RIYADH, 6 April 2005 — Filipinos under 36 years old who wish to join the Philippine diplomatic service are invited to take the foreign service examinations next month, the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh said yesterday.

In a press release, the embassy said Foreign Service Officer (FSO) and Foreign Service Staff Officer (FSSO) qualifying examinations will start on May 29, with Riyadh as one of the testing centers for overseas Filipinos.

Qualifying tests are to be held also in Washington D.C. in the United States and in Vienna, Austria.

In the Philippines, the testing centers are in the cities of Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu City, Davao, San Fernando in La Union, Legazpi, Quezon, Iloilo, and Zamboanga.

The qualifying test covers English grammar and correct usage, 40 percent; reading comprehension, 20 percent; logical reasoning, 15 percent; quantitative reasoning/data interpretation, 10 percent; and leadership/knowledge of management concepts, 15 percent.

As explained by the embassy, only those who pass the qualifying test with a rating of at least 80 percent will be allowed to take the written test.

The written examination will be conducted on Aug. 24, 25, and 26 in the cities of Pasay, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo and Zamboanga. To be covered in the exam are English, Filipino, Philippine conditions, international affairs, world history, and foreign language.

Only those who score at least 75 percent in English and a composite score of at least 75 percent in the written exam are qualified to take the FSO oral examination, which is to be held in Manila after the results of the written examination shall have been determined

Those who score below 75 percent in the written examinations, however, may qualify for appointment to the rank of Foreign Service Staff Officer IV, provided they meet the cutoff grade set for the rank.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) website, a candidate must receive a mark not less than 80 percent in the oral examination to be certified as eligible for appointment as FSO IV, which is the most junior rank in the foreign service officership.

It said the oral examination will include an assessment of the candidate’s oral expression skills, logical thinking and values and attitude.

“Previous records and experiences will also be considered in determining the candidate’s fitness and aptitude for foreign service work,” the site added.

Qualifications and Requirement

Applicants for the qualifying exam may contact the embassy, office of the administrative officer, in Riyadh for additional details.

Riyadh had been designated a center for the qualifying exam for the past years in recognition of the huge number of Filipinos in the Kingdom, estimated to be at 950,000 last year. The exam in Riyadh is open to Filipinos elsewhere in the Middle East and Africa as well.

Application forms may be obtained from the DFA Main Office, DFA Regional Consular Offices, the Civil Service Commission Offices, by mail, or by downloading from the DFA website (www.dfa.gov.ph) or the CSC website (www.csc.gov.ph).

Application forms must be duly completed by the applicants themselves and returned either by post or in person to any of the DFA Offices mentioned not later than May 13, 2005.

Other than the Filipino citizenship requirement, an applicant must not be more than 36 years old at the time of the qualifying examination. The DFA said, however, that the age limit does not apply to those who have been employed in the department for at least two years prior to the date of the FSO/FSSO written examination and who meet the other qualifications required of candidates for the examination.

The DFA said the following should be attached to the completed application forms:

• Transcript of college or university record and diploma and certificate from the Professional Regulatory Commission.

• Birth certificate — If not available, baptismal certificate, birth affidavit, passport and naturalization papers (as appropriate).

• One copy of 2” x 2” picture, four (4) copies of 1” x 1” I.D. photographs taken not more than three (3) months before the date of the examination, showing the full frontal view of the face of the applicant with name tag.

• Two copies of 1-1/2” x 2” photographs, taken not more than three months before the date of the examination, showing the full frontal view of the face of the applicant with name tag.

• Two (2) self-addressed envelopes marked as priority mail.