GED FAQs

What does "GED" stand for?
GED—A trademarked acronym used for the General Educational Development Tests, a battery of examinations administered by states and jurisdictions to measure the skills and knowledge similar to a high school course of study. GED graduates earn a GED credential. The type of credential issued, diploma or certificate, varies by state.

When and why did GED^® testing begin?
At the request of the military, the GED Tests were first developed in 1942 to help returning World War II veterans finish their high school studies and reenter civilian life. The GED Tests first became available to civilians in 1947 when the state of New York implemented a program to award its high school diploma to those who passed.

What are the GED Tests?
The Tests of General Educational Development (GED Tests) are designed to measure the skills and knowledge equivalent to a high school course of study. The five subject area tests which comprise the GED test battery are Mathematics; Language Arts, Reading; Language Arts, Writing (including essay); Science; and Social Studies.

Who produces the GED Tests?
The GED Tests are developed, delivered, and safeguarded by content specialists, researchers, psychometricians, and other staff of the General Educational Development Testing Service™ (GEDTS), a nonprofit program of the American Council on Education^®. The tests are owned by ACE.

How does the GED testing program work?
The GED testing program is an international partnership involving the GED Testing Service, each of the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, the Canadian provinces and territories, the U.S. insular areas, the U.S. military and federal correctional institutions, and the veterans administration hospitals.

GEDTS establishes the test administration procedures and passing standard. All jurisdictions administer the GED Tests and award their high school credentials to adults who meet the GED Tests passing standards and any other additional jurisdictional requirements.

How many people take the GED Tests?
In 2007, more than 728,000 adults worldwide took some portion of the GED test battery. Of that total, more than 614,000 (86%) completed the battery of five tests and 451,000 earned passing scores on the five-test battery.

What does it mean to "pass" the GED Tests?
In order to pass the GED Tests, an examinee must have a combined passing score of 2250; in addition, each individual subject area test score must be 410 or greater. Those passing the GED Tests have demonstrated a level of knowledge equal to or greater than 40% of graduating high school seniors.

Among the many benefits of the GED testing program, passing the GED Tests provides an opportunity for adults to continue their education. In fact, 95 percent of U.S. colleges and universities accept GED graduates who meet their other qualifications for admission, according to the College Board.

A GED credential documents that you have high school-level academic skills. About 96 percent of U.S. employers accept the GED credential as equal to a traditional high school diploma, according to recent studies.

Who is eligible to take the GED Tests?
You may take the GED Tests if:
• You are not enrolled in high school, and
• You have not graduated from high school, and
• You are at least age 16, and
• You meet state, provincial, or territorial requirements regarding age, residency, and the length of time since leaving school.

If you are considering leaving high school, the GED Testing Service recommends that you first meet with your high school counselor to talk seriously about your decision and the level of academic skill needed to pass the GED Tests.

What do I have to do to pass the GED Tests?
You have to be able to read, compute, interpret information, and express yourself in writing on a level comparable to that of 60 percent of graduating high school seniors. If you are uncertain whether you have the level of skill needed to successfully complete the tests, you can find out more about your abilities in several ways. Many programs are sponsored by local school districts, colleges, and community organizations. Teachers and tutors in these programs can tell you whether you need intensive preparation or a quick “brush up.”

Should I study for the GED Tests?
Preparation is an essential part of any important examination. You probably have gained some knowledge and skills thorough life experience, reading, and informal training, but remember that the GED Tests are a rigorous battery of five tests that take more than seven and a half hours to complete. Regardless of your ability, you’ll be more certain to perform your best on the tests if you know what to expect before the testing day arrives.

How much time does it take to complete the GED Tests?
The battery of five GED Tests takes 7 hours and 5 minutes to complete. In some areas, you must take the entire battery of tests in one or two sittings. Other places permit you to take a single test each time you come to the testing center and may offer testing in the evenings. It may take up to several weeks for your scores to be reported back to you. Check with your state, province, or territory’s contact person for GED testing to find out about testing procedures in your area.

Where do I go to take the GED Tests?
There are approximately 3,400 Official GED Testing Centers in the United States, Canada, and their territories. They are usually operated by local school boards, adult education centers, and/or community colleges.

How much does it cost to take the GED Tests?
The cost of taking the GED Tests varies widely from no charge in some U.S. states to as much as $80 in others. Check with your state, province, or territory’s contact person for GED testing or your local official GED Testing Center to find out about how to register for testing.

What do my scores mean?
Your official GED transcript contains two sets of numbers: standard scores and percentile ranks. The standard scores make it possible to compare scores across tests and test forms. This is necessary because some tests contain a different number of questions and there are many forms of the GED Tests in circulation, all of them equally difficult.

The percentile rank makes it possible to compare your performance on each one of the tests with the performance of graduating high school seniors. The higher the percentile rank, the better your performance.

Example: Kelly's total score after completing all five of the GED Tests is 2,850; her average standard score is 570. The percentile rank for that score is 77. The percentile rank of “77” means that Kelly has outperformed 77 out of 100 graduating high school seniors. Such a score places Kelly in the top 25 percent (100-77=23) of graduating U.S. high school seniors in terms of her general academic skills and knowledge.

What if I don't pass all the tests the first time?
You can take one or more of the tests again. However, note that many jurisdictions have special requirements for candidates who don't pass the GED Tests the first time. You may be required to wait several months or show proof of attending a preparation course before you're permitted to re-test. You may also have to pay an additional fee.

How many questions do I need to get right on each of the GED Tests to earn the 410 passing score?
Each correct answer is worth one point. For each individual GED test, these points are totaled and then converted to a standard score, which ranges from 200 to 800. Candidates need a standard score of 410 in order to pass each of the individual GED Tests and an overall average score of 450 for the five-test battery. To receive a 410 standard score on an individual GED test, candidates generally need to answer 60 to 65 percent of the questions correctly.

Will passing the GED Tests get me into college?
About 95 percent of U.S. colleges and universities accept GED graduates in the same manner as high school graduates. GED graduates are also eligible for most federal financial aid if they meet the program’s other criteria. After earning your GED credential, sign up to take the ACT and/or the SAT. The colleges to which you apply may also require you to take placement or achievement tests so that they can determine whether you need additional coursework.

Are GED graduates eligible for financial aid for college?
Federal monies are available to GED recipients as they are to traditional high school graduates who meet the eligibility criteria. These requirements usually include demonstrated financial need. A student must be enrolled in an accredited program leading to degrees or certificates. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or eligible noncitizens and must have Social Security numbers.

The GED Testing Service essay scoring guide refers to "the conventions of EAE." What is EAE?
Edited American English (EAE) is fundamentally the same as Standard Written English (SWE), i.e., those conventions of grammar, usage, and mechanics that writers and speakers adhere to in order to communicate effectively. In planning ahead for the 2002 Series GED Tests in 1997, the Writing Test Specifications Committee aligned itself with the National Council of Teachers of English, who use EAE as the norm for the variety of English that is most used by educated speakers of the language.

For writers, the significance is that they must still employ a style, grammar, and usage that allows a mutual level of comprehension and understanding among educated speakers and writers. For example, EAE still governs when to use who or whom, is or are, pronoun forms, verb form and verb tense, adjective or adverb forms, parallel constructions, and sentence structure. Basically, only the name has changed.

One reason for the change is perception. (Any writing that is not standard is, therefore, perceived by many as substandard.) The Writing Test Specifications Committee wanted to remove any impediment that may have negative impact on a candidate's performance. The changeover to the term EAE offsets any negative impact that a candidate may feel if his or her writing is interpreted as substandard.

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