A Few Words

I do my best to avoid jargon, however working for a government bureaucracy always includes heavy use of code-words and acronyms. Here are a few of the more useful:

Bid: The process by which FSOs secure their next assignments.

Charge D'affaires: The 'unofficial' head of a Mission in absence of an Ambassador.

CODEL: Congressional Delegation. An official visit by a member or members of Congress to a foreign country.

Cone: One of the five general roles an FSO might take. They are: Consular, Political, Economic, Public Diplomacy, and Management. 

Corridor Reputation: How FSOs are considered by their peers during the bidding and training process.

DCM: Deputy Chief of Mission. The second-in-command of a Mission.

Differential: The pay increase paid to FSOs for serving in remote, unpleasant, or dangerous countries. Ranges from 5% to 35%,  Danger and Hardship pay are separate and cumulative.

ELO: Entry-Level Officer.

FSO: Foreign Service Officer. A diplomat. Different from an FSS because FSOs are considered 'generalists' and can serve in any one of the five Cones.

FSS: Foreign Service Specialist, A diplomat with a specific role at a given embassy, such as Human Resources, Security, IT etc.

Mission: People sent to represent a foreign government. Usually includes Embassies, Consulates, and all their staff.

PNG: Persona non grata (unwelcome person). A term used to describe when a country revokes the diplomatic privileges of a foreign official and asks them to leave the country under threat of arrest. State Department types often use it as a verb ("He got PNGed out of the country").