DIPLOMATIC PERSONNEL, PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND CHALLENGES Analysis

This essay delves into the professional ethics and challenges faced by diplomatic personnel in the U.S. Foreign Service. It explores the recruitment and assessment processes, highlighting the importance of diversity and cultural consciousness among new diplomats. The essay discusses the five tracks within the Foreign Service, emphasizing the roles of consular officers, management officials, and other categories. It analyzes the challenges faced by consular officers, including visa application processes and the need to assess applicants' intentions. The document references key literature on career diplomacy, consular service, and foreign service functions, providing a comprehensive overview of the subject.

Running Head: DIPLOMATIC PERSONNEL, PROFESSIONAL ETHICS & CHALLENGES
Diplomatic Personnel, Professional Ethics and Challenges
Student’s Name
Institution
Date

DIPLOMATIC PERSONNEL, PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND CHALLENGES 2
As revealed in the chapter entitled “Foreign Service Functions: Five Tracks”, foreign
service officers must be accepted and approved by the commissioning and tenure board. There
are five years that the new foreign service officers have to complete regardless of whether they
start at the entry level or middle level. In the first two years the candidates tour several countries
outside United States. These two years are the most important as they give the candidates a
chance to increase their service. Most of the new officers do not have a choice of work in their
track until they get approved. Once approved, their work is wholly consular affairs whose duty is
to provide the security services to the American citizens living abroad as well as administering
the provision of visas to the U.S immigration law (Ober Jr., 2015). The US State Department
divides its diplomatic posts into five broad categories, namely consular officers, management
officials, economic affairs officials, political affairs officials, and public foreign affairs officials
(Kopp & Gillespie, 2011). All candidates who meet the eligibility criteria will take the
undifferentiated selection test. After passing a series of exams, the State Council will include
them in different candidate sequences according to the needs of overseas positions and the
professional inclination of candidates. They are selected through recruitment and assessment.
The recruitment mentioned here refers to the fact that through publicity and tours, the American
people can truly understand the diplomatic work of the United States and let more people have
the opportunity to apply for US diplomats. The assessment, as the name suggests, is to select the
candidates who best meet the requirements of diplomatic work through a series of examinations
(Mizzi, 2015).
New officers entering the consular work must pass through the foreign institute courses
where training is intensive but essential. Consular also approves the request for permission to
enter U.S either by immigrants as well as the non- migrants where there is an interview of the

DIPLOMATIC PERSONNEL, PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND CHALLENGES 3
visas applicants in person conducted by the American consular officer. Non-immigrant visa work
can be very depressing and frustrating as it tries to determine if the applicant can go against the
conditions of the visa and also to stay illegally in the U.S (Claybaugh, 2009). Another challenge
is that the consular officers who had the previous careers are not recognized and everyone is
treated the same. Those engaged in consular affairs and management are seen as less important
unlike those in substantive political, economic and public diplomacy positions. Economic affairs
involve range of issues that have significant economic content and economic officers benefit
from this while the political officers bring the foreign governments around the U.S point of view.
It can be inferred that a new generation of more diverse US diplomats needs to be
culturally conscious, adaptable and comprehensive, quick-minded, and able to solve complex
issues such as terrorism, human rights and drug trafficking, cybercrime and public health crises
in innovative ways. The composition of diplomats reflects the diversity of the United States
itself. In order to promote the interests of the United States in the world, the diversity within the
diplomatic corps is extremely important.

DIPLOMATIC PERSONNEL, PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND CHALLENGES 4
References
Claybaugh, A. (2009). The Consular Service and US Literature: Nathaniel Hawthorne Abroad.
Novel: A Forum on Fiction, 42(2), 284–289. https://doi.org/10.1215/00295132-2009-016
Kopp, H., & Gillespie, C. A. (2011). Career diplomacy: Life and work in the U.S. foreign
service. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.
Mizzi, S. (2015). Documenting Consular History. Foreign Service Journal, 57. Retrieved from
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=a9h&AN=110467357&site=ehost-live
Ober Jr., R. F. (2015). More than 100 Former U.S. Ambassadors A Consular Conundrum.
Foreign Service Journal, 15. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=a9h&AN=109369242&site=ehost-live