WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. State Department announced Wednesday that it is modifying the Foreign Service Officer Test and its onboarding program for new diplomats to emphasize merit and align with the Trump administration's foreign policy goals. The changes eliminate questions intended to test alignment with the diversity, equity, and inclusion agenda and introduce new content focused on what the department called "diplomatic history and America First foreign policy." The department said the modifications are also intended to meet "the challenges of the 21st century."

"The Trump administration is modernizing the Foreign Service to prepare America's diplomats to advocate for our national interest on a dynamically changing world stage," Tommy Pigott, deputy spokesperson for the State Department, said.

Under the revised guidance, the exam emphasizes what the department described as "merit in the selection process." The Qualification Evaluation Panel, which reviewed and ranked candidates' files over weeks-long reviews, is being replaced by a written examination. The department had already removed personal narrative essay requirements from the exam and discontinued the situational judgment section. The department said the ability to think critically and write clear prose continues to be an essential skill for Foreign Service officers.

The department's onboarding program for incoming Foreign Service officers, known as A-100, will also be modified. The program will train commissioned officers through lectures on diplomatic history and America First foreign policy, featuring speeches and writings from George Washington, John Quincy Adams, and James Monroe, as well as selections from the Federalist Papers. Works by Cold War-era diplomat George Kennan, "Clash of Civilizations" author Samuel Huntington, and Angelo Codevilla will also be included.

The revamped A-100 program will include lectures on international relations covering economic strategy, commercial diplomacy, and grand strategy, along with training in public speaking, negotiation, and leadership. The new format will replace resilience exercises, including a 90-minute activity that required participants to throw objects into a bucket while blindfolded.

The department announced last fall that it planned to revamp the Foreign Service exam and phase out diversity, equity, and inclusion-related questionnaires. The changes follow a series of executive orders signed by President Trump since his second inauguration that remove diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across the federal government. A 2025 directive tasked Secretary of State Marco Rubio with maintaining "an exceptional workforce of patriots" to implement the administration's foreign policy goals.

Under the Biden administration, former Secretary of State Antony Blinken backed diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the department's diplomatic arm and appointed a chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer. "The State Department has the honor of representing the American people to the world," Blinken said in 2021. "To do that well, we must recruit and retain a workforce that truly reflects America. Diversity and inclusion make us stronger, smarter, more creative, and more innovative."

The department encouraged Americans from across the country looking to serve their country to apply to join the Foreign Service.