You’ve decided to take the inburgeringsexamen (civic integration exam) and you have started looking at how to prepare. But like many others, you find it difficult to know where to begin.

In this series of blogs I will give you the most important tips on preparing for the Inburgeringsexamen.In the first four parts I focused on the language elements of the exam (I, II, III, IV). But that’s not all you need to prepare.

There are two parts of the exam that are not concerned with the language of the Netherlands but with its culture: the Knowledge of Dutch Society exam (Kennis van de Nederlandse Samenleving) and Information on the Dutch Labour Market exam (Orientatie op de Nederlandse arbeidsmarkt).

In this blog I will take a look at these parts of the exam and show you how to prepare.

The exam: Knowledge of Dutch Society

The Knowledge of Dutch Society exam is purely focused on Dutch society and culture. So your language skills are not tested, except for your reading skills, because the questions and multiple choice answers are, of course, in Dutch.  The exam takes 45 minutes.

You take this exam on a computer where you watch some short videos. These videos will show you typical everyday situations in the Netherlands. For example, someone going shopping or going to the doctor. So the questions are about a very broad range of topics.

I can imagine you are thinking: ‘How do I prepare for this exam?’

How to prepare for the Knowledge of Dutch Society exam

A very important step in your preparation is finding out what is expected. On the official website you can find exams to practice with. This gives you an insight into what it will be like. Of course, you won’t get the same questions in the real exam, but you have a better idea of what to expect.

Besides the questions concerning the Dutch, there are cultural and geographical questions.In order to prepare for these kinds of questions you can read about the Netherlands and its culture.

For example you can prepare yourself for questions like:

• Uit welk land komt Koningin Maxima (Where does queen Maxima come from?)
• Hoe heet het land ten zuiden van Nederland? (What is the name of the country to the south of the Netherlands?)

The next step, and hopefully your last step in completing your inburgering, is the Information on the Dutch Labour Market.

The exam: Information on the Dutch Labour Market

The Information on the Dutch Labour Market exam is about working and looking for work in the Netherlands. The exam consists of two parts. In the first part you have to do assignments at home, using so-called result cards (resultaatkaarten). The second part is an interview with examiners from DUO.

This element of the inburgeringsexamen, that was introduced in 2015, is to show people who want to come to the Netherlands that work is an important step towards integrating.

Result cards

The 8 results cards form the basis of your portfolio. In this portfolio you give information about your professional career. Each card is a form that you have to fill in. Examples of these cards are:

• professional information (beroepenorientatie);
• realistic job description (realistisch beroepsbeeld);
• know your skills (je eigenschappen kennen);
• career opportunities (beroepskansen);
• professional skills (beroepscompetenties)

The final interview                                                                                        

You will have an interview at the exam location with 2 people from DUO. They will ask you questions about your result cards. The interview takes about 40 minutes.

Did you pass the final interview? That means that you have passed the Information on the Dutch Labour Market exam.

How to prepare for the Information on the Dutch Labour Market

The good news about the preparation for this exam is that it’s actually part of the exam. The result cards that you have to complete are the starting point for your oral exam. So if you pay good attention to the information in your result cards, you are well prepared for the interview.

And don’t be afraid of this interview. First they don’t expect you to speak in perfectly structured Dutch. And second, you already did a great deal of preparation when filling in the result cards.  

Succes!

This is my last blog in a series of blogs about your preparation for Het Inburgeringsexamen. If you read them carefully and pay good attention to the tips, you should be all right for the exam!

Veel success met de examens (Good luck with the exams!)

More information

You can find more information and also practice exams (Oefenexamen) on the official website.  Concerning reaching the level A2: my online courses #dutchgrammar-1 and #dutchgrammar-2 will help you to reach that level.

Bart de Pau
online Dutch teacher & founder of the Dutch Summer School & Dutch Winter School