Civil Service Selection Exam — Guide for the Ethiopian-Israeli Community

What is the Shoham Test?

The Shoham exam is the entry test for Israeli civil service. It tests:

• Verbal reasoning (Hebrew): reading comprehension, sentence completion, analogies
• Quantitative reasoning: arithmetic, basic statistics, logic
• English: basic-intermediate (grade-dependent)
• General knowledge: government, society, Israeli current affairs

Your Rights as an Ethiopian-Israeli

Affirmative Representation Law: At least 2% of civil service positions must be filled by Ethiopian-Israelis. Currently at ~1.2%, so preference still applies.

Special Accommodations: You can request extended time (20-30%) due to non-native Hebrew, and a simplified question version (ask proactively).

How to Prepare

Free: nivchanim.co.il (sample questions), Coursera logical thinking courses, Facebook group "מתכוננים לשוהם 2026"

Paid (recommended): Rav-Mivhan course (~1,200 ILS), Shoham Academy (~1,500 ILS)

📞 Civil Service Commission: 02-6400123