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Policies and Procedures
Utah Policies and Procedures | Access
to Offical GED Test
Policies and Procedures for the Utah General Educational Development (GED) Certificate
July 2, 2007
A. Title of State Credential:
Certificate of General Educational Development
B. Limitation of GED Certificate:
In Utah, though a GED Certificate is currently not viewed by some of public education to be equal to a high school diploma, it is being frequently used as an alternative for a high school diploma by most post-secondary institutions, financial aid applications, and/or employers. Also, by successfully passing the GED Test, an eligible student is entitled to a maximum of five (5) units of credit toward an Adult high school diploma. GED issued credits cannot duplicate credit already awarded for a high school diploma.
C. Eligibility for GED Testing:
- If the applicant’s high school graduating class HAS graduated, the applicant must be at least 18 years of age.
- If the applicant’s graduating class has NOT graduated, the applicant must be at least 17 or 18 years of age. For these testing applicants, the GED testing center requires the following:
a. a letter from the school district within which the applicant resides indicating the applicant is not regularly enrolled in school;
b. a letter from the applicant’s parent or legal guardian authorizing the test or a marriage certificate from the applicant if the applicant is married.
- No 16-year old or younger student is currently eligible for GED Testing.
D. Proper ID Required – Includes any of the following:
- Passports from most countries that are current and valid;
- A current driver license with photo that looks like the examinee. If the photo does not look like the examinee, the examinee is requested to acquire an up-to-date photo from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV); or
- A current personal ID card with photo that looks like the examinee – from Utah DMV.
- All other forms of ID must be cleared by the State Administrator of GED Testing (801-538-7870).
- Typically, high school and university ID cards are not accepted due to the ease of forging such documents.
E. Requirements for Retesting:
- Pay retesting fees.
- Retesting may be done up to 3 times a year on all GED tests. A period of three (3) weeks normally must elapse before an examinee retakes any GED test where GED scores are under 380. It is highly advised that additional GED preparation is undertaken in those 3 weeks.
- English forms of the GED cannot be taken twice. Since only two versions of the Spanish tests exist annually, after a three-month lapse of time the same form of the Spanish GED test may be retaken when permission of USOE has been acquired.
- All five (5) subtests of the GED exam must be taken before an examinee can retake any one of the five (5) again.
- Passing scores may be upgraded by retesting based on evidence of need.
F. Application for Testing:
Available at any official GED testing site in Utah and some Adult Ed. sites
G. Requirements for Issuing Certificates:
Obtain scores of at least 410 on each of the 5 subtests and, based on totaling the 5 subtests, an average standard score of 450 overall.
H. Fees to GED Candidate:
- Testing at official GED testing centers: $66 for taking the entire GED test battery. The $66 fee entitles the examinee to an official GED Score Report/Transcript and a GED Certificate when minimum score requirements are reached. This fee also provides storage of the examinee’s testing record on a national database facilitating permanent access to the examinee for future verification.
- Retesting: Four of the five subtests = $12 each. A $18 fee will be charged for retaking the subtest, Language Arts/Writing.
- There is no charge for re-issuance of a GED Certificate and/or an official GED Score Report from the Utah State Office of Education, but individual GED testing sites may charge for this service.
I. Official Transcripts:
An official GED Score Report/Transcript and certificate are issued at the time subtests are scored. Also, test scores are accepted when original scores are reported by: (1) Official GED testing and scoring centers; (2) Transcript Service of the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES); (3) Veterans Administration hospitals and centers, and; (4) the GED Testing Service (GEDTS).
J. Adult High School Credit:
A local board of education may adopt standards and procedures for awarding up to five (5) units of credit on the basis of test results which may be applied toward an ADULT HIGH SCHOOL diploma only. (State Board: R277-702-7)
School Districts shall not develop policies that are more liberal and/or restrictive than the state policies.
K. District Support:
Districts do not have authority under the rule to delay or deny access to the GED if the person is qualified under C(2) above, even though the student’s class has not graduated.
L. Residency:
No limitations
M. Special Accommodations:
Examinees are encouraged to seek appropriate special accommodations for GED Testing if they qualify based on diagnoses and reporting by licensed diagnosticians.
N. More Detailed Information may be found on our GED Web site:
http://www.utahged.info
O. GED Administrator of the GED Testing Program:
Murray Meszaros
State GED Testing Administrator
Utah State Office of Education
250 East 500 South
P.O. Box 144200
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4200
Telephone: (801) 538-7870
Fax: (801) 538-7868
murray.meszaros@schools.utah.gov
Brenda Jacobsen
GED Testing Assistant---for most information requests
Phone: (801) 538-7921 (Press 1 to bypass message.)
Fax: (801) 538-7868
brenda.jabobsen@schools.utah.gov
Utah State Board Rule Governing
Access To GED Tests
- Access to GED tests is limited to State Administrator of GED Testing;
state authorized GED Examiners; and during actual testing, those
examinees without high school diplomas or GED. Any other access
to GED tests must be cleared in writing through the State Administrator
of GED Testing.
- All test administrators shall conduct GED test administration in
strict accordance with the procedures and guidelines specified in
the GED test administration manual, school district rules and policies,
and Board rules.
- Teachers, administrators, and school personnel shall not:
- Provide students directly or indirectly with specific questions,
answers, or the subject matter of any specific item from any
official GED test.
- Allow students access to any testing material, in any form,
prior to test administration with the exception of GED demographic
sheets.
- Knowingly and intentionally do anything that would inappropriately
affect the security, validity, or reliability of GED test scores
of any individual student or group taking the GED test.
- Violation of any of these rules may subject licensed educators
to possible disciplinary action under Rules of Professional Practices
and Conduct for Utah Educators, R686-103-6(I).
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