Tuesday, February 2, 2010

The Official Unofficial Chart of Acronyms

The U.S. Government loves acronyms; there is no getting around it. As a D.C. area resident and a once-upon-a-time journalist, I'm a bit accustomed to these unsightly blocks of capital letters, but I understand they can be intimidating to others. (I think that is their intention so you will just gloss over what you're reading.) Therefore, I took it upon myself to translate a few acronyms that other FSO spouses might find useful.

A couple of user notes first. While the majority are listed in alphabetical order, a few are "coupled" because they are related. Also, the list of acronyms is too exhaustive for my list to be considered the end-all-be-all chart of what you need to know. For example, I'll probably need to put together a sequel to cover the acronyms you might find useful for moving alone.

It should also be noted that this is a reflection of how much fulfillment I get from my current job that I took the time to do this. So here is the Official, Unofficial Chart of Foreign Service Acronyms: (and please feel free to add any suggestions for lengthening, shortening or improving the chart. I'm not too proud to make changes and admit my own shortcomings.)

4 comments:

  1. actually, we refer to the cdo as the career destruction officer.

    just wait...

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  2. Hi! I'm really enjoying your blog. It's great to see the FS through a spouse's eyes. My husband is currently going through the security clearance process; we're hoping that he receives an invite to A-100 sometime this year. Keep up the good work!

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  3. David - you are one creative and funny dude! The great US bureaucracy would come to a standstill if it stops using acronyms. They're kind of like PSCs; we can't go to war without them. Thanks for the weekday funnies!

    Jill, don't scare David about the destruction officers!

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