FAQ

GED® FAQ

Do you have a GED® question, or not sure about something?

We have compiled the most frequently asked questions to help you.

The GED

The GED® testing programme serves the equivalent purpose of a secondary school leaving certificate. It has been in existence since 1942.
The term “GED” is a registered trademark of the American Council on Education (“ACE”), which is part owner of the GED Testing Service, who administers the GED® testing programme globally. Originally, the initials “GED®” stood for “General Educational Development,” and the term shows that the GED® test measures the lasting outcomes from a secondary school programme of study. A GED® test credential shows that the recipient has the same general level of academic achievement as a typical high school graduate.
No! The GED® testing program serves the equivalent purpose of a secondary school leaving certificate.
The GED® test is accepted as an equivalent to a high school diploma by approximately 98% of colleges and universities in the U.S. and 95% of employers because they recognise the GED® test as a rigorous examination equal to or exceeding high school proficiency. The GED® test is aligned to the career and college readiness content standards in use throughout the U.S., and the test is standardised and normed using a national sample of recent high school graduates. In addition, the Office of the State Superintendent of Education in Washington DC has reviewed the test and determined that it meets their requirements in order to be granted a High School Equivalency.
To graduate test-takers must earn a minimum score of 145 on each test subject to pass and earn the high school equivalency credential. In the event a candidate fails, they may retake the exam two additional times at any time. Should they fail a third time, they would have to wait 60 days before the next attempt. There is no minimum grade criterion to qualify for such a rewrite opportunity but it will attract a test fee.
There are no prerequisites for the GED. To write the GED® tests in South Africa, candidates must be age 17 or older and must have a form of South African identification with a name, date of birth, photo and signature, such as a Smart ID.
Foreign citizens can register to complete the GED® in South Africa. However, as a foreign citizen, you will need to first apply for a Letter of Approval. In order to request to make use of a Boston City Campus & Business College PEARSON VUE Testing Centre, all foreign nationals must email an official request to fn@ged.org.za and include the proposed Boston City Campus & Business College accredited VUE Testing Centre, a clear certified scanned copy of a valid passport and permit/visa and all other related travel documentation. GED.org.za reserves the right to charge for the administrative processing of these applications.
Yes, you can click here to apply for an accommodation. You must have your accommodation application approved before booking your test for the accommodation to apply to that test.

Student Profile

Go to www.myged.com, click on the “Sign Up” tab. Please ensure that you always have access to the email address you use as the username, as this is where your diploma and transcript will be emailed to once you have passed all your tests. When registering your profile, it is vital that your profile matches your ID exactly, as these are the details that will be printed on your GED Diploma and Transcript.
When you log into your GED.com profile, on the Dashboard page, click on PROFILE. Here you will find your GED® ID number.
Please click on ‘Forgot my password’ on the login page.
Please do not register a second profile as your profile will be blocked, and you will not be able to schedule exams. Email help@ged.com and explain that you no longer have access to that email account. In the email you need to include the following information: · Name and Surname · The old email address · ID Number · Certified copy of ID
Eligibility Alerts occur because you have created more than one GED.com profile. The GED® will need to merge these accounts. You must email help@ged.com directly and provide them with your name, GED ID number and a scanned copy of your ID.
Age Alerts occur because you are under the age of 18, irrespective of your country’s testing age. You must download the consent form from your ged.com profile. Your parent or legal guardian must complete it, you then scan and email it to help@ged.com.
Jurisdiction Manual Review Alerts occur when you create a new profile. This requires the GED® to verify your name, surname and birth date. You must email a scanned copy of your ID document to support@ged.org.za, you will be notified once the verification has been done and the alert has been approved.
If you have not received any feedback from help@ged.com after 10 working days, you can forward the email that you sent to us using support@ged.org.za and we will escalate your query with America.

GED Ready Tests

Click here to buy a GED Ready Practice Test Voucher.
If you ordered directly from GED.com, you need to email them directly on help@ged.com. When emailing, you must include your proof of payment, your name and GED® ID number. If you ordered from GED.org.za, you must email support@ged.org.za. When emailing, you must include your name, email address and contact number.
Effective from 15 January 2024, all students will be required to take the GED Ready® practice test and must achieve a score of at least 145 before being eligible to schedule the official GED test. This new requirement is not retroactive and only applies to a student’s next GED subject test to complete. If a student takes a GED Ready and scores a “green” then that student must schedule their GED test within the next 60 days for that subject. If the student fails that GED subject test, they are not required to take another GED Ready before scheduling another GED test. We recommend that students take their GED subject test within 2 weeks of taking the GED Ready for that subject. Keeping information fresh in mind will help increase the chances of passing. There is no limit to the number of GED Ready practice tests that you can purchase. Please note that each purchase provides one GED Ready practice test for you to take. This applies to ALL students outside of the USA.

The GED Test

Log into your GED® profile and click on the “Schedule” tab at the top of the page. Alternatively, you can contact your nearest Boston VUE Testing centre to schedule your test. Effective from 15 January 2024, all students will be required to take the GED Ready® practice test and must achieve a score of at least 145 before being eligible to schedule the official GED test.
When a tester makes an exam booking, he/she will receive two emails, the Appointment Confirmation and the Payment Receipt. The Appointment Confirmation specifies the subject of the exam, while the Payment Receipt does not. The word “English” on the Payment Receipt represents the language in which the test will be written, not the RLA exam.
We ask you to arrive at the test center 15 minutes before your scheduled appointment time. This will give you adequate time to complete the necessary sign-in procedures. If you arrive more than 15 minutes late for your appointment you will be unable to test and you will not be reimbursed. What do I need to bring with me on the day of the test? When you arrive at the test centre, you will be required to provide one or more valid forms of government-issued ID. The ID must include your full name, date of birth, signature, and photograph. Should your ID not include a signature, you can meet this specific requirement by downloading and completing the affidavit on the link http://ged.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/AFFIDAVIT.pdf. If you do not present a proper ID that meets these requirements, you will be turned away on the day of testing and will lose your test payments.
No, you may not take anything into the testing venue. You are provided with an on-screen calculator for any calculations required.
Jewellery that is wider than 1/4 inch is NOT PERMITTED, unless the candidate is wearing an item which they claim can not be physically removed. Small jewellery is permitted.
Yes, you can click here to apply for an accommodation. You must have your accommodation application approved before booking your test for the accommodation to apply to that test.
The test is completed on a computer.
The time given is adequate for students to construct their answer and key in their response. Field testing has demonstrated that even test-takers with minimal keyboarding skills have adequate time.
The test is aligned with today’s high school standards. The difficulty level needed to pass the GED® test is the same difficulty level as needed to pass high school today.
The new test forms do not specify numbers of test questions—they are based on raw score points, since all items are no longer worth just one point each. The final raw score point totals are as follows: · Reasoning Through Language Arts – 65 raw score points · Mathematical Reasoning – 49 raw score points · Science – 40 raw score points · Social Studies – 30 raw score points Remember that scores from the 2014 GED® test are transformed to a common scaled score metric, to make the scores easier to use and interpret across the content areas.

GED Test Scores

The 2014 GED® test is scored by computer. The passing standard on each content area has been set at a score of 145 on a scale of 100 to 200 scaled score points for each of the four content areas.
Scores will be returned from the test within 24 hours of completion of each subject.
You must go to My Scores in your GED.com profile. Under the icon that is showing your score, it should say “See Score Report”. If you click on this, you will be able to view your score report.
The GED Testing Service permits you to re-test the same subject two additional times without a wait and then requires a 60-day wait period between additional attempts. There is no minimum grade criterion to qualify for such a rewrite opportunity but it will attract a test fee. The GED® test score report will provide you with detailed feedback to address the skills you need to work on.
You can only apply for a rescore on your RLA Writing test. To request a rescore of your written response phone 011 083 8844, or email below information to help@ged.com: Name and surname GED ID Date and time of the exam for review. There is a $50 charge to challenge your mark, but if your score changes, you will be refunded the full $50.
Yes you can. However, you will need to first get approval from America to retest. To get this approval, you will need to send an email to help@ged.com with your GED ID number, full name, subject to re-test and explain why you want to retest. The highest score will then be kept.
If there is a power outage during your test, the testing centre will log a case with Pearson VUE. Once they have reviewed your case they will email you their decision. Should a resit be approved, you will need to contact International Pearson VUE directly to rebook your test. The testing centre is not able to rebook test dates on your behalf. You can contact the International Pearson VUE Call Centre on the South African number +27 (0) 11 083 8844 or on the International number +44 (0) 161-855-7440.
On successful completion of all tests you will be issued an electronic version of your GED® High School Equivalency Credential issued by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education in Washington, DC. You will receive two e-mails from “Parchment”, which will be sent to the email address registered in your profile. Each email will have a link to a copy of your electronic Diploma and Transcript. It is important that you download these documents immediately and keep them in a safe place, as the links will expire. The links for students who have just passed their GED are valid for 180 days, while the links for any re-order of either the electronic Diploma and/or Transcript are only valid for 60 days.

GED Credentials

Your GED® scores are not able to be converted to an overall percentage. The Percentage rank column shows the percentage of graduating seniors who score at or below the test-taker’s score in that subject. For more information and a full explanation on this, please click HERE.
The percentile rank ranges from 1 to 99. Percentile rank shows the percentage of graduating high school seniors who participated in the Standardisation and Norming Study and earned this score or lower. For more information and a full explanation on this, please click HERE.
GED test scores cannot directly be translated into grade-point-average (GPA) equivalents, grade level equivalents, or reading level equivalents. One of the purposes of standardized testing programs such as the GED® test is to provide an objective measure of student academic achievement, since school letter grades or grade levels can be inconsistent and unreliable indicators of performance. However, the battery average scale score can be located on the GED test’s table of percentile ranks. The percentiles can provide an approximation of the student’s class rank. For the current 2014 test, the class rank is based on the high school graduating class of 2013, whose data provided the basis of the GED® test’s Standardisation and Norming Study.
Did you check the email account that you used when you created your ged.com profile? If yes, please check your spam folder. If you still have not received it, then you must email help@ged.com. In the email, you must include your name, surname and GED® ID number.
The links to access the electronic copies that are emailed to you for students who have recently passed the GED will expire after 180 days. Should you for any reason order another electronic Diploma or Transcript, this download link will expire after 60 days. If the links expire before you have accessed and downloaded your Diploma and Transcript, you must log into your GED.com profile and reorder. The cost to re-order is $15 each.
Click on “My Scores” in your GED® profile and then on “Order Duplicates”. Ensure that you specify Paper Diploma and Transcript. Please note that the GED® will courier each document individually at your own cost.
As a GED graduate, you are eligible to receive a digital badge through the Credly platform, confirming your GED diploma. This badge is a virtual testament to your academic achievement, and we invite you to showcase it proudly.