A few weeks ago, the FSOA Yahoo Group got hacked by a spammer with the typical “get rich” scheme:

I am ROBERT BOILLIN I apologize for the inconvenience and I mention that it is with great sadness and hesitation that I send you this email. My name is Robert Boillin born on 29-07-1942 in Rouvray, in fact I contact you urgently because I have a cancer of esophagus terminally.I was contacted by my bank telling me that The French State would like to recover my funds 27.700.000 € after my death since I am a widower without children (without heir) .I want to donate this money to any honest person. It is in this perspective I ask you to contact me by e-mail my nataire Mr REGIS BERRUET if this gift interests you. I give you my most sincere respect. R. Boillin

After getting over my annoyance that this spam bot had managed to post the above plea over a dozen times to the FSOA boards, I decided to get creative. I had been recently practicing my hypotheticals for the Oral Assessment and decided to write my own!

Today we’ll be talking about how to study for the Hypothetical Section of the Structured Interview in the Foreign Service Oral Assessment. Quick disclaimer; I have not yet taken the Oral Assessment. These study guides are created from information gleaned from the internet, State Department guides, and what works for me personally. It may not work for you – but if you feel it does, wonderful! (I’ll be sure to update with my score if I pass: EDIT: Future update! I passed the SI and GE, but not the CM with a total score of 5.5).

So let’s jump in.

Structured Interview: Hypothetical Questions

The FSOA Structured Interview (SI) is approximately 1 hour in length. This hour is separated into three roughly equal portions of time (~20min) to complete each of the three steps of the SI. They are: Past Behavior, Experience & Motivation, and Hypotheticals. Today we’re going to go over hypos and we’ll dive into the other two sections at a later date.

With 20 minutes in the FSOA Generalist’s exam, you can expect to hear between 3-4 hypothetical scenarios. (This is different for the Consular Fellows who can expect more like 6-7 shorter questions). For Generalists, you will be handed a piece of paper that describes who you are and your role at a fictional embassy. This piece of paper will not contain the questions you will be asked, only background information. It should be something similar to the first paragraph of the hypothetical I wrote below. Not all of the information included on this sheet will be vital, but it all could be useful in framing your response. Skim through the page quickly, and then re-read for important facts. The most important part of this paper is your cone.

Your cone (or “career track” as State has started calling it) determines what level of authority you have in any given scenario. Expect to be asked to handle tasks that are outside of the scope of the stated cone, but be prepared to frame the answer within the role you were assigned. For example, if you are a political officer doing a management officer’s task, complete the task but consider if there are any host country officials you might need to contact about the problem. You may or may not be assigned a role in the hypotheticals that matches the cone you are applying for as a foreign service officer.

Sample Hypothetical:

You are a Public Diplomacy Officer in the country of Spamalot, a long time ally of the United States that has recently suffered from a harsh economic downturn. You receive information that wealthy Spamanian oligarch ROBERT BOILLIN has been diagnosed with terminal esophageal cancer. He recently celebrated his 75th birthday in his hometown, Rouvray, the capital city of Spamalot. A widower with no known heir of his own, Mr. Boillin would like to donate €27.700.000 to a good cause after his death. He has contacted you because he wants the US Embassy to administer an annual scholarship fund to “any honest person” in Rouvray. Knowing his time is short, Mr. Boillin has designated Mr. REGIS BERRUET as the point of contact for future scholarship concerns. What steps do you take?

A) After looking into the history of Mr. Boillin and his political dealings within Spamalot, you find that while the considerable fortune does exist, his actions have not always been favorable toward the US. His past business dealings have jeopardized key US interests in Rouvray and have contributed to the high levels of unemployed Spamanians in this city. When you question him further about his intentions, he tells you that this is his way of “setting things right” before he dies. What do you do?

B) You receive a formal notice from the Internal Revenue Center of Spamalot informing you that Mr. Boillin’s finances were not properly audited over the last decade. The Spamanian IRC has determined that Mr. Boillin’s fortune (€27.700.000) belongs to the State and is to be collected from his estate as a tax upon his death. Mr. Boillin contacts you once more, desperate to leave a scholarship as his legacy. He asks that the US Embassy fund the scholarship instead. What steps do you take?

This hypo is based on a spam email, but it’s not all that different from ones you find on study guides and from State. Now then, before you panic, I have 10 steps for you to follow that will help you answer any hypothetical they throw at you.

These steps are:

Verify – Is what was told to you the truth? Do you have a duty to assist? Document – Leave a paper trail and CYA. Be specific. Inform – Who else needs to know about this besides you? Superior? Other officers? Precedent – Don’t reinvent the wheel – if you don’t know, look it up. Short & Long Term – Consequences of your actions? What can you get ahead of? Meetings – Who can you talk with before you begin? Who is appropriate to consult? Standard Services – Offer what your duties require, especially as Consular Officer. Alternatives – Is there another way you could get this done? Another outcome? Additional Agencies – Any agencies (host country, military, NGOs) you could ask? Report & Document – Leave a paper trail and inform those who need to know.

Considering those steps above, let’s take a look at a potential answer to this hypothetical. This is an example of what I would actually say to the assessors. Please note; you respond after each section of the hypothetical scenario. In Part 1 of my response, I answer as though I have not yet read Part A or B. The general goal is to speak for around 2 minutes per section, with the total answer being somewhere in the ballpark of 5 minutes.

Part 1:

As a Public Diplomacy Officer, I would first try to Verify Mr. Boillin’s claims with an outside source or a member of embassy staff. I would confirm his identity and illness, if possible. I would be sure to Document his contact information and the details of his request. I would Inform my superior, and potentially the Ambassador as this is a rather large sum that the Embassy is being asked to administer. I would try to find out from my records and the other officers in the embassy if there has been any previous scholarships of this magnitude (Precedent). If Mr. Boillin was found to be a suspicious character or problematic for the Embassy (Short Term), I would politely inform him that we would be unable to administer the funds at this time, and if possible, direct him toward another NGO or local resource that could help him set up a scholarship fund (Alternatives & Additional Agencies). If Mr. Boillin’s credentials checked out with embassy staff (Long Term), I would try to organize a Meeting with Mr. Boillin and Mr. Berruet to better understand the criteria for this scholarship and how funds might be held, transferred, and awarded. If it had been determined by my superior or the Ambassador that we would be proceeding with this scholarship, I would begin work on a press release to source applicants (Standard Services). I would Report back with Documentation on my progress to Mr. Boillin, Mr. Berruet, and my superior at regular intervals.

Part A:

As a Public Diplomacy Officer, my first duty is to protect the narrative of the Embassy (Standard Services). While Mr. Boillin’s offer of funds could assist with the economic problems of Rouvray, it could also pose a potential press issue. I would try to Verify his history and dealings within Spamalot to make sure that the Embassy would be seen making a positive impact on the capital city, not just propping up an oligarch who had shady business dealings. I would solicit the opinion of the political officer and the economic officer to see if they could shed any light on the press situation we would be facing (Inform & Additional Agencies). I would also research any outside organizations and NGOs that had any similar programs in the area or had worked with Mr. Boillin in the past (Additional Agencies & Alternatives). I would check for any previous Embassy programs that were similar (Precedent) and work with my local staff to draft a memo for my superiors (Report & Document). I would keep in touch with Mr. Boillin (Meetings) about the process, the Embassy’s needs and goals, and what he could expect as we moved forward with his request (Short & Long Term).

Part B:

The first thing I would do is Verify that the documentation from the IRC of Spamalot was accurate either by connecting with contacts at the IRC, speaking with the Economic Officer, or seeking information from local contacts. If it was found to be a fraud, I would Inform Mr. Boillin of the issue and report the document to the Security Officer and my superiors at post (Short Term, Report & Document). Fraud is a serious issue and I would want to make sure there hadn’t been any other cases of letters like this addressed to the Embassy in the past (Precedent). If the letter was accurate, I understand that Mr. Boillin has contacted us to see if the Embassy can fund the scholarship (Long Term). I suspect that this will not be possible, at least at the level of funding that Mr. Boillin initially suggested. I would confirm this with the DCM and my superiors at post, seeking out budgetary information for our current and future country assistance levels in Spamalot (Meetings). If there were resources not yet allocated, I would try to understand if there was any potential to create a scholarship program in Mr. Boillin’s name (Alternatives). If funds were not available, I would draft a statement for Mr. Boillin explaining our position and thanking him for his interest in creating a scholarship fund to benefit his community (Standard Services). If possible, I would direct him to other NGOs in country that might be able to help him achieve his goal (Additional Agencies).

Boom. Hypothetical done!

So I went ahead and put all the steps I followed in bold. Those that are in parentheses are just what I’m thinking and not actually things I’d say to the assessors. As you can see, I don’t follow the same order for the steps every time. And while I did use them in each of my answers for this example, sometimes it may be appropriate to omit one or two steps to tailor the answer to your specific question. However, when I have these steps in my head, I know I can’t get lost in my answer. I can always check my mental road map to see where I ought to go next or what needs to be addressed. I highly recommend memorizing those steps or writing them out on a small note card.

You do not need to know exactly how an embassy works or what to do, this exam is just based on common sense. However, you DO need to know what the basics are for each cone so you can say where you would direct the work. I recommend reading pages 7-14 of Becoming a Foreign Service Officer to get a better understanding of each role. Remember, you may get a hypothetical where you are asked to act in a cone different from the one you are applying for. You are a Generalist, which means you could step into any role out in the field as required by the service. For more bonus points, check out the do’s and don’ts of the Consular Officer.

If you feel like you need more practice on Hypotheticals, here is a link to over 50 sample questions written by past test takers and FSO hopefuls. Some of these questions are pretty wild, but most are what you can expect to see day of. You can also check out more example hypothetical answers at: https://fsoahypotheticals.wordpress.com/

‘Till next time!