DFA lists requirements for foreign service officers exam

Published December 31, 2011 9:20am

The Department of Foreign Affairs has listed the requirements for the 2012 Foreign Service Officers Examination, which will start in February 2012. In a news release posted on the Philippine Embassy in Bangkok's website, the Board of Foreign Service Examinations (BFSE) said the exam will have five stages. Eligible applicants must be Filipino citizens and currently permanent residents of the Philippines; and be less than 35 years old on the day of the Qualifying Test, on February 19, 2012, it said. Applicants must also have obtained at least a four-year Bachelor’s degree on or before the prescribed due date of submission of requirements. "No exemptions from the requirements shall be considered," it said. In Thailand application forms can be submitted at the Embassy in Bangkok not later than January 5, 2012. "No applications shall be accepted beyond the set deadline. A non-refundable fee of THB350.00 (PhP 485.972) shall be collected upon inspection and acceptance of the application form and its attachments. Applications with incomplete documentary requirements shall not be accepted," it said. Application forms can be downloaded from the DFA website (www.dfa.gov.ph). The following documents should be attached to the application form: 1. A Certified True Copy of the transcript of records from the college or university bearing the seal of the colleague or university where the degree was obtained. For applicants who attended post-graduate schools, applicants shall also submit a CTC of their transcript of records, in addition to their college of university records. Transcript of records obtained from a foreign school shall be CTC’d by the foreign school, with English translation, or duly authenticated by the Philippine Embassy. 2. CTC of diploma or certificate of graduation from the college or university from which the degree was obtained. For applicants who attended post-graduate schools, he/she must submit a copy of the diploma or certificate of graduation CTC’d by the school, in addition to the college diploma. Note that diplomas or certificates of graduation obtained from a foreign school shall be CTC’d by the foreign school, with English translation, or duly authenticated by the Philippine Embassy. 3. Original birth certificate issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO). In case the original birth certificate issued by the NSO is not available, a Report of Birth at Post duly authenticated by the issuing Post along with a certification of non-availability of said birth certificate may be submitted. Following are additional requirements for:

Naturalized Filipino citizen – a copy of his/her Philippine naturalization papers or Philippine passport.
Applicants with dual or multiple citizenships – a notarized affidavit stating that upon passing the examinations, applicant intends to renounce his/her allegiance to all of his/her countries of citizenship. He/she must also submit a notarized affidavit stating that he/she is a permanent resident in the Philippines.
Married women – a CTC of the marriage contract from NSO. For applicants married to a foreigner, the applicant must secure an authority from the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, through the BFSE, to take the FSO Exams.

4. Eight 1.5-x-2-inch black-and-white or color studio-taken photographs, taken within six months before the date of the examination, showing the full frontal view of the face of the applicant with a name tag (i.e. Juan M dela Cruz, Jr). Photocopied and scanned digitally enhanced pictures shall not be accepted. 5. Two self-addressed and self-stamped envelopes marked as priority mail. 6. Photocopy of valid identification card. The qualifying test will be held Feb. 19, 2012. The tentative schedules of the subsequent stages include:

Prequalifying Interview: March 31, 2012
Written Test: April 4 to 6, 2012
Psychological Test: June 25 to 29, 2012
Oral Test: August 29 to 31, 2012

— LBG, GMA News

Tags: dfafsoe, foreignserviceofficersexam