The 2001 FSWE Study Guide will be available by June 15, 2001. You may still order the 2000 FSWE Study Guide.
What's New in the 2000 FSWE Study Guide
The 2000 Foreign Service Written Exam Study Guide will feature changes and enhancements in several areas. These include:
Job Knowledge
The Job Knowledge portion of the Study Guide will focus on preparing the candidate for the operational exam by means of a practice exam. This practice exam will consist of test questions covering several major content areas, such as U. S. Government and Political System, U.S. and World History, Geography, Economics, and Math and Statistics. This year's practice exam, consisting of 60 questions, will be one-third longer than last year's, and will cover new content areas such as Psychology and Human Behavior, Public Communications and the Media, and Computer Applications. Some of the areas tested will be: Basic understanding of human behavior, media relations, and knowledge of basic computer functions.
English Expression
This area encompasses English Expression and language usage skills required for preparing or editing written reports, including correct grammar and good writing at the sentence and paragraph level. The English Expression section in this year's Study Guide will include new passages similar to those on the real test, with several more passage-related test questions than last year. Some of the concepts tested will be: Editing and revising, punctuating relationships and sequences, using words to fit meaning and function, and managing sentence elements effectively.
Biographical Inventory
This year's Study Guide will include sample questions concerning the Biographical Inventory. The Biographical Inventory is a non-cognitive measure designed to assess an individual's previous experiences. Past behaviors have been shown to be highly related to job performance. Consequently, these types of inventories have been found to be good predictors of a variety of performance measures for many different jobs. The questions were written to assess relevant past interests, activities, and behaviors that are related to specific performance dimensions, such as communication and interpersonal and conflict resolution skills.
Essay
The Written Essay is used to evaluate each candidate's ability to analyze a substantive topic, organize and develop ideas, and express them in correct and readable English prose. The topics, all new this year, may be related to any of the following areas: U.S. and/or international social systems and issues; customs and culture; history; education; religion; employment issues; etc. Essays are evaluated using scoring criteria such as: Ability to analyze a topic; clarity of purpose; appropriateness of language to audience and purpose; organization; sentence structure; grammar, and mechanics (including spelling and punctuation).
To order the 2000 FSWE Study Guide, go to: http://www.act.org/fswe/index_s.html
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