GED Online — Is There an Alternative?
When people think of going back to complete a high school diploma, they often they think of attempting to get a GED instead.
However, many people are unaware that the GED is not the only option when it comes to finishing high school, and that many of the perceived advantages of taking the GED also apply to online high school diplomas.
Giving potential students a clear picture of their options is vital in ensuring they make the decision that is best for them when it comes to completing their education.
If you would like to know more, then please feel free to contact us, and we will do our best to answer any questions you might have about whether a high school diploma is a more suitable option for your circumstances than a GED.
What is a GED?
The General Educational Development program, or GED for short, is a Certificate of High School Equivalency. The GED consists of four subject tests (Mathematical Reasoning, Reasoning through Language Arts, Social Science and Science) which show that an individual has high school-level academic knowledge.
Each subject is assessed from a battery of questions that are scored on a range from 100 to 200, with the following pass marks:
100 - 144: Below Pass
145 - 164: Pass
165 - 174: GED college ready
175 - 200: GED college ready + credit
It is important to note that each subject test must be completed in one setting, and failing will mean that you have to take the whole test again, even if it was a low score on just one part that led to the failure.
Why is a GED not as good as a diploma?
There is no doubt that the GED carries with it a certain level of stigma. In 2014 The Nation asked “what is the test good for? The GED carries a stigma of mediocrity and may put people at a disadvantage when competing for jobs against full-fledged high school graduates.”
Historically, the opinion of GEDs has not been much more favorable. In their 1993 paper “The Nonequivalence of High School Equivalents”, economists Stephen Cameron and James Heckman stated that there was no evidence that the GED improved peoples’ job prospects compared to those with no credentials.
In a 2012 article from NPR, Russell Rumberger stated that “the things that employers … think are important, are the things like perseverance and tenacity, and those kinds of qualities are not measured by the GED.” He went on to say that “The GED is better than no credential for a dropout, but it’s not as good as a diploma.”
That same article posed a scenario where two people go for an interview, and one has a GED and the other has a high school diploma - “someone is far more likely to hire someone who has a high school diploma.”
Some of the other common assumptions people make about GED holders is that they take shortcuts, that they are admitting that high school did not work for them, or that they cannot commit or be relied on.
If you are a parent, ask yourself this question: Would you rather your child get their high school diploma, or a GED?
Is a GED more affordable than a high school diploma?
In California, it costs $35 to take a GED test at a test center, and there are four tests to take. If you want to take the GED test online, each one costs $41. Assuming you pass each test the first time, obtaining your GED will cost you at the absolute minimum $140, or $164 if taken online.
But what happens if you fail one of the tests? Well, you will have to retake it, at the same price, and begin again from 0. Think about it like your driver’s test: each time you take it, it is essentially all-or-nothing.
This can prove quite challenging for people who find they are struggling with certain aspects of the tests, and the costs associated with continuously retaking the test can quickly mount up. The uncertainty of how much this is ultimately going to cost you can further add unnecessary pressure, placing you under undue stress each time you attempt the test.
If you were to instead enroll into a high school diploma program, you would have a much clearer idea of what your costs are likely to be. For instance, if you enroll with C4L Academy, you would know that each month you are going to be paying a fixed price of $99, making you far better able to predict your expenses and plan accordingly.
With our high school diploma program, what you already know counts. We allow you to challenge each of our courses, meaning you can demonstrate your prior knowledge to avoid having to retake courses where you have already proven your mastery of the course content. With the GED, you have to start afresh every single time, regardless of which questions you may have answered correctly on previous attempts.
Not knowing which areas you are likely to pass or fail when attempting the GED tests is essentially like rolling dice. So, while many people perceive the GED as the faster option, in the long run it can often end up being more time consuming and costing more money.
Even with a blank slate, completing the high school diploma program takes approximately 120 hours, which roughly equates to around 30 hours per subject area on the GED. Ask yourself truthfully: “Have I put that amount of time into my GED prep?” If the answer is no, it is unlikely that the GED is going to be the quickest and most affordable option for you.
If you are 100% confident in your preparation and feel comfortable with how a GED is perceived, then this is likely the best route for you. In any other situation, we strongly recommend you consider the high school diploma option instead, as it is far more likely to be suitable to your needs.
C4L Academy provides a fully accredited, 100% online, adult high school diploma program. When you have completed all graduation requirements, you will be a certified high school graduate.
Is the GED harder than high school?
In terms of the subject material, there is very little difference between the GED and a high school diploma. You will be covering the core curriculum areas of Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Science regardless of which one you choose.
However, the way the two programs are structured is considerably different, which can have a huge impact on whether or not you will experience difficulty finishing one program over the other.
With a GED, you are very much on your own. It’s your responsibility to find the right study materials and put in the necessary hours to learn the material. All of the learning is self-directed, and the burden of learning falls on you, the student.
Will you have the personal discipline to devote the required time to studying and taking practice tests with no accountability and no outside support?
In our experience, individuals tend to seek out a GED to avoid a repeat of their negative high school experience. What many typically find is that it is precisely the things they did not enjoy about high school that are required in order to pass the GED - self-discipline, focused studying and standardized testing.
More often than not, those who seek a GED are not tapping into or relying upon their strengths by taking an all-or-nothing test.
The way that C4L Academy’s program is structured tends to be far more suitable for the type of individual who is considering a GED. Our program is broken down into incremental steps, with checkpoints along the way to ensure that you are tracking your progress.
We provide ongoing support and a tailored dashboard for you to track your progress, giving you the confidence that you know everything you need to know before taking an assessment. And if at any point you fail a final exam, you only have to retake that particular course.
If you are the type that struggles to stay motivated when learning course material, or if you suffer from test anxiety, then taking the GED will almost certainly be harder than obtaining a high school diploma.
If you are concerned that the high school diploma route means stepping foot in a classroom again, don’t worry. Our program is 100% online and fully accredited. You can find out more about our accreditation here, view our institution profile on the California Department of Education website here, or if you have made your decision, you can learn more here.
Are there any other differences between GEDs and high school diplomas?
At their core, the major difference between the GED and high school diplomas is that the GED assesses what you are able to memorize, whereas the high school diploma assesses what you have learned.
A high school diploma will set you up with essential skills for work or college. In particular, our curriculum has been specifically designed to be relevant to the demands of adult life. We believe it is essential to remember the reason why qualifications like this exist: to empower students with relevant and functional knowledge and skills in order to improve their lives.
While it is true that there are many situations in which a GED will be perfectly acceptable, a high school diploma will do just the same but with the added bonus of enriching your life.
Another important distinction to make is that for students looking to apply for federal funding for vocational training, they must either have a high school diploma, or be enrolled in a high school diploma program. There is no funding if you are studying for the GED.
Furthermore, if you are planning to join the military, it is much more difficult to do so with a GED compared to a high school diploma. The military uses a three-tiered system that classifies recruits based on their educational attainment:
Tier 1: Recruits with at least a high school diploma
Tier 2: Recruits with a GED
Tier 3: Recruits without a high school diploma or GED
It is worth noting that Tier 1 candidates (those with a high school diploma or above) get the first pick on open positions, as the Department of Defense “requires at least 90% of all recruits overall to be from Tier 1.” Bear this in mind when deciding between the GED and a high school diploma as your route into the armed forces.
When is the GED a better choice for me?
As mentioned above, there are situations where obtaining a GED will be more appropriate to your circumstances:
If you perform really well under strict test conditions
If you are absolutely sure you know all of the material and have a very strict timescale in which to pass
If you know for sure that the job or course you are applying for accepts a GED certificate
For any other situations, we are willing to bet that the high school diploma is going to be much more suitable for you.
Unsplash image credits (in order of appearance): Juan Ramos, Medienstürmer, Igal Ness, Elisa Ventur, Jonathan Petersson, James Yarema, Corinne Kutz, Jeswin Thomas, Muhammad Rizwan
Sources cited in this article:
1) General Educational Development - Wikipedia
2) The General Educational Development Test (GED) - WikiJob
3) Should GED lead to a diploma? District considers changing policy to help outcomes - The Washington Post
4) The GED Is Getting Tougher for Students Who Need it Most - The Nation
5) The nonequivalence of high school equivalents - Stephen Cameron & James Heckman, National Bureau of Economic Resarch
6) In Today's Economy, How Far Can A GED Take You? - NPR
7) Dropping Out: Why Students Drop Out of High School and What Can Be Done About It - Russell W. Rumberger, Harvard University Press
8) GED Policies: California - GED Testing Service
9) Can I Join the Military with a GED? - MilitarySpot
10) Joining the Military With a GED: Requirements for Each Branch - Indeed
