General Educational Development (GED) Preparation

The General Educational Development (GED) Preparation Program is designed for students who want to earn a certificate equivalent to a high school diploma (without returning to high school) by preparing them for the GED exam.

Our courses topics include test taking strategies, hands-on computer practice testing, and easy access to local GED testing centers. Our curriculum also prepares you for a pathway to other noncredit or credit programs.

Note: GED courses have restrictions.  Your placement in courses will be based on the assessment process.

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Complete the following courses to earn a certificate!

• GED 4001 - Language Arts
• GED 4002 - Mathematics
• GED 4003 - Science
• GED 4004 - Social Studies

Requirements/Restrictions: 

GED courses have restrictions and you will not be able to register without completing Placement tests, and meeting with a Counselor. Your placement will be based on the assessment process which includes information such as your high school grades, test scores, work experience, and other multiple measures. A Counselor may recommend placement at the level which meets your needs. Go to Assessment/Placement, and Meet with a Counselor for information about these requirements.

Note: GED (High School) assessment/placement test scores are valid for 2 years. You do not need to retake tests if your scores are still valid.

*Bilingual Spanish Option - The GED Prep program also offers a Bilingual option, which teaches you the same skills, but with the courses offered in Spanish. The General Educational Development-Bilingual program prepares students for the General Education Development (GED) Spanish exam.

Courses (Bilingual Spanish):

• GED 4101-English-Bilingual
• GED 4102-Mathematics-Bilingual
• GED 4103-Science-Bilingual
• GED 4104-Social Studies-Bilingual

A Certificate of Competency is awarded upon successful completion of all required courses. 

Request Your Certificate

If you have completed and passed all of the required courses in each program, submit the petition form “Petition for Certificate of Competency.”

Petition for Certificate of Competency

The GED exam covers four subject areas:

1. Reasoning Through Language Arts (RLA)
2. Mathematical Reasoning
3. Science
4. Social Studies

Each area has a specific number of multiple choice questions and must be completed within a certain amount of time. You will also be expected to complete an essay portion. Questions range in difficulty

To be eligible to take the GED, you must meet the following requirements (Based on Sec. 11532, Title 5, California Administrative Code).

Age:

• You must be at least age 18, or within 60 days of your 18th birthday.
• If you are age 17, and you have a written request from the armed forces, an employer, or a college or university, and a letter from the last high school you attended indicating your exemption from enrollment was granted at least 60 days previously, you may be eligible to take the exam.
• If you are age 17, and within 60 days of the date you would have graduated with your class if you had remained in regular high school, and you have a letter from the school verifying the date, you may also be eligible to take the exam.

Education

• You have not graduated from an accredited high school in the United States
• You have not received a high school equivalency certificate/diploma
• You have not earned a GED exam score sufficient to qualify for a high school equivalency certificate/diploma in any state

There are test sites located in various cities.  In Pasadena, the official GED exam is provided by the Pasadena Community Testing Center located at 351 S. Hudson, Pasadena, CA 91106. When you successfully complete the GED Exam with the required passing scores, you will earn a high school equivalency certificate.

At the Pasadena Community Testing Center, a pre-registration appointment is required to take the official GED exam. The exam fee is currently $35 per test. The fee is paid during registration with PearsonVue. You must also present official photo identification verifying your name, date of birth, signature, and current address. High school identification cards are not accepted.

It is very important for you to arrive on time. Late arrivals jeopardize your ability to allow enough time for testing. Students arriving late may also lose their spot to another testing candidate, and a "no show" will require an additional fee.

You will receive your GED certificate as long as you complete all areas of the exam and earn the minimum passing score. All exams are scored by the Educational Testing Service in Oakland, California. A minimum passing score is an average of 450 for all five tests (a total score of 2,250), with no individual test score below 410. Your counselor can give you more information about scores.

After you complete the exam, it takes approximately two weeks to receive your official exam results and your State GED Certificate (if you have a passing score). You will receive your results directly from the State GED Office via US mail. Exam results are not provided over the telephone.

We highly recommended that you participate in preparation classes, including taking a practice exam, before scheduling an appointment to take the official GED exam. The preparation classes and practice exam are free of charge.

Tests are administered in English and Spanish.

Special accommodations for testing are available for GED candidates with documented disabilities.

If you do not pass a section, you can re-take the test up to three times on the same subject without waiting. After the third attempt, there is a 60-day waiting period before trying again.

After you complete the exam, it takes approximately two weeks to receive your official exam results and your State GED Certificate (if you have a passing score).