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[quote=Anonymous]We are overseas (spouse is an FSO) and I currently have a UN job (lawyer) that is very fulfilling but it took me more than a year to land it and, as the PP mentioned, it would not be the same at every post. In many posts, spouses can't get work authorization and/or the jobs aren't available. I have another good friend who has an advanced degree in international development (and it's her second advanced degree) and she and her husband started out with the game plan you mention, but she has not been able to find a job at their current post (a developing country) and they are well into year 2. I think it's much more difficult than most people anticipate. And as the trailing spouse, I have to start over when we move and always on the FSO's timeline (which is controlled of course by the government).

As an aside, there are generally some work opportunities for spouses at the embassy, but unfortunately, as others have mentioned, they are mostly clerical jobs. There is a separate special State Department program to hire spouses for lower-level professional jobs at post, but they are very competitive (there are so many trailing spouses with professional capabilities that would love to work). (In my case, all of the spouse professional jobs were at significantly lower GS/FS levels than what I had been in the federal government prior to moving overseas, so that's something to keep in mind too.) The other downside to these professional posts for spouses is that they end when the FSO's tour does and there is no promotion potential AT ALL. From what I've heard, the quality of those jobs (and how much responsibility you are given) also vary significantly based on who you are working with and some view the jobs are just filling in for a position where there is a temporary need and the post could not fill it with a regular FSO. It's not really a long-term career plan, though kudos to the State Department for trying to help out us trailing spouses with professional capabilities.

I'm not going to lie -- being a professional trailing spouse is HARD (those months and months of not having a job were much more difficult than I anticipated), and again you can't count on finding a job at each post. I have other trailing spouse friends who had to leave professional careers and would like to work, and it's not easy. I wish the State Department could do more.

If you go down this road, you and your spouse should be aware and accept that the trailing spouse may not always have a job and you should have a game plan for things to do/projects/etc. for those posts where working is not an option. And again, it's hard to be prepared for the hit to one's "identity" when all of a sudden you have no professional identity and when you are viewed by others who don't really know you as simply the "trailing spouse."

A different option would be to try to be a tandem couple as mentioned above so that you both have FSO careers, though that path is also not without difficulty.

Finally, I should say that I've loved our time overseas though it has not been without challenges (especially related to the work aspect), but just know what you and your spouse are getting into.[/quote]

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