The KNM exam — what it is and how to prepare

KNM stands for Kennis van de Nederlandse Maatschappij — Knowledge of Dutch Society. It is one of the five exams, but the only one that is not a language exam: it tests whether you know how daily life in the Netherlands practically works.

You take it on a computer and have 45 minutes.

What the questions cover

The questions are grouped around themes from ordinary life:

• Housing — renting, a tenancy agreement, housing benefit, separating waste, dealing with neighbours
• Work and income — applying for jobs, an employment contract, a payslip, tax
• Health and care — the GP, making an appointment, health insurance, the pharmacy
• Education — school for children, parents' evenings, adult courses
• Institutions — which organisation does what, and where to go with which question

Why it is harder than it looks

The questions are not complicated to read, but they are about how the Netherlands does things — which is exactly what you do not know if you have not been here long. Two examples of the kind of distinction being tested:

• Which body do you apply to for housing benefit? Not the municipality, and not your landlord.
• If you are ill, who do you contact first: the GP or the hospital?

The answer is always logical once you know the system. So you cannot intuit this from how your own country works; it is genuinely material to learn.

How to prepare

Sit a practice exam first. It is the fastest way to see which themes you already know and which you do not. KNM is a knowledge exam: you do not need to learn everything, only to fill the gaps.

Connect it to your own life. Do you have a GP, health insurance, children at school? Then you have already lived part of the material. What you have arranged yourself sticks far better than anything from a list.

Mind the language, but not too much. The questions are in Dutch, so you do read Dutch. But the exam tests your knowledge, not your level — a wrong answer almost never comes from an unknown word.

What to do next

• Take the KNM practice exam on this site
• Read about the other four parts
• See the official practice exams

Official source: inburgeren.nl — knowledge exams.