High School Equivalency and GED

The High School Equivalency (HSE) Certificate is recognized in all fifty states as the equivalent to a high school diploma. Those who successfully pass one of the tests recognized by the State of California are issued the California High School Equivalency Certificate by the State of California.

The available tests are:

• GED® (General Educational Development / Pearson-Vue); and,
• HiSET® (High School Equivalency Test / Educational Testing Service).

You are eligible to take these tests if you are a resident of California and meet any one of the following criteria:

• You are 18 years of age or older, or
• You are within 60 days of your 18th birthday (regardless of school enrollment status).
• You must be within 60 days of when you would have graduated from high school had you remained in school and followed the usual course of study (please note that examinees testing under this criteria may not be enrolled in school).
• You are 17 years of age, have been out of school for at least 60 consecutive school days, and provide a letter of request for the test from the military, a post-secondary educational institution, or a prospective employer.

Individuals who pass the HSE test at age 17 will not receive the equivalency certificate until their 18th birthday; a letter of intent is issued which states that the certificate is being held pending the examinee's 18th birthday.

All candidates must document identity with valid identification, both at the time of registration and at the time of testing.

The identification must be current and include the examinee's name, date of birth, photograph, address, and signature. Acceptable identification includes:

• Driver's licenses issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles
• Identification cards issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles
• Identification cards issued by the military
• Identification cards issued by U.S. or foreign government
• Passports issued by U.S. or foreign governments
• Identification cards issued by post-secondary schools

Acalanes Adult Education offers test preparation classes on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Enrollment is ongoing.  If you are not able to take the class, preparation materials are available in libraries, at all major bookstores, and online.

The tests are offered at various locations throughout the county; the Contra Costa County Office of Education maintains a current calendar on their website under High School Equivalency Testing.

GED®—To pass the GED® Test in California, examinees must receive a score of at least 145 on each of the four GED® subject tests. The examinee may retake all or part of the test to attain a passing score. GED® Testing Service allows individuals to take the test three times without any waiting period. After the third attempt, test-takers must wait 60 days after their last attempt before they can test again. This will result in test-takers having up to eight opportunities to test in a year should they require that many attempts.

HiSET®—Each of the five subtests in the HiSET battery is scored on a scale of 1–20. In order to pass, you must do all three of the following:

• Achieve a score of at least 8 on each of the five individual subtests
• Score at least 2 out of 6 on the essay portion of the writing test
• Have a total combined score on all five tests of at least 45
• If the entire battery is paid for initially, two free retakes are available within 12 months of the original test date.

Examinees will be able to access their scores online. Scores will be returned from computer-based tests within twenty-four hours of completion of each test module, but usually earlier. Paper test scores for the HiSET will be available within five to ten business days of when the tests arrive.

You can obtain your GED® Test transcript by going through the official GED® website Life After GED.

I took the GED test several years ago and how do I get proof of the results?

Persons who acquired a GED certificate from tests given at Acalanes Adult Education prior to 2003 and need a duplicate copy of the results may obtain a transcript or a new certificate from the GED Request Your Transcript.