|
|
| Memphis TN |  Review on May 22, 2015: |
AddyG
Rating:  | Review Topic: Naturalization
I arrived about 20 minutes before my scheduled appointment. I went in through security. I thought this appointment would be like the others I have had (in Atlanta and Montreal) so I left my cell phone in the car. I later noticed others all had cellphones in the waiting room. Anyhow, I went through security and into the room. Naturalization appointments are to go wait in an adjoining waiting room towards the back on the right. When you go into that room you are required to submit your notice letter into a slot in the wall. That lets the staff know you are here. It seems like you are already assigned to the officer who will be interviewing you because one lady came out and apologized to all of her interviewees that day because she was running late (and called each of their names on the list). I fortunately was not on that list. My appointment was for 2:00 and I was called by "my" officer at around 2:15pm. She escorted me down the hall to her office. She had me stand and raise my right hand and asked me to swear all my information was correct/truthful. She was very nice. She started the interview by asking me all the history and personal questions about my life/marriage/visa journey. She had my file (super thick 2 sided file) on the desk and was checking everything off as we went. Then she said we'd take a break from that and do the Civics Test. I was given a paper and asked to read the sentence. I forget the sentence but it was soo easy. Then I was given another piece of paper and asked to write (in words) a sentence she read to me. If I remember correctly, my sentence was "There are 100 US senators." because I asked her if she wanted me to write out the word "one hundred" or write the number. After that she asked me my questions. I got all of them correct - they were easy ones. She asked what the name of the national anthem was, what is the law of the land, what day do we celebrate Independence Day, etc. We joked after that she gave me all the easy ones and I had studied so hard!!! She apologized for not having and hard questions, but said they are completely random. She congratulated me for getting perfect and we went back to finish the rest of the interview. She asked some more questions, and then I gave her a spreadsheet I made with additional travel dates since I submitted everything, She thanked me, got excited and said she LOVES people who are organized. She asked a series of questions like if I had ever been charged, if I had ever not filed taxes, if I had any other legal names etc, then she explained how the process works, ticked a few more things, and told me that she was recommending me for approval. We chatted a bit more about our children and she walked me back to the waiting room. It was pretty fast and painless. I think I was out of their by about 2:35pm. I think much of the experience seems to depend on which officer you get and whether English is your first language or not. I hate to say it, but I think they form an opinion or go easier on English speakers on. I'm a caucasian female from Canada... they probably wouldn't admit it and maybe it's on a subconscious level, but I think that made it easier for me. By the end we were chatting about our children like we were friends.
| |
|
Consulate / USCIS Member Review #16875