Applying for the GED® Test

Important

August 2017, the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce has approved GED and HiSET to become the testing assessment companies for the High School Equivalency test for the State of Ohio. Continue to check our website for updates.


Effective January 11, 2021, Online proctoring is available for the High School Equivalency Program.  The same guidelines are applicable for the online proctoring. 

  • All test takers must be Ohio residents, and are eligible for one voucher code per vendor;
  • Age requirements for test takers 16, 17, and 18 years of age remain the same; and,
  • Test takers who wish to take the GED Online Proctored (OP) exam, must take and pass the GED Ready. There are no discounted retakes for the OP exam.
More information on the GED® Online Proctoring

Reminder: All test takers for the GED® and HiSET must be an Ohio Resident.

Steps to Apply for the GED® Test:

1. Create an account on the GED® website.

2. Contact your local Career Technical Planning District (CTPD) Office in order to receive a state voucher code . Voucher codes are available and expire June 30, 2024.

3. Test takers who are 18 years of age, must submit a current school year withdrawal form signed by a school official to:

State of Ohio HSE Office
Ohio Department of Education & Workforce
25 S. Front Street, MS 622
Columbus, Ohio 43215

4. Test takers who are 16 - 17 years of age, must submit a current school year withdrawal form signed by a school official and the Department of Education signed/notarized parental consent form to:

State of Ohio HSE Office
Ohio Department of Education & Workforce
25 S. Front Street, MS 622
Columbus, Ohio 43215

5. Once the withdrawal form and/or parental consent form has been received by the office, the age approval will be entered into the GED® system.

6. Test takers will log back into their GED® account and complete the application process by scheduling the test, entering the voucher code and making the payment.

The Test Series has changed effective January 2, 2014, and will only be given on computer at an authorized Computer Based Site 

  • Scores for the 2002 Series or prior will not carry forward to the new Test Series

Test Comparison Sheet


GED® Fees

In-Person testing: $144 ($64 with voucher) Effective July 1, 2023
Online Proctoring: $144 ($64 with voucher)
Voucher codes are available by contacting one of your local Career Technical Planning Districts Offices http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Career-Tech/HSE-CTPD

Test takers: must be a resident of Ohio. Only first time test takers are eligible for a voucher code. All voucher codes expire on June 30, 2024

There are new scoring requirements that an applicant must achieve to earn an Ohio GED®.

As of January 26, 2016, the passing scores has been recalibrated with a new scoring requirement. Test-takers from January 1, 2014 to current will be incorporated into the new scoring requirement, and should have received an email from GED Testing Services. The new scoring will update in the GED Manager system effective March 1, 2016.

  • The passing score for high school equivalence has moved from 150 to 145, for all test subjects.*
  • The new “GED® College Ready” performance level (score of 165-174) signifies readiness to enter credit-bearing college courses.
  • The new “GED® College Ready + Credit” level (score of 175-200) signifies that a student qualifies for up to ten hours of college credit.
  • The GED® test continues to measure the problem solving and critical thinking skills valued by employers and necessary for adults to succeed in the workplace and career or college programs:
  • Below Passing: 100 – 144
  • Passing Score: 145 – 164
  • Passing Score (GED College Ready): 165 - 174
  • Passing Score (GED College Ready + Credit): 175 – 200

Additional information can be found here.

GED® Test Subjects

The four subjects tested on the GED® are Reasoning Through Language Arts (RLA), Mathematical Reasoning, Science, and Social Studies.

Last Modified: 2/1/2024 12:34:38 PM