I took my final Russian test last Friday thus ending the largest portion of my training. For the last seven months I have been in Russian classes for six hours a day, five days a week…not to mention homework. I managed to score a 2+/2+ on my test which is as good as I could really expect for the amount of time I had. The test, as usual, was very tiring and I’m glad to have language classes behind. Now I’ll never have to speak Russian again…
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I have just over one week of Russian language training remaining and, of course, I feel like I’m in the middle of a big ol’ slump. I can’t get any coherent thoughts out, conjugate a verb to save my life, and don’t even get me started on those damned Russian cases.
I thought some of you Foreign Service groupies as well as those hoping to join the ranks might like a little taste of FSO training life. Here are a few photos of the Russian textbooks that have been handed out to me in the six months I’ve been in language training. These aren’t books I bought, these are books presented as part of the class. Also keep in mind, that this is only six months through the course and I’m not receiving the complete 44 week course. Of course, the Russian department is very organized. Some of my colleagues are lucky to have a dry erase board and an Urdu dictionary from 1952.
According to the State Department I now speak and read Russian at a level they consider “Limited Working Proficiency” and that I can now “satisfy routine demands and limited work requirements.” I guess they are entitled to their opinion.
I suppose I should consider myself fortunate that it has taken this long, but I feel that I have finally run head-first into the language training wall. I’d been warned that it would happen and witnessed the unpleasant experience first-hand about a month ago when it happened to my wife. Now it is my turn to feel like a no-progress-making, non-Russian-speaking idiot.
I realize I have neglected to discuss my Russian training yet. I’m not really sure what to say. 7:40 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. every day. All Russian, all the time. I think I’m progressing well, yet feel like I can’t saything. How can that be?
According to Business Week, the Foreign Service is the 6th best place to launch a career for new graduates. The article focuses on the training that new consular officers receive, which isn’t what everyone goes on to to, but the majority do so it makes sense. You can read the article here.
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