| Introduction | p. 1 |
| About the FSOE | p. 1 |
| Commonly Asked Questions about the Foreign Service Officer Exam Test-Taking Strategies | p. 2 |
| Part I | Written Exam: The Job Knowledge Test | |
| About the Job Knowledge Test | p. 7 |
| Job Knowledge Topic Areas | p. 7 |
| What Are the Career Tracks? | p. 7 |
| United States Government | p. 9 |
| What You Should Know | p. 9 |
| U.S. Government Review Section | p. 9 |
| Practice Tests | p. 19 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 19 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 20 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 21 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 23 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 23 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 25 |
| United States Society | p. 27 |
| What You Should Know | p. 27 |
| United States Society Review Section | p. 27 |
| Practice Tests | p. 37 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 37 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 38 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 39 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 41 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 42 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 43 |
| World History and Geography | p. 45 |
| What You Should Know | p. 45 |
| World History and Geography Review Section | p. 45 |
| Practice Tests | p. 54 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 54 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 55 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 56 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 57 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 58 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 59 |
| Economics | p. 61 |
| What You Should Know | p. 61 |
| Economics Review Section | p. 61 |
| Practice Tests | p. 72 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 72 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 73 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 74 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 75 |
| Mathematics and Statistics | p. 77 |
| What You Should Know | p. 77 |
| Mathematics and Statistics Review Section | p. 77 |
| Practice Tests | p. 87 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 87 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 89 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 90 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 91 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 92 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 94 |
| Management | p. 97 |
| What You Should Know | p. 97 |
| Management Review Section | p. 97 |
| Practice Tests | p. 106 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 106 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 108 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 109 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 110 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 111 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 112 |
| Communication | p. 115 |
| What You Should Know | p. 115 |
| Communication Review Section | p. 115 |
| Practice Tests | p. 124 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 124 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 126 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 126 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 128 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 128 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 130 |
| Computers | p. 133 |
| What You Should Know | p. 133 |
| Computers Review Section | p. 133 |
| Practice Tests | p. 141 |
| Practice Test 1 | p. 141 |
| Answers to Practice Test 1 | p. 142 |
| Practice Test 2 | p. 143 |
| Answers to Practice Test 2 | p. 144 |
| Practice Test 3 | p. 145 |
| Answers to Practice Test 3 | p. 146 |
| Answer Sheet for Sample Job Knowledge Test | p. 147 |
| Sample Job Knowledge Test | p. 149 |
| Answer Key for Job Knowledge Practice Test | p. 160 |
| Answers to Sample Job Knowledge Test | p. 161 |
| Part II | Written Exam: The English Expression Test | |
| About the English Expression Test | p. 171 |
| What You Should Know | p. 171 |
| Grammar and Usage Review | p. 173 |
| Nouns | p. 173 |
| Proper Nouns | p. 173 |
| Verbs Used as Nouns | p. 173 |
| Collective Nouns | p. 174 |
| Singular and Plural Nouns | p. 174 |
| Possessive Case of Nouns | p. 174 |
| Agreement of Nouns and Verbs | p. 175 |
| Verbs | p. 176 |
| Action Verbs | p. 176 |
| Linking Verbs | p. 176 |
| Active and Passive Voice | p. 177 |
| Transitive and Intransitive Verbs | p. 177 |
| Verbals: Gerunds, Infinitives, and Participles | p. 178 |
| Forming Verb Tenses | p. 178 |
| Present, Past, and Future | p. 180 |
| Present Perfect | p. 181 |
| Past Perfect | p. 181 |
| Future Perfect | p. 181 |
| Moods of the Verb | p. 181 |
| The Indicative and Imperative | p. 182 |
| The Subjunctive | p. 182 |
| Problems with Verbs | p. 183 |
| Illogical Time Sequence | p. 183 |
| When to Use the Perfect Tense | p. 183 |
| Faulty "If" Clauses | p. 183 |
| Inconsistency in Tenses: Tense Shifts | p. 184 |
| Irregular Verbs | p. 184 |
| Pronouns | p. 186 |
| Personal Pronouns | p. 186 |
| Reflexive (Intensive) Pronouns | p. 187 |
| Demonstrative Pronouns | p. 187 |
| Relative Pronouns | p. 187 |
| Interrogative Pronouns | p. 187 |
| Indefinite Pronouns | p. 188 |
| Pronoun Case | p. 188 |
| Subjective Case of Pronouns | p. 188 |
| Objective Case of Pronouns | p. 189 |
| Pronouns as Subjects of Infinitives | p. 190 |
| Pronoun Case with Appositives | p. 190 |
| Pronoun Case after As, Than | p. 190 |
| Who, Whom, Whoever, Whomever | p. 191 |
| Possessive Case of Pronouns | p. 191 |
| Pronoun Reference | p. 191 |
| Finding the Antecedent | p. 192 |
| Unclear Antecedents | p. 192 |
| Indefinite Antecedents | p. 192 |
| Pronoun Agreement | p. 193 |
| Agreement Problems with Indefinite Pronouns | p. 193 |
| Pronouns with Collective Nouns | p. 194 |
| Sexism in Pronouns: He or She? | p. 194 |
| Modifiers: Adjectives and Adverbs | p. 194 |
| The Modifier | p. 195 |
| Recognizing Adjectives and Adverbs | p. 195 |
| Using Adjectives after Linking Verbs | p. 196 |
| Problem Adjectives and Adverbs | p. 196 |
| Forming the Comparative and Superlative Degrees | p. 197 |
| Prepositions, Conjunctions, and Interjections | p. 198 |
| The Preposition | p. 198 |
| Recognizing Prepositions | p. 198 |
| Confusing Use of Prepositions | p. 199 |
| Prepositions at the End of a Sentence | p. 199 |
| Defining Conjunctions | p. 200 |
| Coordinating Conjunctions | p. 200 |
| Correlative Conjunctions | p. 200 |
| Subordinating Conjunctions | p. 200 |
| Using Interjections | p. 201 |
| Phrases, Clauses, and Sentences | p. 201 |
| The Phrase | p. 202 |
| The Prepositional Phrase | p. 202 |
| The Participial Phrase | p. 202 |
| The Gerund Phrase | p. 203 |
| The Infinitive Phrase | p. 203 |
| Types of Clauses | p. 204 |
| Independent Clauses | p. 204 |
| Subordinate Clauses | p. 205 |
| Relative Clauses | p. 205 |
| Noun Clauses | p. 205 |
| Adverbial Clauses | p. 205 |
| The Sentence | p. 206 |
| Subject and Predicate | p. 206 |
| Expressing a Complete Thought | p. 206 |
| Sentence Types: Simple, Compound, and Complex | p. 207 |
| Common Sentence Errors | p. 208 |
| Run-On Sentences | p. 208 |
| Joining Independent Clauses | p. 208 |
| Run-ons with Conjunctive (Sentence) Adverbs | p. 208 |
| Sentence Fragments | p. 209 |
| Placement of Modifiers | p. 210 |
| Misplaced Modifiers | p. 210 |
| Misplaced Participial Phrases | p. 211 |
| Dangling Modifiers | p. 211 |
| Parallel Structure | p. 212 |
| Faulty Parallelism | p. 212 |
| Parallel Structure in a Series | p. 212 |
| Parallel Structure in Comparisons and Antithetical Constructions | p. 213 |
| Parallel Structure with Correlative Conjunctions | p. 213 |
| Parallel Structure with verbs | p. 214 |
| Combining Sentences | p. 215 |
| Combining Simple Sentences | p. 215 |
| Combining Sentences using Phrases | p. 215 |
| Varying Word Order in Sentences | p. 215 |
| Periods, Question Marks, and Exclamation Points | p. 216 |
| Uses of the Period | p. 216 |
| Abbreviations | p. 217 |
| Periods with Quotation Marks | p. 217 |
| Punctuation with Abbreviations | p. 217 |
| Use of the Question Mark | p. 217 |
| Courtesy Questions | p. 217 |
| Commas and Periods with Question Marks | p. 217 |
| Question Marks with Quotation Marks | p. 218 |
| Indirect Questions | p. 218 |
| Use of the Exclamation Point | p. 218 |
| Exclamation Points with Quotation Marks | p. 218 |
| Exclamation Points with Commas and Periods | p. 218 |
| Problems with Exclamation Points | p. 219 |
| Commas, Semicolons, and Colons | p. 219 |
| Uses of the Comma | p. 219 |
| Joining Independent Clauses | p. 220 |
| After Introductory Clauses | p. 220 |
| After Introductory Phrases | p. 220 |
| To Set Off Interrupting Elements | p. 221 |
| With Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Elements | p. 221 |
| With Appositives | p. 222 |
| Between Items in a Series | p. 222 |
| Between Modifiers in a Series | p. 223 |
| Commas with Quotation Marks | p. 223 |
| Problems with Commas | p. 224 |
| Uses of the Semicolon | p. 224 |
| Joining Independent Clauses | p. 224 |
| Between Items in a Series | p. 225 |
| Semicolons with Quotation Marks | p. 225 |
| Problems with Semicolons | p. 225 |
| Uses of the Colon | p. 225 |
| Introducing a Quotation or Formal Statement | p. 226 |
| Introducing a Restatement or Explanation | p. 226 |
| Colons with Quotation Marks | p. 226 |
| Problems with Colons | p. 226 |
| Dashes, Parentheses, and Quotation Marks | p. 226 |
| Uses of the Dash | p. 227 |
| Introducing a List, Restatement, or Explanation | p. 227 |
| Dashes with Appositive that Contain Commas | p. 227 |
| Uses of Parentheses | p. 227 |
| Setting off Incidental Information | p. 227 |
| Other Punctuation Marks with Parentheses | p. 228 |
| Miscellaneous Uses of Parentheses | p. 228 |
| Problems with Parentheses | p. 228 |
| Uses of Quotation Marks | p. 228 |
| Direct Quotations | p. 228 |
| Quotations within Quotations | p. 229 |
| A Summary of the Rules | p. 229 |
| Problems with Quotation Marks | p. 229 |
| Brackets and Ellipsis | p. 229 |
| Using Brackets | p. 229 |
| Using an Ellipsis | p. 230 |
| Compound Words and Wordiness | p. 230 |
| Spelling of Compound Words | p. 230 |
| Current Trends in Spelling Compound Words | p. 230 |
| Compound Adjectives | p. 231 |
| Compound Adverbs | p. 231 |
| Words with Prefixes and Suffixes | p. 231 |
| Wordy Expressions | p. 231 |
| Redundant Expressions | p. 231 |
| Expressions with Expletives | p. 232 |
| Overused Intensifiers | p. 232 |
| Selected List of Wordy Expressions | p. 233 |
| Active Voice versus Passive Voice | p. 234 |
| Answer Sheet for Sample English Expression Test | p. 235 |
| Sample English Expression Test | p. 237 |
| Answer Key for English Expression Practice Test | p. 249 |
| Answers to Sample English Expression Test | p. 251 |
| Part III | Written Exam: The Biographic Information Questionnaire | |
| About the Biographic Information Questionnaire | p. 259 |
| What You Should Know | p. 259 |
| Biographic Questionnaire Review Section | p. 259 |
| Part IV | Written Exam: Written Essay | |
| About the Written Essay | p. 267 |
| What You Should Know | p. 267 |
| Written Essay Review Section | p. 267 |
| Essay 1 | | p. 267 |
| Essay 2 | | p. 268 |
| Essay 3 | | p. 268 |
| Essay 4 | | p. 268 |
| The Elements of Good Writing | p. 269 |
| Prewriting: How to Begin a Writing Assignment | p. 269 |
| The Steps in Writing | p. 269 |
| Types of Writing | p. 269 |
| Understanding Your Assignment | p. 270 |
| Understanding Your Audience | p. 270 |
| Guidelines for Choosing a Topic | p. 271 |
| Topic versus Thesis | p. 271 |
| Writing a Thesis Statement | p. 272 |
| Avoiding Fallacies | p. 272 |
| The Main Idea in Narratives and Personal Essays | p. 273 |
| Prewriting: How to Research And Organize | p. 273 |
| Finding Examples and Evidence | p. 273 |
| Brainstorming, Taking Notes, and Outlining | p. 273 |
| Using the Computer for Research | p. 274 |
| The Importance of Specific Details | p. 274 |
| Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Avoiding Plagiarism | p. 274 |
| Reviewing the Types of Writing Assignments | p. 275 |
| The Research Paper | p. 275 |
| Essays Arguing a Position from a Single Text | p. 275 |
| Essays Analyzing a Literary Work | p. 276 |
| Narrative, Descriptive, and Autobiographical Essays | p. 276 |
| Writing | p. 276 |
| Working from a Thesis Statement | p. 276 |
| Spatial or Chronological Organization | p. 277 |
| Dividing a Subject into Categories | p. 277 |
| Organizing Essays of Comparison | p. 278 |
| Inductive or Deductive Patterns of Organization | p. 278 |
| Order of Examples and Evidence | p. 279 |
| Connecting Paragraphs in an Essay | p. 279 |
| Outlining | p. 279 |
| Informal Outlines | p. 279 |
| Formal Outlines | p. 279 |
| Sentence Outlines and Topic Outlines | p. 280 |
| Structuring Your Paper | p. 281 |
| Suggestions for Introductions | p. 281 |
| The Paragraph | p. 282 |
| Paragraph Length | p. 282 |
| Paragraph Unity | p. 282 |
| Paragraph Coherence | p. 283 |
| Connecting Sentences through Ideas | p. 283 |
| Connecting with Words and Phrases | p. 284 |
| Conclusions | p. 285 |
| What to Avoid | p. 285 |
| Suggestions for Conclusions | p. 285 |
| Revising and Editing | p. 286 |
| Titles | p. 286 |
| Reviewing the First Draft | p. 287 |
| Preparing the Final Draft | p. 287 |
| Writing and Editing a Draft | p. 287 |
| Spell-Checking, Grammar-Checking, and Search-and-Replace Functions | p. 287 |
| Layout of the Final Draft | p. 288 |
| Checklist | p. 288 |
| Purpose, Audience, and Tone | p. 288 |
| Examples, Evidence, and Details | p. 288 |
| Structure | p. 289 |
| Language and Style | p. 289 |
| Sentence Construction | p. 289 |
| Grammar | p. 289 |
| Part V | Oral Assessment | |
| About the Oral Assessment | p. 293 |
| What You Should Know | p. 293 |
| The Group Exercise | p. 293 |
| The Structured Interview | p. 293 |
| Case Management | p. 293 |
| Assessment Criteria | p. 294 |
