Studying for the Naturalization Interview English and Civics Exams

After submitting a Form N-400 in order to apply for U.S. citizenship through the process known as naturalization, you will be called in for a personal interview at an office of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This will most likely be in the nearest major city to your house. One of the most important parts of that interview will be to test your knowledge of English as well as U.S. history and government.

You will probably have several months to wait between submitting your N-400 and being called in for your interview. However, don't wait until the last minute to start studying, particularly for the English language portion of the exam, if you aren't already fluent. Learning English takes time. But by planning ahead, you increase the changes that you'll be able to take advantage of local resources such as ESL (English as a second language) or citizenship classes at adult schools -- and increase your likelihood of success overall.

How Your Knowledge of English Will Be Tested

The object of the naturalization exam is to determine whether you can read, write, and have a basic conversation in English -- at the same level as "ordinary" U.S. citizens.

Your reading ability will be tested by the USCIS officer giving you something to read out loud. You'll need to get at least one out of three sentences right. The documents that you might be asked to read from are not made public. However, the potential vocabulary words are publicly available. You can find them on the "Study Materials for the English Test" portion of the USCIS website.

Your writing ability will be tested by the USCIS officer dictating up to three sentences to you (saying them out loud). You will need to wrtie at least one down correctly. USCIS also provides possible vocabulary for this portion of the test, on the Web page linked to above.

Your speaking ability will be tested less formally. The USCIS officer will simply speak to you in English throughout the interview. If you fail to respond appropriately -- for example, don't answer a question, or don't sit down when asked to -- the officer may conclude that your English level is not up to where it should be. To help avoid this happening, make sure that you do understand everything the officer says. Never ignore anything. If something the officer says is unclear to you, say, "Could you please repeat that?" Your chances of passing the English exam are far better if you clear things up than if you pretend to understand when you don't.

How Your Knowledge of Civics Will Be Tested

The USCIS officer will ask you up to ten questions about U.S. history and government. To pass, you must correctly answer six of them. The civic questions that can be asked during the interview have been publicly released by USCIS. You can find them on the "Study Materials for the Civics Test" portion of the USCIS website.

Second Chance at the Exams

If you fail either the English or the civics portion of the naturalization exam, you will not be denied outright (unless USCIS also found that you are ineligible for citizenship on other grounds). Instead, you will be called for a second interview, within 90 days. But you won't be given a third chance, so make sure to study hard for the second interview if this happens to you.

Getting Legal Help

An experienced U.S. immigration attorney can prepare and file the naturalization application (Form N-400) for you and also assist you in preparing for the interview. The attorney can accompany you to the interview if you wish. But the attorney cannot answer any of the exam questions for you!