On Sunday 16 May, 2,450 foreigners will take part in the first written (for some, oral only) exam for the Certificate of Naturalization (PEGP), which is required to obtain Greek citizenship.
Applicants will have to prove that they have a reasonably good command of Greek (B1 level) and know the country of which they wish to become citizens.
The exams will be held in 19 examination centers located in seven cities of the country. In the capital, 10 centers were created, where 1,521 candidates will take the exam. 295 candidates will be tested in three examination centers in Thessaloniki, 105 in Larisa, 95 in Heraklion, 91 in Patras, 57 in Ioannina and 48 in Tripoli.
At the same time, 25 people with disabilities and 211 people over 62 years old will undergo oral interviews in special examination centers.
Examination centers
In Attica: 1ο ΓΕΛ Πετρούπολης, 3ο Γυμνάσιο Περιστερίου, 1ο ΓΕΛ Αιγάλεω, 3ο ΓΕΛ Αμαρουσίου, 3ο ΓΕΛ Αγίας Παρασκευής, 2ο ΓΕΛ Νέας Ιωνίας, Ζάννειο Πρότυπο ΓΕΛ Πειραιά, Πρότυπο ΓΕΛ Ιωνιδείου Σχολής Πειραιά, 1ο ΓΕΛ Αργυρούπολης, 60ο Γυμνάσιο Αθηνών και 9ο ΓΕΛ Αθηνών (ειδικό εξεταστικό κέντρο). In Thessaloniki: 1ο ΓΕΛ Σταυρούπολης (εξεταστικό και ειδικό εξεταστικό κέντρο), το 3ο ΓΕΛ Σταυρούποληο και το 15Θο ΓΕασκσ. In other cities: 3ο ΓΕΛ Πατρών, το 3ο ΓΕΛ Ηρακλείου Κρήτης, το Μουσικό Σχολείο Λάρισας, το Πρότυπο ΓΕΛ ΖωσιαναΓς
Arrival at the examination centers at 7:00, and by 8:00, those who wish must take predetermined places inside the classrooms. At the entrance to each examination center, the identity of the candidate is verified. In addition to the examination card, the person must have valid documents with him: a residence permit or a certificate of registration of an EU citizen issued by the Greek police.
Exam passing process
First, candidates will be tested for their knowledge of the Greek language (oral comprehension and writing skills). This process will take 90 minutes. Questions for specific topic blocks are randomly selected from a topic bank available on the General Secretariat for Citizenship (GGI) platform. Then the candidates come in pairs, under the supervision of the supervisors, to two examiners (the interview lasts 15 minutes).
In the Understanding and Writing Comprehension section, candidates are asked to answer 20 questions and write a short text. This test is rated on a 30-point scale. In total, the thematic blocks will contain 20 questions with the following distribution: four topics in geography, four in culture, six in history and six in politics. Each topic is estimated at 2 points, and the total maximum score for all thematic blocks is 40.
In the Speaking Comprehension section, candidates are asked to answer 10 questions, and each correct answer gives one and a half points (15 in total), while the Speaking section covers three different questions, with 15 points for each excellent answer.
A candidate with 70% of the maximum possible scores is considered successful, provided that he / she scored 66.66% (40/60) in language and 50% (20/40) in other topics. Answers are evaluated by a commission of 2 people. As is the case with the state. exams, the final grade is determined based on the average score. In case of disagreement between two examiners by more than 10%, a third party is involved, whose assessment becomes final. Examiners and assessors are public or private instructors.
At the end of the testing process, the assessments are registered in a special electronic application GGI, and after completion, the re-examination and final verification are posted on the website in a single register with marks of successful and unsuccessful. At the same time, as noted, it is not possible to challenge the final result of the exam.
Successful candidates will go through the final stage of a short interview with a three-member panel to determine social and economic inclusion. Those who failed to pass the test this time have the right to re-pass the exam as many times as necessary. The next exams will take place on November 7, 2021.
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