Foreign service officer vs ambassador

The differences between foreign service officers and ambassadors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a foreign service officer has an average salary of $87,433, which is higher than the $32,457 average annual salary of an ambassador.

The top three skills for a foreign service officer include USG, international organizations and technical assistance. The most important skills for an ambassador are patients, ambassadors, and customer service.

Foreign service officer vs ambassador overview

	Foreign Service Officer	Ambassador
Yearly salary	$87,433	$32,457
Hourly rate	$42.04	$15.60
Growth rate	6%	-
Number of jobs	57,644	12,932
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age	52	45
Years of experience	-	-

What does a foreign service officer do?

Foreign service officers aim to promote peace, support prosperity, and safeguard citizens whilst promoting their country's interest abroad. Your responsibilities in this role will include defending your nation's foreign policy in political conversations and helping citizens who are traveling overseas get their visas. You may also assist with international adoption issues and handle matters involving citizens' birth and death abroad. You may have to deal with NGOs, human rights activists, journalists, etc. To be a successful foreign service officer, you need to develop skills in leadership, negotiation, and innovation.

What does an ambassador do?

Ambassadors are responsible for representing brands of the company on special meetings and promotional events. Some duties of an ambassador include meeting with other organization leaders, negotiating agreements for the relationship of two parties, monitoring international situations by being updated with current events, supporting the organization's charity and community works, and maintaining positive interactions. Ambassadors, in most cases, are sent abroad to represent their countries with foreign leaders, sharing the country's best interests and status.

Foreign service officer vs ambassador salary

Foreign service officers and ambassadors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Foreign Service Officer	Ambassador
Average salary	$87,433	$32,457
Salary range	Between $55,000 And $137,000	Between $23,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	-	Ithaca, NY
Highest paying state	-	North Dakota
Best paying company	-	Deloitte
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between foreign service officer and ambassador education

There are a few differences between a foreign service officer and an ambassador in terms of educational background:

	Foreign Service Officer	Ambassador
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 62%	Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common major	Political Science	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	-

Foreign service officer vs ambassador demographics

Here are the differences between foreign service officers' and ambassadors' demographics:

	Foreign Service Officer	Ambassador
Average age	52	45
Gender ratio	Male, 69.3% Female, 30.7%	Male, 40.2% Female, 59.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 7.8% White, 76.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 16.6% Unknown, 8.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 6.3% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	12%	7%

Differences between foreign service officer and ambassador duties and responsibilities

Foreign service officer example responsibilities.

Perform and successfully manage the daily administration and oversight of projects to ensure efficient delivery of goods and services.
Conduct interviews, file benefit claims and represent veterans at local and BVA hearings before the VA appeals division.
Act as control officer for congressional delegations, visiting ambassadors, and other VIPs.
Develop and coordinate comprehensive USG strategy to monitor and combat incitement to violence.
Charge with cultivating relationships with foreign individuals and institutions to promote USG policy.
Develop and implement staff share program within perioperative services, coordinate with site managers to maintain adequate staffing for each location.

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Ambassador example responsibilities.

Manage and mail a large inventory of CDs.
Require to have a good GPA, be a good role model and volunteer on and off campus.
Segue edit shows for several FM stations including WXXM, WZEE, WIBA, and WMAD.
Organize station community service events.98.7 Kiss FM.
Dress professionally and require to maintain a high GPA and an excellent attitude.
Utilize social media such as Facebook to publicize and notify prospective students of the event.

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Foreign service officer vs ambassador skills

Common foreign service officer skills

USG, 12%
International Organizations, 11%
Technical Assistance, 10%
CUI, 6%
Law Enforcement, 6%
DOS, 5%

Common ambassador skills

Patients, 17%
Ambassadors, 8%
Customer Service, 8%
Cleanliness, 7%
Product Knowledge, 6%
Excellent Interpersonal, 6%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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