Foreign Service Officers are elite AF and for good reason.
I am absolutely furious the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the State Department are being disparaged by the Trump administration and the Republicans in congress. These people aren't fit to shine Foreign Service Officer (FSO) shoes.
When I was an undergrad, I had every intention of going into the foreign service. Majored in politics. Registered for the test and everything. I ended up in the college infirmary with strep throat and never rescheduled. My life took off in another direction for reasons that would be of interest to no one. Probably for the best as far as the State Department and our country is concerned. 
But I have continued to follow current events as a State Department "fan girl" for decades. You can imagine my excitement when Secretary Clinton was in office!
It is not easy to become a FSO. The screening process is long and rigorous. You have to have an incredibly broad base of knowledge beyond mere competency levels, demonstrate leadership and complex problem solving skills, exhibit communication skills that would make Obama's oratory look elementary, possess an extraordinary degree of self-awareness, and endowed with a temperament as unflappable as Queen Elizabeth's. There is not much hyperbole, if any, in this paragraph.
This article gives a pretty good idea of what is involved in the selection process, but stops short of the suitability review panel.
https://www.themuse.com/advice/how-to-ace-the-foreign-service-officer-test
I saw a lot of commentary last week about how credible and composed Taylor, Kent, and Yovanovitch were. Didn't surprise me in the least. It's exactly what I would expect from career Foreign Service Officers. And isn't that exactly what we want from the men and women protecting and promoting our national interest around the globe? Trump fucked with the wrong people when he went after our intelligence and foreign service officers.
If you're curious about the types of questions on the multiple choice section of the Foreign Service Officer Test, try your hand at this. https://www.mometrix.com/academy/fsot-practice-test/ I got 9 out of 15 correct and 4 correct answers were guesses.
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