How needed is IT within the State Department? Is there money out there for that?
#it #state-department #grants #fellowships #scholarships
3 answers
Austin’s Answer
Hi Erin,
Really great question. Not only the State Department (DoS), but the entire federal government (USG) needs serious help with IT. DoS and USG often operate on outdated systems that frequently have outages that can be anywhere from a few hours to a few days (I speak from experience). Agencies within the USG often work off of outdated IT infrastructure and systems that are far from efficient and seriously hinder workforce productivity. It is due to this serious problem that every department and agency withing the federal government has a CIO office. The Chief Information Officer is responsible for all the IT systems and technology which enables the whole department to function properly. Without CIO, DoS would be unable to function as they would not be able to troubleshoot issues, maintain systems, and develop new offerings for the workforce.
There is definitely money to be part of the Department of State's CIO office and it can end up being a very stable career. You won't likely may 6 figures right out of college, but there is promotion potential , the salary is very comfortableand government benefits are definitely nice.
I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck!!
Best,
Austin
Karl’s Answer
As you may already know, The State Department has offices all over the world and "in the field", All these locations are connected by various means - over the internet, mobile networks, satellite, and in some cases (still!) dial-up lines. Since computers are necessary part of nearly every day's office and field work, the agency is heavily reliant upon these communication lines to be operational and as reliable as possible.
If you think from a standpoint of an agent: what can you think of that this person may require in his or her day-to-day work responsibilities that involves computer, you may see how much is needed. Email, conferencing, geo spatial positioning, documents, encryption, research, specific agency work dictated by mission objectives - all of this and more heavily relies on IT.
The people supporting this massive infrastructure handle all aspects of IT. From "Level 1" - support professionals answering phones to help a worker with a specific IT problem to "Level 4/5" architects designing how all of these systems will work together - the entire IT infrastructure is managed by multiple professionals all over the world.
One of the exciting parts of working for the State Department are careers with oversea missions, providing opportunities to work in other parts of the world.
Explore www.usajobs.gov and take a look at postings - this may give you ideas about other opportunities also.
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Brian’s Answer
So I would say very much so, if you're looking for a job with the state department you'll need to get a level of security clearance I am sure, That shouldn't be difficult to do but keep this in mind if this is where you would like your career to go.
Good luck, I hope this was helpful!