One interesting thing is that careers, not specializations, give you Force rating. Although it's not spelled out (that I know of), I'm assuming that F&D specializations all require FR 1 if you come to them from EotE or AoR.
You did not read that. I was never here...
If you don't start as one of these careers, you have to move through the Exile or Emergent to get the Force Rating needed to access the whole tree.
So, if I read this correctly, you can either:
- Start with a career that gives FR.
- Start as a career that lacks a FR, buy FSE (which gives FR 1) and then move into any spec you like.
Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run there's still time to change the road you're on.