GED Online Testing is NOT an Option
Official GED testing cannot be done online. The American Council on Education (ACE) and the General Educational Development Testing Service (GEDTS) cautions candidates about online GED testing. You cannot take the official GED test online. There are several sites that claim to offer online GED testing. GED credentials are not available through online sites nor are they available through correspondence courses. GED credentials can only be obtained after successful completion of the GED tests at an official GED testing center or other location approved by an official GED testing center. GED testing should be affiliated with either ACE or GEDTS. If such affiliation is not present, the GED credential received may not be accepted by employers, colleges, universities, or the military. So, remember: you can prep for the GED online, but you cannnot take the actual test online.
Passing the GED tests requires extensive preparation. Candidates must demonstrate that they have mastered a high level of high school knowledge as well as demonstrate a mastery of academic skills. Candidates who spend time and money preparing for the GED tests should make sure that their efforts will be acknowledged when they receive an official GED credential. Candidates will have wasted their time and money if they receive a GED credential that is not recognized by their desired college, university, or employer.
Can I Earn My GED Online?
If you’ve been considered earning a GED, you’ve probably wondered if you can earn your GED online. The answer is no, unfortunately. Many people are surprised to find this out. This reaction is understandable, as it seems virtually everything under the sun can be done online these days. You can apply for a credit card, take out a mortgage, renew your driver’s license— you can even get a college education online. So why in the world can’t a person go online and take the GED test? There are actually very good reasons that you can’t earn a GED online.
The biggest reason is security. The GED is a standardized test, which is simply a way of saying that all the people taking the tests, all over the country, will be taking the exact same tests (with a few rare and minor exceptions). These tests are thoroughly researched and scientifically constructed to ensure that they come as close as possible to testing the things that matter most. When large numbers of people take a test every year, standardized testing is the only feasible way to go about things. There is no way to give 100 people different tests and stay within the parameters of what is being tested, let alone 1 million people.
Well, when there’s essentially only one version of a test, which people will pay millions of dollars a year to take, that test becomes extremely valuable, and protecting it from being stolen or copied is imperative. These big standardized tests have enough trouble with people taking the test for the sole purpose of memorizing (or somehow copying) as many questions and answers as possible. Think how much easier copying and stealing would be if the test were given on the internet. It wouldn’t be long before pirated copies were easily available at low prices, making the real exam virtually worthless. Keeping their tests off of the internet protects the huge investments test developers have made in their products. And that’s why you can’t take the GED online.
Can I Take the GED Test Online?
One of the most common questions people who want to take the GED test have is, “Can I take the GED test online?” The answer is “no”; the company that develops the GED doesn’t put it online. That’s because it would be very easy for competitors to steal the test questions and formats. The GED developer isn’t alone in this; generally speaking, you won’t find standardized tests offered online. Companies that have spent tens of millions of dollars developing standardized tests want to make sure their investment doesn’t get ripped off.
Instead, you’ll take the GED in a local testing center where people monitor everything that goes on in the test room to make sure no one is copying down questions and answer choices—or copying from each other. This may seem like an inconvenience, because these days it seems we spend most of our lives in front of a computer, but it’s actually for your protection. By keeping the test offline, the developers make sure it doesn’t get copied and watered down so you can be sure that when you pass the GED, you’ve really earned your passing score.
However, that doesn’t mean you can’t find all kinds of helpful things related to the GED test online. You can; there are sites that explain what the test does, what subjects are on the test, what kind of questions you’ll face, how long it takes, how much you’ll have to pay to take the test, and lots of other information. Even better, there are sites that have GED practice questions so you can hone your skills, and there are even sites that offer study guides for the test, complete with a whole practice test, so you can really get a feel for the GED before taking it. So don’t despair; while you can’t take the GED test online, you can find plenty of online to help you pass it.
Online GED Resources to Help You Pass
People taking the GED test these days are fortunate because there are many online GED resources to help them brush up on weak areas and improve their chances of getting a passing score. Until the World Wide Web came along, it wasn’t easy to find help for passing the GED. The library might have had a book or two, but they were probably long out of date and not much use. Students were on their own, and many of them, even though they did the best they could, wound up failing. Today, with all the online GED help available, there really is no excuse for not passing the GED.
A quick internet search will turn up millions of results for information on the GED. Now, granted, there aren’t really millions of sites out there to help you pass the GED, but there are quite a few. You can read up on the format of the test, the subjects that will be on the test (reading, writing, social studies, math and science), how much it costs to take the test, who is eligible to take the test, where to take test, etc. Of course, what most test takers are looking for are sites that will help them understand what will be on the test and how to get a high score. Sites like that are available, too.
Some sites are better than others, of course. Here are a few tips to help you separate the good ones from the bad ones: Does the site look professional? If it does, it means the owner cares about the site’s reputation and is usually a good sign that the site is trustworthy. Is the site filled with pop-up ads or annoying banners that make it difficult to stay on track? If so, that’s a pretty clear indicator that you’re wasting your time. Does the site have practice questions, with correct answers given? That’s a big plus. It’s even better if the site explains in depth why a wrong answer is wrong and the principles behind the correct answer so you can learn from your mistakes.
Prepare for the GED Online for Free
For anyone who will soon be taking the GED exam but is worried about passing, here’s some great news: you can prepare for the GED online for free. If the GED is in your future, you don’t need anyone to tell you just how important passing the test. Passing the GED means you’ll have a shot at going to college, getting a good job and making a lot more money than you’re making now. For someone with no high school diploma, it’s nearly impossible to find a decent job these days. Even a lot of fast food places are demanding that applicants over the age of 18 have a diploma or a GED. Your options are few and far between without that all-important piece of paper.
How do you do that? Simply do an internet search for sites using terms like GED help, GED prep, GED preparation, pass the GED, GED test questions, GED practice tests, etc. There are hundreds of sites on the internet offering help to people taking the GED, and many of them are excellent. You can find out what kind of questions will be on the test, how the test is scored and much more. Now, make no mistake, we’re not suggesting that if you have access to local GED classes in your area that you don’t take advantage of them. You certainly should. You should also take advantage of all the free material on the World Wide Web. And for those who don’t have local classes in your area, or you can’t afford the fees, it’s great to know that you can prepare for the GED online for free.