You know, I'm really starting to wonder about State. That said, while I am generally cynical, I suspect Sylvan's comments take it a bit too far.

However, I know a couple folks who recently did the FSO oral exam. Their impression was that nobody in their groups were offered a slot in the next A100 class. If any did get slots, I suspect it was very, very few. Many of those candidates were people on their 2nd, 3rd, 4th attempts at it - some on their 6th or 7th (that's crazy, imo). And the descriptions of these people suggest that they are fairly capable. Why all of this selection nonsense? If this game is really that ridiculous, then I'm seriously considering not bothering with the oral exam. Why spend the time and money to fly down there, get an overpriced hotel room, and waste an entire day dicking around with their BS if this is how they play their game? Aren't they short handed? Aren't they woefully incapable of meeting the demands of any "whole of government approach"? But they're also not hiring because they're not willing to recruit people who, for whatever reason, don't seem to fit some ideal mold according to the personnel who administer the oral exam? What sense does that make?