GED vs High School Diploma
82Take a look at GED vs. High School Diploma To Determine What is Best for You.
What's the Difference?
So you have a high school student struggling to pass the standardized tests to graduate? Or, maybe you had to drop out of high school to help the family or because you just didn't think that diploma was important. Now, you are struggling to make ends meet, what do you do?
There may be another alternative that you haven't considered, the GED. But how is it different from a high school diploma and will you be able to get a good job?
GED stands for General Educational Development. This requires you to take classes and learn the information that will appear on the GED exam. So how is that different from high school?
The information you work on relates only to the test. You don't have to take Calculus, Trig, Advanced Literature or Typing. The purpose of the GED is to ensure that you understand the basic information you need to be successful in society and most importantly, on the job. The time it takes to receive a GED is significantly less than a high school diploma. You must be a certain age however, before signing up for a GED. Call your county's school district to find out more about that.
The exact amount of time it takes to receive a GED depends on the individual. The faster you learn the information and show competency, the faster you can receive your GED. While it is possible to just by a GED test tip book and study it, the website AfterHigh by Thinkquest, says it is better to sign up for a test preparation course. It helps to "back up" your general knowledge. Many states have Adult High Schools where GEDs are offered. Enrolling in such a program will provide you with assistance from instructors as you go through the information you need to know to receive your GED. There are five tests you must pass to receive the GED they are, literature and arts, math, science, social studies and writing skills. The tests can be taken in one day or in stages. Sound like a lot? Remember, you will take multitude of tests before you graduate from high school.
A high school diploma as many know is the certificate you receive after completing grades 9-12. And in most states, after you pass a standardized test. It takes longer to receive a high school diploma and you may be required to take courses that you aren't really interested in, including an art class, typing, music, etc. For some students, high school is a better choice for many reasons. Taking liberal arts and practical arts courses can make a person well rounded and expose them to things they would have perhaps missed. Students can attend a vocational high school and learn a trade while receiving their diploma. For some, the maturity that comes with four years of high school is necessary for some students to take the next step.
But can you get a job with a GED or attend college just as you would with a high school diploma? The answer is yes. A GED is the equivalent of a high school diploma. So which one to choose? The choice is yours. Depending on your needs and goals and after more research, it's important to choose the method that will work best for you.
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Comments
I work for a City where some of the Administration feel that a GED is NOT equal to a High School Diploma. It has been said that if a person earns a Bachelors Degree but starts out with a GED, the Bachelors Degree is invalid. I am looking for documentation to support the argument that a GED is recognized in most places as equal to a High School Diploma. Thank you in advance for any info provided.
I defintely disagree with some of the administration(above), having a GED is 100% equal to having a high school diploma, everybody's situation is different why they were not able to finish high school but they went on and got their GED which is a milestone and great achievement in their lives and many don't stop there and further their education more by getting their bachelor's,master's or doctorate's degrees.
I agree with williamsd787, a GED is equal if not better than a high school diploma. I've seen people graduate from high school with a diploma and not know anything, where with a GED you have to pass a series of test. I currently have a case manager who got her GED and now has her Masters Degree.
I also agree with Williamsd787. After having gone through k-12, I was one credit short of being able to receive my high school diploma due to what really boiled down to a very boring U.S. History class. I was still able to walk across the graduation platform, but could not get my diploma until I took the class over again in summer school, I decided it wasn't worth it and signed up to get my GED, passed with flying colors and didn't even have to study for it. Right after I passed, went and enrolled in college. I have long been a critic of the way education has been taught or as the case may be, not taught. There definitely needs to be a re-vamping of the system as it stands today!
In New Brunswick, Canada, a GED is claimed to be equal to a High School Diploma but provincial universities do not accept it. NBCC ( New Brunswick Community College ) issues these diplomas and they themselves do not honor the GED for their own courses. Upon earning a GED the student is ban from academic upgrading and rejected aptitude or educational compliance testing and cannot attend the University of New Brunswick.
I dropped out of school the beginning of this year after doing some research on GED vs. Diplomas. I proved to my mother I could pass the GED by taking a pre-test then taking the local colleges' class eligibility test. I passed both with flying colors being eligible to take almost any class the school offered. That week I enrolled in college at that school and I am now taking online college classes until May when I can take the actual GED test.
I recommend to anyone to look into it first though. The only reason I went forth and did it was because my state and countys only rules were:
You must be 16 or older and be out of school for 90 days after your dropout date be for you can take the GED.
I can proudly say I have shocked the school I left and the college I'm currently attending. I am the first to drop out of school and start in to college while working on my GED. It was a hard process nonetheless though.
A GED does not equal a high school diploma for the cases of employment or the military because they see it as "I gave up before 4 yrs of high school, so why would I finish 4yrs with you?" and it is a fact that GED enlistees have 2x the drop-out rate on Diploma holders. You dropped out once because you couldn't handle it, why not again? Maybe just give up on life and flip burgers. If you must go the GED route (which I'm not against depending on the individual. Then go to college afterward. Once you have at least 15 hrs then most employers and even the military will consider it equal. A bachelor's degree = 120 hours and is always > than no degree (GED or Diploma included)
I think charles is a fagget I mean wdf is his gayass problem flippn burgers? Bitch some people had to help there familys out through this gay economy u fagget shit I think the ged is eqaul to a diploma
Also, point in case, the military does not accept anyone who goes to an online college course, even an accredited one such as Axia @ UoP, even if they have well over the recommended 15 college hrs. Trust me, I went through the entire process just to get turned down at the last minute because I went to an online university. Which does not make any sense because most of the military that is Active Duty got their degrees online because it was more convenient especially if they were deployed. It is ridiculous. I understand the need for college hrs if you have your GED, but I really think that its ridiculous for them to want them to be traditional college hrs. That is especially true for us working class people. I don't know about you but from my busy schedule I just don't have the time to go to college any other way but online.
Thanks.
I Di-agree the millitary will inlist people with a GED they do not turn down anyone unless of physical or mental illnesses as long as you have the equivilant to or your grade 12 being high school or GED they will let you in
Now I am working on my GED I had to drop out of High School for very important personal reasons ans i do not see why it should not equal up to the same thing in the end it the same you study work you butt off and all to get a peice of paper that makes every one out there think you are much smater then they were 4 years or 10 months ago
So i'm in my last year of high school and i'm doing the general stream after taking the academic stream the past two years before. I've almost dropped out once or twice each year because of personal reasons and now i'm super far behind. I thought switching to the general/basic courses would speed things up and get on with my graduation. Now i'm stuck here wondering can I get into a trade school or college with the graduation of general courses?
This is not so much about the GED but where i'm so far behind with my credits should I just take it easy and get back on track with a break from school and go get my GED later on in life? or can I go somewhere with my life even tho i took the basic courses in school?
I need some older opinions =)
Think about it, what do you do at High School? You sit on your ass all day, except to walk to your next class, get a drink, or go to the bathroom. You have to follow every word the teacher says like it's law, and they (the school) have the nerve to bitch about students being lazy and not caring. Well, maybe if they didn't make kids sit perfectly still all day, and maybe if they didn't bore the hell out of the students, or maybe if they teached something USEFUL, perhaps the students would care more. I'm considering just getting a GED so I can go to college and get on with my life, instead of being stuck in the same tedious routine everyday, and on top of that doing something I don't even have any real desire to do. Another thing, the way our ecomony is, Teens in particular need to get ahead of the game while they still can. I think it is downright stupid to wait until you're 18, or however old you happen to be when you complete high school, to try and get a job, because by that point you're going to need to go to college. So, how are you supposed to pay for it? Not everyone has rich parents, and not everyone has the patience, or time, to try and get a scholarship. The reason I bring that specific argument up is because I can't tell you how many times I've heard someone at school, teachers and principals mainly (Surprised?) say that high school IS YOUR JOB. Are you kidding me? I'm sorry, but that is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. I do agree that education is extremely important, especially English and Business, but school itself is NOT going pay the bills, money is. How do you get money? Well all be damn, A JOB. I don't know about other schools, but I can tell you I don't earn a dime at my school. I'm not trying to sound like a lazy ass, or a complainer, because I'm serious about what I need to know in this world in order to not only earn a living, but to persue what I want to do with my life. I also think it is LAZY of the school, and the government, to lump all kids together. What they need to do is make school more personal, according to the individual. They need to focus on the individual's learning patterns, the classes that the individual needs to take in order to get the job/career they want to get. Everyone wants their opinions and viewpoints to be listened to, respected, and acknowledged, and Teenagers aren't any different, it's Human Nature. That, I think, is the biggest reason for high school dropouts, simply because of the fact that Teens have very little, if any, say in how they are educated, and the schools still can't figure why the dropout rate even exists. I understand that my ideas of what school should really be like are probably never going to happen, are going to cost a fortune to set in motion, and will take many years to accomplish, if even possible. I'm just saying, in a nutshell, you should seek whatever knowledge/education you desire, whatever will help you prepare for YOUR FUTURE, not what others THINK you should seek to perpare. They aren't you, you're you, and not a single person, other than yourself, knows what you need to succeed.
In response to CC:
I agree with you 100%, everything you said is EXACTLY how I feel about the school system in today's society.
I'm strongly considering getting my GED because my teachers simply refuse to grade my work. I have turned in every assignment this year, aside from only 3 days last week when I had the H1N1 Swine Flu...maybe I'm just REALLY stupid, which I don't personally think i am. My teachers are constantly telling me that I'm smart and capable of the work, and yet, I DO the work, turn it in, and DON'T get the credit for it. I just don't know if continuing high school is even worth it, all I'm doing is showing up, busting my ass off doing useless, tedious busy work, all to just be told by a bunch of old fucks, whom I really don't have much respect for, that I'm "not trying hard enough" or some bullshit like that.
On the subject to the military not taking people with GED's... is totally B.S! I did my high school and after 3 years i was ready to graduate. My first daughter was born so naturally i had to miss a few days, with taking her to the hospital. BUT the school failed to tell me at the end of the year that i missed 2 days over my limit and had to REPEAT the whole year(7 credits). If I hadn't missed those days i would only have had to take 2 classes a day, but instead i had to do 2 more years. I went to the fast-track GED program and got my High School Diploma only to find out as i tried to join the army that it wasn't a HSD still a GED and i did not qualify. How is that possible??? What make a person with a HSD better than me? Because the system didn't screw them over? So now i'm in a community college 3 months away from graduating with no idea what to do with my degree. Imagen that, went to college for 2 years to join the military said isn't it?
krisjhn says:
2 years ago
Very nice...now that you are graduated how do you succeed in college...I just wrote a piece on how to do that