Do Homeschoolers Need a GED?

GED® stands for General Educational Degree, General Education Diploma, or General Equivalency Development test. The GED® was created in 1942 to help veterans coming home from war apply to college or gain employment. Now it's used to give high school dropouts a second chance. It is not necessary for students who have earned a high school diploma. 

The GED® is used to demonstrate a student knows as much as a high school graduate. In the U.S., students must be age 16 and not currently enrolled in high school. It costs about $100 to $150, depending on the state. The GED® is about 7 hours long. It tests math (including basic math, geometry, algebra, graphs and functions), language arts (including reading, grammar, language, and a written essay), social studies (including reading and analyzing historical events and using numbers and graphs for meaning), and science (including the meaning of science, experiments, and using numbers and graphs).

I get asked this question a lot and the answer is no. As homeschool parents, you can provide a high school diploma.

Your students are not dropouts and can be taught academics at home and receive a diploma when they graduate.

Yes, there is a stigma with the GED®. The GED® implies a student did not complete high school and dropped out. It implies that the person needed to get a high school education without completing high school. A GED® implies “dropout.”

A homeschool diploma confirms successful high school graduation. 

Meet your state homeschool laws for graduation. If no specific homeschool graduation requirements are stated, the parent may determine graduation requirements for their child, in consideration of normal educational requirements. It may include 4 English, 3 to 4 math, 2 to 3 sciences, 3 social studies, 2 foreign language, 2 P.E, 1 art class, and enough electives to add up to 19 credits or more overall. Standard graduation requirements vary widely between states and are usually less than the requirements needed to enter college.

Yes, the GED® can negatively affect future income. GED® holders earn lower wages than those with high school diplomas.

This is true regardless of sex, race and ethnicity, or age. GED® recipients earn $3100 per month on average, compared to high school diploma recipients who earn $4700 per month on average. People who do not have either a diploma or a GED® earn on average $2400 per month.*

No, a GED® is a detriment to military enlistment in the U.S. Homeschoolers do not need a GED® to enlist in the army because they are considered "Tier 1" recruits, equal to their public schooled peers. Many students with an alternative education have been successful in the military.  There are three tiers of enlistment:

- Tier 1: High school graduates (including homeschool graduates) or non-graduates with some college credits.
- Tier 2: GED® students. 
- Tier 3: Those with no education credentials. 

The higher the tier, the higher their starting salary when enlisted. Giving your child a GED® can harm their military future. It’s best to provide an honest homeschool diploma when possible. 

To apply for the military, your child must present a homemade homeschool diploma and may be asked to show your homeschool has obeyed local homeschool laws, including any documentation required by your school district (such as a declaration of intent to homeschool). Each homeschooler must also present a transcript. It must be clear that the parent directed the child’s education. A GED® causes unnecessary complications that can affect the student’s tier standing.

No. In fact, a GED® can negatively affect college success. Perhaps not the way you may imagine, though. Those with a GED® are less likely to experience college success. For people with a high school diploma, 73% go to college and 33% earn a college degree. Only 43% of GED® earners go to college and only 5% earn a bachelor’s degree. A college degree can dramatically increase monthly earnings. While you can debate which came first, the GED® or the ability to be successful, statistics show that the GED® does not make a successful student.*

No, homeschoolers already qualify for need-based scholarships. Having a homeschool diploma does not disqualify your student from receiving financial aid via the FAFSA. Once upon a time, colleges sometimes required a GED® from homeschoolers before providing financial aid. Since 1998, however, Congress has provided a better way for homeschoolers to demonstrate their "ability to benefit" from federal financial aid. The U.S. Department of Education's regulations explain that a student is eligible for financial aid if they were homeschooled, and "either (1) obtained a secondary school completion credential as provided by state law, or (2) has completed a secondary school education in a homeschool setting under state law."

What does that mean? If you are homeschooling within your state homeschool law, then your student is eligible for federal financial aid. There is no need to take the GED®. The law states that students who have "completed a secondary school education in a home school setting that is treated as a home school or a private school under state law" can receive federal financial aid. When you fill out the FAFSA, the government will decide how much financial aid you should receive. Your child can receive financial aid as a homeschool student and does not need a GED®.

No. A GED® required of homeschoolers means a college is not homeschool friendly. Get to know each college admission policy to determine if the school is homeschool friendly. Few colleges these days require a GED®. Most colleges see and admit homeschoolers regularly and are unfazed by homeschool transcripts.

A GED® is rarely useful for homeschool students. If a college, employer, or military recruiter says a GED® is required, explain the situation calmly. A high school diploma does not need to be recognized by the state to be valid. A homeschool diploma does not need to be accredited to be valid.

If someone tells you that your homeschooler requires a GED® and will not listen to calmly expressed reason, please contact the HSLDA.

No. There can be negative unforeseen consequences in giving a GED® in order to graduate early. Sometimes parents want to get their child out of their hair since they’re being a pain and giving a lot of attitude. Or their child wants to be a ballet dancer and doesn’t seem to need a college prep education, so the parent thinks they’ll just give the GED® and be done with high school early. But ending high school without a clear plan for what comes next can result in your child turning into a couch potato at age 16. Hard work is worth doing and giving your child a shortcut like the GED® can result in them having unrealistic expectations of an easy path through life.

A homeschool diploma shows that a student has completed a high school course of study. It is valid under state law, even though it is not accredited. Accreditation is a tool used between high schools but is not a key ingredient in an official homeschool diploma. Not all public and private schools are accredited. 

While they may never be asked to show a high school diploma, adults will be asked if they have one. You don’t want your student to hesitate and say, “I don’t know, I’m homeschooled!” Instead, you want them to be absolutely certain their homeschool diploma is official. Present a high school diploma with pomp and circumstance confidently, so it’s a memorable event. A tangible diploma will help them remember their diploma is real and valid. In the working world, when the application asks if they are a high school graduate or have a high school diploma, the answer is YES.