How are ambassadors chosen?

Question

does an ambassador need to be in politics? I am a British citizen so I am wondering how an ambassador is chosen is he chosen by the Prime Minister or the Queen.

I think in the USA an Ambassador is chosen by the President (I maybe wrong)

Could anyone explain how an ambassador is chosen what credentials does he need does he need to study political science at university.

Answer 1

They are appointed. You need NO credentials. Just like US attorneys here in the US, Chosen/appointed, at the pleasure of the president, seeming not so for long though.

>.........Jimmi

Answer 2

u.s. ambassadors are nominated by the president, then confirmed by the senate.

Answer 3

Politics.  Do a favor for the pres, then get appointed.  Then you must be confirmed by the Senate.

Answer 4

I don't know about the UK, but in the US there are two routes to become an Ambassador.  One, as the people above stated, is a presidential appointment.  It's not necessarily what you know, but who you know.

The other option is a career Ambassador.  These are the guys who have worked in the Deptartment of State all their lives and climbed the corporate ladder to become an Ambassador.  

Once a Presidential term is up, the appointees leave with the President (unless appointed by the next president as well) whereas career Ambassadors will continue as long as the state dept sees fit.

Answer 5

By the prsident an appt  position

Answer 6

Can only speak for U.S., but yes, the prez appoints ambassadors.  For "plum" spots like London, Paris, Madrid, Rome (most of Europe, really), it's political donors who get rewarded... not a lot of hard work in those places.  Political allies do get other key ambassadorships like Beijing, Tokyo, Mexico City, Brasilia, Pretoria, Lagos, Moscow, but those people are proven in the political trenches, e.g. former senators or hands-on business dealers, who can address the real work that *does* exist in those posts.

Then there are the workaday posts in places that are either thick with issues (Amman, Riyadh, Caracas, Manila) or simply not on the radar (Montevideo, Kampala, Phnom Penh) where career diplomats get the nod.

The great majority of US ambassadorships do go to career diplomats.

Answer 7

The president nominates ambassadors. Often times they are campaign contributors.