Friday, December 08, 2006
Today was the day
I took the Oral Assessment. I didn't pass, but got a 4.7. Which is fine, because I'll be taking the test again anyway. The score isn't low enough to make me think I'll never pass, and I've still got plenty of time to take the test. This was the first year I was eligible anyway. Thanks to everyone who helped me, I appreciate the advice, and I'm sure that I'll do better next year.
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That's a respectable starting point; know you've had the single best prep experience for the FSOA: the FSOA itself.
ReplyDeleteAnybody who passes the FSWE has the "book larnin'" part already; the FSOA is where you show your "mad skilz!"
Heh, thanks! I'm looking forward to trying it again next year. Now that I know what it's like and how to prepare myself, I will be unstoppable.
ReplyDeleteWhat are you guys talking about? Is a score of 4.7 good on what scale. Fill me in. I am full of great advice and a bunch of crappy advice as well.
ReplyDeleteA 4.7 is a decent score on this test. You do need a 5.25 to pass, but it's a tough test. It's not uncommon for people to try five or six times before they pass. Even a passing score doesn't guarantee you a job. You probably need something like a 6.0 to do that.
ReplyDeleteThe test is scored with the same grading system as the SAT's, though the subject matter is quite different. That means, a 8.0 would be a perfect score. Each question is worth a different amount based on the "difficulty" of that question; as measured by the number of people who got the question correct during the last testing cycle.
Grading this test has got to be difficult, because the standard that they measure your answers against is a list of "13 dimensions" (it's available at state.gov, just search their site for that phrase), which aren't exactly, you know, hard and fast, either "correct" or "incorrect" like the answers on those wimpy math tests I used to take in high school.
If you're interested in the process, I recommend that you check out the FSWE and FSOA test prep mailing groups from Yahoo. The webboard of each group has tons of advice, and the files section of both groups have good overviews of each of the tests.