My first shot at the Oral Assessment

I just noticed that some of my blog posts about my experiences with the Pickering Fellowship and the Foreign Service Officer Test have had several hundred views... wow! Hopefully my posts were helpful to some people, especially concerning Pickering, as there was hardly anything at all online about the process when I applied. It feels like an eternity ago when I flew into DC for the interview, but it has been barely a year and a half! I still sometimes wonder how life would be like had I passed the finalist stage, but I can't complain with how everything has ended. I'm learning a lot at the University of Maryland, I've met some great people, and recently I obtained a SCEP position with the DOJ. I think working in a budget office will provide me with a great foundation in my government career, as budgeting is vital in any organization. This is even more relevant today, as the country faces a daunting deficit, an expanding debt, and questions of what to do about it all.

Now knowing that people are reading/have read my blog, I really ought to write a post on my experiences with the Oral Assessment. It's a pretty grueling day-long process, one that requires interpersonal skills, interviewing ability, and quick reading and writing capacity. Oh, and you have to both be well-educated and experienced enough to provide personal examples of how your past actions correspond to the Foreign Service's thirteen dimensions.

The exact specifics of questions and essay prompts are protected by a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), so I can't mention those. This is why the best way to prepare for the OA is simply taking it.

There were over twenty of us who participated in the OA. The group was full of well-qualified and interesting people. There was a judge, several former Peace Corps volunteers, and many already worked in the government. Everyone was friendly, which helped ease tensions and made the long breaks between sessions enjoyable.

My day played out with the group exercise first, followed by the interview, then about a two hour break, and finally the writing section. I have a good guess where I messed up in each section (I failed all three) and a better idea of what I'll need to do next time. You do not get any criticisms or comments on how you did, which was frustrating as I enjoy addressing shortcomings and improving them.

If I could advise myself prior to taking the OA and within the NDA, I would stress that you need to know your personal experiences inside and out. These stories are your tools when you take on the questions in the interview section, so the better prepared you are to answer these questions the better you'll do overall. This includes knowing which experiences can apply to several kinds of questions (know the 13 dimensions!) and not being afraid of using stories from less professional events. Leadership can be shown in all sorts of ways, so don't discredit good examples just because they didn't occur in an office. Also, the writing section includes quite a lot of reading - prepare to be overwhelmed and try to pace yourself! I really should have prepared more for this section; I write plenty of 1-2 page memos in grad school, but this is different. Take advantage of the mock ones online, as well as the one in the official guide.

I have heard that at the end of the day, those with failed scores get called first to receive their results. So I slightly grimaced when I was the second person called, and left the majority of the other OA crew to get my score. I ended with a 4.7, which is below the minimum 5.3 necessary to pass. Individual scores are not given (you can get it through a long process though), but they do tell you if you passed any of the sections. I failed all three, so I have plenty of room for improvement! After getting my score I was escorted out the building and thus not able to chat with the others and see who passed. It does feel a bit anticlimactic in the end, but I imagine it's structured that way to dissuade people to break the NDA and talk about what they just went through.

With my first OA attempt under my belt, I then turned to my graduate studies and focused on my looming midterms. While taking the OA was an entirely new experience, I'm no stranger to tests and fared much better! It would have been nice to pass the OA on my first try, get my security clearance while I finish my classes, and start life as an FSO right after graduating, but it will taste that much sweeter when I do finally succeed.

Good news everyone!

As I was biking my way to work a few days ago (I've been working for APSIA as a program assistant while I wait on internship news) I got a phone call that caused me to stop, offer up a quick prayer, and open my horribly antiquated flip phone.

It was the Department of Justice (DOJ) and they offered me a position with their budget staff! I had felt pretty good after the two interviews I had had with them; it certainly helped that I had been interviewing at several places and seen what answers worked and what I needed to improve. The office where I'll be working looks like a great place to work. It's structured very flatly, so everyone works together and assumes responsibility. Judging by the interviews, folks have a good sense of humor and aren't afraid to laugh at themselves. They even had a former employee recently join the Foreign Service, so the experiences I'll have here should be great for my future goal of becoming a diplomat.

Thus ends a four-month quest to obtain an internship. Although it took nearly the entire summer, it all ends perfectly as this internship is a SCEP position, meaning I will work with them until graduation and then have the option to convert into a permanent staff member. I am pretty big on having a five-year outlook and knowing the short and medium-term goals to keep moving ahead. While I still have to pass a security clearance, it is quite relieving to know that if all goes well I can set a solid foundation with the DOJ over the next several years. Hooray for good news!

Oh, hello there!

So I just about went a full year without updating this thing - how about that? While I still intend to write some posts about my final days in Japan and my new adventures here in DC, I'll leave that writing for later. But seeing as I'm waiting for news on what I'll be doing this summer, (hopefully an internship with the DOJ or USDA) I sure have plenty of free time. With luck the wait for my next post won't be as long as this one was!

Asahi Heights

Right around this time last year, I finally got to move from my rural apartment in Kagami of two years into the central area of Yatsushiro. I've really enjoyed the move into Asahi Heights, as I have always been a short bike ride away from things that used to take at least a 15-20 minute drive. Seeing as I've started the process of packing my bags and selling/tossing out those things not returning with me to the States, I figured I should have a post about where I've been living for the past year.

The living room, complete with World Cup information center! I'm going to miss that TV.

I divided up the room with a curtain and cabinets, so I had a kitchen and living room.

The other side of the living room, the sofa bed has its own story (I'll get around to telling it eventually!) The door in the back is to the bathroom, which is just a toilet. Shower, bath, and sink are in a separate room.

Here's the bathroom. I mostly used the one at the gym actually, as the hot bath there was quite nice after working out.

One side of the living room. It's pretty clustered, including some fabric from Sri Lanka, two banners from Kumamoto Castle, an America hammer that I used while cheering for Team USA, and a map of Barcelona (was so random when I saw it in a store in Kumamoto, I had to get it!).

The stairway up to my second floor. Reminded me of The Grudge a little bit.

The second floor comprised of two rooms with tatami flooring. I didn't spend much time up here, but it was a good place to hang my laundry. (no dryer, unfortunately)

Later today I'll be meeting some of the new ALTs, as they've just left Tokyo Orientation and are on their way to Kumamoto. This, of course, heralds that I'm soon to be leaving Japan and making way for the new guys to try their hands at this whole JET thing. With some luck (and lots of downtime at work) I should be able to finally catch up on the posts I've wanted to write about. (I could create a tag just for the number of times I've said that though!)

Champions!

The 2010 South Africa World Cup is over and there is a new World Champion: Spain! The same team that faltered in their opening game against Switzerland, whose star striker was out of sorts due to a recent operation, and in all honesty they never got firing on all cylinders. But it's all academic now as they beat the Netherlands 1-0 in the final to win their first ever World Cup! It was also the first time that a European team won outside of Europe, the first time that a team won the tournament after losing their opening game, and the least total goals scored by a winning team. That last record is unfortunate, but along with Spain not reaching the dizzying heights of Euro 2008, most of the teams they played against were ultra-defensive in the hope of snagging a surprise win like the Swiss.

Like all the Spanish goals before the final, the sole goal that decided the winner was scored by a Barcelona player, Andres Iniesta. The poor guy has been in and out of injury ever since he played through an injury in the 2009 Champions League final, so it was amazing to see him score in the dying minutes of over time and spare the world yet another final determined by penalty kicks. It's even more amazing if you know that Iniesta hardly ever scores; he scored barely a handful for Barcelona last season. Seeing all the Barca players (seven out of the starting Spanish eleven will be wearing the blaugrana in the upcoming season) makes me even more excited to see FC Barcelona star in August. Hopefully the time difference from the States isn't that bad, and that I can find a Barca-friendly bar in the DC area to watch the games.

By winning their first ever World Cup, Spain have finally dropped the title of world's best chokers/best talent with worst results that they've held since international soccer began. I know it much too well, as I was in Spain for Euro 2004. Everyone there had already accepted that they were going to lose, and thus were nowhere near surprised when Spain didn't get out of their group. The constant disappointment was especially hard as each of those failed tournaments had great Spanish players, only for them to find some way to lose in the end. With both the Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010 trophies under their belt, as well as only losing twice in the past three years, the Spanish National Team has become more Goliath than David. Now if only Team USA would make a bit more progress at Brazil 2014.

Speaking of the US team, that goal that Donovan scored at the very end against Algeria, changing the results from an early American exit to them winning their group, was one of the best moments of the entire tournament. Not even taking into the account the enormous man-pile on top of Landycakes after he scored, but just the amount of drama, exultation, and pure emotion in that game was amazing. The talent is still developing, but their sheer will to win and keep running full-stop even after two hours of doing so, means that once the individual talent finally catches up to the world powers in soccer, Team USA is going to do really well. I can't wait!

It was great to see Spain finally join the list of World Cup winning countries, but it'll be even better once the land of AYSO, MLS, and "oh, you play soccer?" (with the sound of disdain poorly disguised) wins their first World Cup final. If the team can stop conceding goals so early in the game (although it certainly made for some dramatic come-back victories) and continue the growth of MLS (I'm gonna be seeing Henry and possibly Ronaldinho play next season when I live in DC!) then hopefully the positive signs that the US team is making will mean that I have more chances to yell out "USA! USA!"

With that ends the World Cup and my intense daily absorption of all things soccer while everyone else is asleep. It was a really fun month of futbol and flew by so quickly, but now I've got to do all the things necessary before leaving Japan. I'll leave you with a drunk with happiness Pepe Reina, introducing each player on the National Team after they returned to Madrid as World Champions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOofApn78GU&feature=player_embedded

Wrapping up

I just finished giving my goodbye speech to the kids at my super-rural mountain school (a massive five person audience!) It's been a fun year teaching them, as the small classes meant each student got plenty of personal attention and interaction. I only came by once a month at the most, but the kids were all teary eyed as I gave my improvised speech. It's crazy to think that I'll be back in the States in just a month!

But I really haven't had that much time to think about my return home, as the World Cup has completely taken my attention. With the US, Spain, and Japan all getting through the group stage, I had a glut of choices when it came to watching games, although the 11pm and 3:30am games have certainly done a number on my sleeping schedule.

Perhaps you could see the heavy bags under my eyes were it not for all the face paint that I wear to each of the games. Neither the U.S. or Spanish teams were doing all that well in the beginning (although Team USA benefited enormously from the English keeper's mistake) so I decided to go a step further in my soccer cheering and paint my entire face for their upcoming matches. I even got Sachiko to go along with the fun:


Full credit to Sachiko for painting this one!

After Spain's opening game loss, I adopted both full-flag-on-face and a concerned look for the second and third games.

Team USA jersey and an America hammer to go with my war paint.

She had to go study during the game, but she vowed to get painted up for the next one.

Prior to the US-Ghana game; seeing that we lost, we definitely should have gone full face that time!

Watching the Japan-Holland game in the Yatsushiro arcade via a reported 100 inch projector screen (I think it was bigger)

The World Cup is now near its end, with just four teams left battling it out for the title. Two of the teams are previous winners (Germany and Uruguay), while the other two have never won it before (Netherlands and Spain!). Spain hasn't yet impressed, especially not to the level of the Euro 2008 championship, but it's been great seeing this batch of players make it farther than any other Spanish team before them. With a little luck and some improvement in the upcoming Spain-Germany game (bench Torres!) perhaps I can blog on how it feels to see Spain finally lift the Cup. And as a Team USA fan, I can also reflect on how the US beat Spain last year, so it's somewhat a win for the US too, right?

In any case, it's just about time to leave the mountains and head on home to do a little bit of packing. This final month is going to fly right on by!

Ganbare Nihon!

Last night was the start to Japan's World Cup and what a way to start! The Blue Samurai faced off against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon and walked away with the scoreline stating 1-0; three points to Japan! It's also their first ever World Cup win on foreign soil; it's always great to finally break bad records like that.

I went to one of the local bars with Sachiko and met up with a few other ALTs to enjoy the game. Whereas the England-US match didn't draw a single Japanese person to the bar (we packed it with foreigners though!), this game saw quite a lively atmosphere for a Monday night. Especially once Honda scored the solitary goal of the game and got all the middle-aged men jumping around, giving everyone in sight two-handed high fives. やった！！

I had just gotten my Japanese jersey, complete with defender Tulio's name and number written on the back, a few hours before kick-off. The guy is a one man show: the last two games he scored two own goals while also scoring once for Japan and injuring Ivory Coast's best player! Luckily for both Japan and Cameroon, in Japan's opening game Tulio restricted himself to being merely a dependable defender.

No flash on the iPhone camera...

Despite the win it's hard seeing Japan make it out of the tough group, but even still, here's hoping I get as many chances to sport Tulio's jersey and get to see what else he gets himself into!

Seeing as part of my job description is "internationalization," the World Cup seems like a great time to introduce those participating countries' flags as well as Japan's exploits!