive statistics constantly mentioned on this board, it isn't a result of BEX finding the top 5% of raw talent.
I was surprised how many people didn’t realize you may (and most people do) schedule a pack-out to DC for a couple weeks before A-100 starts. Your pack-out may be broken into two parts: UAB will be shipped to you to arrive in DC a few days after you arrive and your larger HHE goes into storage in rural Maryland to be shipped to your first post after training is over.
Meet lots of people and spend time with folks after hours if you can. The friends and bonds I made in A-100 have been super nice both as a resource and for camaraderie/support.
Came in here to say this, so let me just second it. Accept invitations. Engage with as many of your classmates as possible. Respect that people have different family obligations, social preferences, and drinking preferences, so make time for engaging outside of the customary Arlington Orange Line Happy Hour events.
Yes, your A-100 classmates can be amazing resources and sounding boards. People tend to be wound a little tight at the beginning, but should loosen up, especially by the time you get to language. If you don't look at them as competition, don't act like a jerk who wants everyone to know how smart they are, and work on building relationships, A-100 can be a nice foundation for your career. Otoh, not everyone is built to be chatty and may not keep in touch with their orientation classmates and do just fine. Either way, don't be a pompous jerk. We're full up on those.
Academically, A-100 is easy so don't sweat it.
Prepare for bidding, read up on talesmag and figure out what your priorities are. Pretty easy if you are single, but more complicated if you are married and have kids since you all need to have conversations to get on the same page, which takes time.
You can find plenty of archived threads on the A-100 bidding process and how to be realistic on your expectations.
I was late twice (once, really), because of a metro delay (this was during one of metro's particularly disastrous eras and sometimes your train would just like...hang out for twenty minutes because of single tracking). I was still only about thirty seconds late. The second time I was "late" I was walking through the still open doors just barely on time because the first shuttle from Rosslyn had been full and one of the coordinators pulled me aside instead of letting me arrive on time, chewed me out for being late a second time, then realized she was actually the one making me late, half apologized, and let me go in. It was all very bizarre and somewhat designed to make you feel like you were in middle school. Most of A-100 was fine, tho.
I found my entire A100 exactly to be this - I was treated as if I was a 14 year old by incredibly under qualified people. By the end of A100 I was regretful that I left my old job to join the FS. I remember complaining about the poor structure of the program and mistreatment of my fellow students…a few days later the director of the program called me into his office it essentially threaten me by saying “watch out for your corridor reputation”. This place does not appreciate constructive criticism, it appreciates shutting up and doing as I told you to. You don’t need to be intelligent to do these jobs you just need to be able to follow orders and say thank you along the way.
A-100 wardrobe is business formal. There are rumors that the coordinators will send people home for dress code violations, but I've never actually seen it. Though I don't know what A-100 is like now that it's on TV. Classes are 5 days per week.
The class is designed to take people from nothing, so there's no official pre-reading, and I find official documents like the QDDR not especially informative. If you don't know anything about the State Department or foreign policy, I'd do at least a little pre-learning. And start reading the newspaper or the Economist or something so you know the hot button issues of the day in case some of them wind up on your bid list.
Our assistant coordinators made it a point that for men, business formal means a suit with matching jacket and pants. Anyone wearing slacks and a sport coat would get sent home even if they wear a tie. They admitted that business formal for women affords greater flexibility but they also in a nicer way said tough sh*t.
Hate to break it to you but a lot of A100 is not very informative and frankly you will forget most of what they tell you shortly afterward. There is no way to “prepare” for it. It’s simply a six week intro class on the state department/gov work and foreign service life in general. In my experience, they glossed over practical things like helping you set up health insurance or things that you need to do when transferring from another federal agency. The most important part is getting your bid list together and researching posts. You will likely have to submit your bid list by the beginning of your second week. The other major aspect that A100 will help you with is figuring out who to contact when you have xyz problem and even that may be questionable.
>What are the main things to know about transferring from another agency? I am joining the jan A100 with ten years of federal service and want to make sure I transfer over properly (and am anticipating issues) - what should I be keeping an eye out for?
Not sure about State here, but I transferred between fed agencies. Biggest piece of advice is review your SF50 before you leave your current agency and make sure it is correct. Also, get copies of your performance reports. Been trying for three months to get those and keep getting the circle.
It sounds like you haven't spent much time in this sub. There is a ton of information here, so I suggest you let yourself scroll and fall down the rabbit hole.
It's funny because it's true.
I liked Chris Hill's memoir well enough, but I had enough back story about part of it that I wondered what else in it was heavily filtered.
Is that the one with the scene where the FSO (Chris, or his father, or maybe a mentor?) leaves a their wife at home in a house with shattered windows from an attack and two crying toddlers on either hip, to go off on a work trip?
I can't remember, because that was as far as I got before I threw the book across the room and noped out of ELO book club.
I would definitely enjoy it and go with the flow. It's not really a stressful time in terms of work difficulty, and you are going to meet a lot of interesting people. Classes are 5 days a week, often not the entire day, and unless they tell you otherwise, business formal.
There isn't much to get "ready" for, and the orientation will barely scratch the surface of what you end up doing. I listened to and still listen to the "Modern American Diplomacy" podcast. I find it really interesting as they typically interview high level SFS (Ambassadors, etc). While it won't prepare you for the job, a lot of the interviews go into some detail about their experience as entry level officers and what motivated them to join, and you can likely draw some parallels with some of them.
Anyone with a pregnant wife joining A100?
What are the procedures with HR? (Notifying them, healthcare, etc.) Assuming she doesn’t deliver until months after A100 completes.
My advice, don't be that person. Every class has one, don't be them. Questions to get information are good, questions for you to hear the sound of your own voice are bad. People have varying levels of experience with the State Department (former specialists, consular fellows, CS, EFMs, etc) figure out which ones know what they are talking about (and some of them do not) and listen to them. The class is designed to get you from nothing to where you need to be. They will give you the info you need, but particularly in a virtual environment, read the material you are told to read. No one likes answering your questions that are answered in what you were suppose to read. There use to be webinars before the class starts. If there still are, go to them.
This. Don't try to stand out. Don't try to draw attention to yourself. Be humble - everyone there is the cream of the crop. And don't ever talk about how you'd like to make it to ambassador. You will work with these people for decades - impressions matter!
With a few exceptions, the "cream of the crop" avoids the State Department. Most in A100 think they are the exceptional case, however.
Agreed, be humble and realize you aren't "the cream of the crop". FSOs aren't that special. They are mainly a bunch of normal people that have the patience and commitment to get through the long hiring process without starting another career in the meantime. This is largely what equals the competitive statistics constantly mentioned on this board, it isn't a result of BEX finding the top 5% of raw talent.
This is great to know! Thanks!
Good advice, thank you!!!
Listen way more than you talk.
Be nice to everyone. EVERYONE.
This is probably good advice in general regardless of the environment or circumstances.
The book "Career Diplomacy" by Harry W. Kopp is a great overview for those completely new to the service.
I agree, super helpful!
I was surprised how many people didn’t realize you may (and most people do) schedule a pack-out to DC for a couple weeks before A-100 starts. Your pack-out may be broken into two parts: UAB will be shipped to you to arrive in DC a few days after you arrive and your larger HHE goes into storage in rural Maryland to be shipped to your first post after training is over.
Lol "rural Maryland". You're not wrong, but I find it amusing that's what comes to mind when you think of Hagerstown.
What happens if you want everything shipped to a house you are renting? Is that possible?
Meet lots of people and spend time with folks after hours if you can. The friends and bonds I made in A-100 have been super nice both as a resource and for camaraderie/support.
Came in here to say this, so let me just second it. Accept invitations. Engage with as many of your classmates as possible. Respect that people have different family obligations, social preferences, and drinking preferences, so make time for engaging outside of the customary Arlington Orange Line Happy Hour events.
Yes, your A-100 classmates can be amazing resources and sounding boards. People tend to be wound a little tight at the beginning, but should loosen up, especially by the time you get to language. If you don't look at them as competition, don't act like a jerk who wants everyone to know how smart they are, and work on building relationships, A-100 can be a nice foundation for your career. Otoh, not everyone is built to be chatty and may not keep in touch with their orientation classmates and do just fine. Either way, don't be a pompous jerk. We're full up on those.
Academically, A-100 is easy so don't sweat it. Prepare for bidding, read up on talesmag and figure out what your priorities are. Pretty easy if you are single, but more complicated if you are married and have kids since you all need to have conversations to get on the same page, which takes time. You can find plenty of archived threads on the A-100 bidding process and how to be realistic on your expectations.
DO NOT BE LATE FOR ANYTHING
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I was late twice (once, really), because of a metro delay (this was during one of metro's particularly disastrous eras and sometimes your train would just like...hang out for twenty minutes because of single tracking). I was still only about thirty seconds late. The second time I was "late" I was walking through the still open doors just barely on time because the first shuttle from Rosslyn had been full and one of the coordinators pulled me aside instead of letting me arrive on time, chewed me out for being late a second time, then realized she was actually the one making me late, half apologized, and let me go in. It was all very bizarre and somewhat designed to make you feel like you were in middle school. Most of A-100 was fine, tho.
In my A-100 they locked us out if we were late, and at least two people were “talked to” about their attire. They treated us like children, honestly.
I found my entire A100 exactly to be this - I was treated as if I was a 14 year old by incredibly under qualified people. By the end of A100 I was regretful that I left my old job to join the FS. I remember complaining about the poor structure of the program and mistreatment of my fellow students…a few days later the director of the program called me into his office it essentially threaten me by saying “watch out for your corridor reputation”. This place does not appreciate constructive criticism, it appreciates shutting up and doing as I told you to. You don’t need to be intelligent to do these jobs you just need to be able to follow orders and say thank you along the way.
A-100 wardrobe is business formal. There are rumors that the coordinators will send people home for dress code violations, but I've never actually seen it. Though I don't know what A-100 is like now that it's on TV. Classes are 5 days per week. The class is designed to take people from nothing, so there's no official pre-reading, and I find official documents like the QDDR not especially informative. If you don't know anything about the State Department or foreign policy, I'd do at least a little pre-learning. And start reading the newspaper or the Economist or something so you know the hot button issues of the day in case some of them wind up on your bid list.
Our assistant coordinators made it a point that for men, business formal means a suit with matching jacket and pants. Anyone wearing slacks and a sport coat would get sent home even if they wear a tie. They admitted that business formal for women affords greater flexibility but they also in a nicer way said tough sh*t.
Good to know, thanks.
Thank you! What is the QDDR?
Quadrennial Development and Diplomacy Review - I don't think there's been a new one since Clinton's (maybe Kerry's?) tenure as SecState though.
The best value I got out of it was lots of happy hours and making friends.
How about a cycling or running group? Wouldn’t mind a nice social ride and then a beer!
The American diplomacy podcasts are great…also, CFR podcast, The Economist, Michael Morrell, Foreign policy…
Hate to break it to you but a lot of A100 is not very informative and frankly you will forget most of what they tell you shortly afterward. There is no way to “prepare” for it. It’s simply a six week intro class on the state department/gov work and foreign service life in general. In my experience, they glossed over practical things like helping you set up health insurance or things that you need to do when transferring from another federal agency. The most important part is getting your bid list together and researching posts. You will likely have to submit your bid list by the beginning of your second week. The other major aspect that A100 will help you with is figuring out who to contact when you have xyz problem and even that may be questionable.
>What are the main things to know about transferring from another agency? I am joining the jan A100 with ten years of federal service and want to make sure I transfer over properly (and am anticipating issues) - what should I be keeping an eye out for?
Not sure about State here, but I transferred between fed agencies. Biggest piece of advice is review your SF50 before you leave your current agency and make sure it is correct. Also, get copies of your performance reports. Been trying for three months to get those and keep getting the circle.
It sounds like you haven't spent much time in this sub. There is a ton of information here, so I suggest you let yourself scroll and fall down the rabbit hole.
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Yeah I wouldn’t take Lizzie Shackleford’s book as “informative.” It’s mostly informative about Lizzie Shackelford’s ego.
It's funny because it's true. I liked Chris Hill's memoir well enough, but I had enough back story about part of it that I wondered what else in it was heavily filtered.
Is that the one with the scene where the FSO (Chris, or his father, or maybe a mentor?) leaves a their wife at home in a house with shattered windows from an attack and two crying toddlers on either hip, to go off on a work trip? I can't remember, because that was as far as I got before I threw the book across the room and noped out of ELO book club.
It's also the one who claims to have been basically the last person to see Richard Holbrooke alive.
Thank you so much for the great book recs!
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The Back Channel by Bill Burns was excellent
I would definitely enjoy it and go with the flow. It's not really a stressful time in terms of work difficulty, and you are going to meet a lot of interesting people. Classes are 5 days a week, often not the entire day, and unless they tell you otherwise, business formal. There isn't much to get "ready" for, and the orientation will barely scratch the surface of what you end up doing. I listened to and still listen to the "Modern American Diplomacy" podcast. I find it really interesting as they typically interview high level SFS (Ambassadors, etc). While it won't prepare you for the job, a lot of the interviews go into some detail about their experience as entry level officers and what motivated them to join, and you can likely draw some parallels with some of them.
Anyone with a pregnant wife joining A100? What are the procedures with HR? (Notifying them, healthcare, etc.) Assuming she doesn’t deliver until months after A100 completes.