Taking the Citizenship Test

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has released an updated version of its naturalization test for would-be citizens. I took the civics section of the test and I have to say it wasn't quite what I expected. Some of the questions seem a little open-ended -- such as, "During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?" (The answer provided, "Communism," seems a little too pat.) Other questions seemed painfully obvious, in the sense that the answer is embedded in the query -- "What is freedom of religion?" "What is the rule of law?"

I was embarrassed not to know the full answer to one question -- "What are two rights only for United States citizens?" Three of the potential responses occurred to me pretty quickly: vote, run for office and carry a U.S. passport. But the last one seemed obvious only after I peeked at the correct answers: "Apply for a federal job."

Naturalization applicants will begin taking the revised test on Oct. 1, 2008.