The Diplomat
The Council of Ministers yesterday authorized a modification of budgetary spending commitments charged to future fiscal years in order to allow the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to call for study assistance scholarships and internship scholarships at the Diplomatic School in the period 2022-2023.
The scholarships are intended for persons of Spanish nationality who have been admitted to the Inter-University Master’s Degree in Diplomacy and International Relations taught at the Diplomatic School, or who have passed the same, but have limited economic resources. They are also intended for those who have passed the Master in Diplomacy and International Public Service taught at the Center for International Studies (CEI) in Barcelona, of which the Ministry is a member of the Board of Trustees.
The measure will allow the Diplomatic School to grant three types of scholarships: study grants and scholarships for internships in the central services of the Department and in the Spanish representations abroad. Specifically, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announces 31 scholarships valued at 297,135 euros (in 2023) for internships in the central services of the Department and another thirteen scholarships for study aids at the Diplomatic School, for a value of 19,500 euros in 2022 and 68,250 euros in 2023 (87,750 euros between the two fiscal years). In addition, the Foreign Office is offering five scholarships, valued at 97,925 euros, for internships abroad. All together it adds up to a total of 482,810 euros.
In August 2019, the Ministry recovered the paid internship program, which was operational between 2006 and 2012 but was canceled between 2013 and 2018, both fiscal years included, for budgetary reasons.
The foreign policy paper approved about a year ago during the last PSOE Congress, and whose author was the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, defended the establishment of a scholarship system to “democratize and facilitate access to the Diplomatic Career” so that “the lack of income is not an impediment for any Spanish citizen to become a diplomat,” as The Diplomat was able to learn from authorized sources.
There is a belief that relatives of diplomats have an advantage when it comes to passing the competitive examination for access to the positions called. This idea does not fully correspond to reality, but it is true that it is very common to see that known surnames are repeated and that these people usually have the advantage, having lived in other countries with their relatives, of having a good command of one of the languages required in the competitive examination. In addition, the preparation for the competitive examinations to the Diplomatic Career can be expensive, especially for those who do not live in Madrid.
In any case, the Inter-University Master’s Degree in Diplomacy and International Relations, which is taught at the Escuela Diplomática for postgraduates and for which the aforementioned scholarships already exist, allows students to study, precisely, the syllabus required in the competitive examinations for the Diplomatic Career. In addition, from the web page of the Escuela Diplomática you can easily access the syllabus of the competitive examinations.
