What is the job profile of an Assistant in Ministry of External Affairs?

Staff Selection Commission (SSC) offers job opportunity in various government departments and ministries in various profiles. It recruits candidates on the basis of their performance in the written examination and personal interview round that is conducted periodically. The job profiles are given to the candidates according to their qualification and their interest in the said area. Ministry of External Affairs (MoEA) is one such department for which many aspirant candidates apply for. The two posts that SSC offers to the aspiring candidates who want to join the ministry are: General Assistant and Cypher Assistant.

Initially these assistant posts are for office work and are limited to clerical duties as most of them are placed in the headquarters and offices of the ministry. The candidates are trained for a certain period in these offices and mostly paper work needs to be done by the recently recruited candidates. But after spending 2-3 years there are vast opportunities that wait for these candidates. They are offered foreign placements with high salary structure and reputed posts as the time passes.

Job Profile of Assistant in MoEA

The general assistant, need to mostly work in the clerical grade for the first few years, while the Cypher Assistant needs to deal with coding and decoding of high level language, in the department. They mostly deal with the secure and confidential data, important to the government. Sending and receiving of coded messages from various parts of the world is a regular phenomenon in the day of a Cypher Assistant. The Cypher Assistants often have to work in night shifts as well, due to the change in the time zone and work hours in various parts of the world. The job of Cypher Assistant is quite tough and tiring as they need to work on codes for all day long with high degree of concentration and focus. On the contrary the General Assistants generally have to work out in the day shift with two day offs in a week. The promotional policies for the assistants are wider and broader than that of cypher assistants in the department.

Promotional Aspect of Assistant in MoEA

There is a wide scope of promotion and foreign transfers in this post, as it involves dealing with various countries of the world. The candidates who join as Assistants in Ministry of External Affairs can rise up in rank to become Administrative Officer, after they complete their tenure in the country under the headquarters and offices of the ministry. They need to undergo departmental examination to rise up the ladder and land into higher posts. Once they are promoted to the rank of Administrative Officer, the promotion to Under Secretary and Deputy Secretary level becomes easier. Candidates in their career can end up being the Director or Joint Secretary in the Ministry and live their life with dignity and respect. Along with high salary structure the candidates are provided with high quality accommodation and other services from the ministry. There are allowances and perks given to the candidates along with the monthly salary, making it a lucrative career option for many.