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Guide · Updated

What's on the test? The topics, module by module

There is no secret question bank — both the citizenship test and the social studies test build on one public curriculum: social studies for adult immigrants. The official learning resource, samfunnskunnskap.no, organises that curriculum into three modules and thirteen topic areas. This guide lists every one of them, in the official wording, and shows how the topics turn into test questions.

Test yourself on these topics, free

Quick answer

The questions on both tests draw on the curriculum in social studies for adult immigrants. The official learning resource, samfunnskunnskap.no, states that it covers the material for the 75-hour social studies course and for the Norwegian citizenship test — the same three modules prepare you for either test.

The modules are: Education, skills and the labour market; Family, health and daily life; and Norway before and now. Each is broken into the topic areas listed below.

  • One public curriculum feeds both tests — no hidden topics.
  • Official learning resource: samfunnskunnskap.no, free to read, available in many languages.
  • Three modules, thirteen topic areas in total.

Module 1: Education, skills and the labour market

This module covers how learning and working are organised in Norway: the school system from kindergarten to university, adult education, and what rights and duties follow you into a workplace.

Expect questions that connect a rule to its institution — who runs schools, what an employment contract means, and how to judge information critically in a digital everyday life.

  • School and education
  • Working life
  • Critical thinking and digital judgement

Module 2: Family, health and daily life

The broadest module, covering everyday life in Norway: arriving as a newcomer, family rules and equality, leisure and volunteering, the health service, money, and personal freedom.

Questions from this module are practical: which service to contact in a given situation, what rights family members have, and how the health system is organised.

  • New in Norway
  • Families
  • Leisure activities
  • Health
  • Personal finances
  • The right to a free and independent life

Module 3: Norway before and now

The civics core: what Norway is, how it became a democracy, and the values the system rests on. History questions favour turning points that explain today's institutions over isolated dates.

This is also where human rights, elections, and the division of power live — the themes most people associate with a citizenship test.

  • This is Norway
  • History
  • Human rights and democracy
  • Sustainability

How topics turn into questions

Every question is multiple choice with three options and one correct answer, written at a language level HKdir describes as roughly A2, with audio support during the test. The social studies test adds a few picture questions where you place a marker on the right spot.

The pattern across all modules: questions reward understanding the system around a fact, not the fact alone. Why 17 May matters, what the Storting does, which public office handles a problem — if you can explain the connection, differently worded questions stop being dangerous.

The efficient study loop is to alternate reading with realistic practice: take a test, read your category breakdown, then study the module where you lost points — rather than reading all thirteen topics with equal weight.

Common questions

Is there an official list of test questions?

No. The real questions are not published, but they build on the public curriculum for social studies for adult immigrants. Samfunnskunnskap.no is the official learning resource for that curriculum, and realistic practice questions follow the same format: three options, one correct answer.

Are the topics the same for the citizenship test and the social studies test?

Yes — the official learning resource states it covers the material for both tests. The differences are practical: number of questions, pass mark, and language options. Our comparison guide covers those in detail.

Do I have to read all of samfunnskunnskap.no before the test?

It is the material behind a 75-hour course, so a straight read-through is slow. Most people get further by alternating: take a practice test, find the modules where you lose points, and read those chapters properly instead of everything equally.

Is the course 50 hours or 75 hours?

75 hours. Samfunnskunnskap.no states that it covers the material for the 75-hour social studies course, alongside the citizenship test.

Know the topics? Prove it.

A free practice test scores you across these exact topic areas — so you can see which modules are already safe and which need another pass.

Full official format — no signup needed. Sign up free afterwards to save your result.

Official sources

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What's on the test? The topics, module by module | Path to Norway