I waited to pass the Canadian citizenship exam before writing this post.
At first, I was playing the waiting game for the fee to decrease but based on the consistent fee increase in the past, I decided to not take any chances.
I applied as soon as I was qualified. How did I do? I passed the exam.
My goal is to at least pass and not to retake the exam like when I passed the Alberta Driving Exam (Class 7).
I am happy with the result and surprise; more details later on.
First Things First
I am adding here all the blog post related to Canadian Citizenship so you can refer to it whenever the need arise.
- How Did I Study For The Canadian Citizenship Exam
- Cultural Access Pass: The Perks Of Becoming A Canadian Citizen
- Canadian Embassy And Consulate In The Philippines
- How To Apply For Dual Citizenship (Filipino And Canadian) In Calgary
- Did You Miss The Canadian Citizenship Ceremony
- How To Apply For A Canadian Passport In Canada
- Why You Should Check Online Your Canadian Citizenship Application
- Is The Caregiver Program In Canada About To End?
- Do I Need A Police Clearance For Canadian Citizenship Application?
- How Naturalized Canadian Can Apply For Dual Citizenship In The Philippines
- Translation Service Of Immigrant Services Calgary
- Are You Qualified For The Canadian Citizenship Application?
- Free Canadian Citizenship Practice Tests
- How To Apply For Dual Citizenship (Filipino And Canadian) In Canada
If you have question, ask away on the post that is relevant above.
How Did I Study for the Exam
Since taking the exam, I’ve been ask many times how did I study for the Canadian Citizenship exam.
I gave a short answer but here, I’ll share the process that I went through to finally become a Canadian from a temporary foreign worker (caregiver program).
We’ll do this in chronological order.
1.) 3 months before I submitted my application for Canadian citizenship.
I was waiting for Bill C-6 to be approved so I’ll be qualified based on my number of years as a permanent resident.
While waiting, I prepared the application and order online Discover Canada, a free reviewer. I started reading the reviewer.
- Highlighted important words. Use your favourite highlighter if you like.
- Write notes on the side and back of the reviewer.
But I didn’t memorize anything yet. I was deliberating if I would make flash cards to quiz myself. Result: I didn’t make any visual reviewer.
2.) After passing the application.
When I confirmed (through CIC email) that I submitted a complete application, I started reviewing and memorizing because I don’t want to be pressured.
I have no idea when will I receive the schedule for the exam. Will I have one month preparation or weeks.
These are the lessons I studied online apart from Discover Canada
- Citizenship Counts (online quiz, study guide, and flashcards)
- Discover Canada Study Guide (19 videos)
- Apna Toronto (practice test)
- V-Soul – Free Online Canadian Citizenship Practice Test (recommended)
- O Canada (song and lyrics)
- God Save the Queen – Royal Anthem (lyrics)
I also downloaded the Canadian Citizenship Tests and used it for a while. Because it’s an old app (not free), I wouldn’t recommend you to use it.
Instead, I used V-Soul to quiz myself using my phone. I was able to review whenever I want through its website that I shared with friends. So far all of them passed the exam.
3.) 3 months after passing the application.
I received my schedule for the exam. It says that I have one month to prepare. For a month I focused on Discover Canada, memorizing as much as I could.
The questions in the exam can be anything from the book. I cannot leave any stone unturned.
This time I only use V-Soul and the reviewer. I used pen and paper to help me remember the correct answer and not my best guess.
How was I feeling with only a month to prepare?
A bit nervous. Only a little. I’m glad I gave myself enough time to prepare knowing how nervous I can be if there’s only a short period of preparation.
I’m counting the days as I do light reading. And I relax by watching Netflix, a reward for diligence.
4.) A Day before the exam.
I gather all the documents and the letter and probably watch Netflix or read a book.
Review? By this time I did what I could do to prepare so I didn’t study. Anything I did that day has nothing to do with the exam except for preparing my stuff.
With all the hard work for the past months I am confident that I’ll pass. Months of preparation help me to relax and not to panic.
All I wanted is to get this over with. I can almost see the end of the road.
5.) The day of exam.
I ace the test. I am not sure if I chose the correct answer for four questions so I spent five minutes reviewing.
If I get these questions wrong, I still have 16 questions with answers that I am confident to get right.
So I was surprised to get everything right.
The truth is anything can happen in the exam but if you prepare there’s 100% chance of passing. Isn’t that what we all want?
Final Thoughts
You can do it. You’ve gone so far and passing the Canadian citizenship test is the last thing to do to become a Canadian eligible to get a Canadian passport.
Have enough time and apply as soon as you are qualified especially if you have a child not born in Canada. They should apply to become a citizen before they turn 18 so they wouldn’t have to take the exam.
An application for a child that meets the qualification is enough for your child to also become a citizen.
To everyone taking the exam, best of luck. It’s going to be all right.
What are the advantages of being a Canadian Citizen?
That’s a good question and could be answered in a blog post. For starter, a Canadian citizen have rights:
This include having a Canadian passport that can be used to enter USA, Europe, etc without having a visa. But rights come with responsibilities