Accommodations Requests and Processing

The GED Testing Service believes that:
	“Not all individuals can be fairly tested under standard administrations of regular print editions of the GED Tests. In such cases, special administrations may be arranged at the request of the candidate and with the approval of the Chief Examiner and the GED Administrator . . .”

Anyone with special requirements should discuss his or her needs with the Chief GED Examiner at a local testing center. Examiners will provide GED candidates with help in understanding the process for documenting the need for accommodations. Assistance from other sources such as physicians, school psychologists, vocational counselors, and others may be available to help candidates with some sort of disability. Before any request for special accommodations is forwarded to the GED administrator, the GED examiners must verify that a qualified professional diagnostician has performed all documentation and diagnoses. Possible accommodations for candidates with specific learning disabilities and/or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are listed below.

The GED candidate should go to the nearest test center for the correct form. If you have an advocate, you might find it helpful to ask him or her to accompany you. Forms are available on the Accommodations Forms Web page.

Be sure that assessments by licensed diagnosticians are recent since some “older” assessments of disabilities or conditions may be older than allowed for review. Each form tells you how “old” the diagnosis may be to be considered current.

A diagnosis by a qualified professional such as a psychologist, psychiatrist, medical doctor, learning disabilities specialists, or other professional must be done and properly reported on the correct form for the request to be considered. This must include the professional’s licensure or credentialing information.

Be sure that the licensed diagnostician explains how the disability interferes with learning and testing and what the rationale is for the reasonable accommodations requested.

Without all of the information on the form being completed, the request cannot be reviewed and will be returned to the GED test center.

Accommodations do not make the test “easier” but simply level the playing field for a person with a disability much the same as wearing glasses helps one do his best.

Information provided to GED examiners, the GED administrator, or GED Testing Services about specific disabilities will be treated as confidential and will be used solely to determine eligibility for accommodations. Details about testing accommodations will not be released to anyone else. The following accommodations must be approved by the GED administrator:

Extended time.
Calculator for Part II of the Math test.
Frequent supervised breaks.
Talking calculator.
Private room.
Braille version – use of a brailler.
Large print with extended time.
Deaf interpreter for test instructions.
Audiocassette version.
Printed instructions.

The following adaptations and devices do not require approval by the GED administrator and can be used just by asking the examiner at the test center:

Colored transparent overlays.
Clear transparent overlays and a highlighter.
“Sticky” notes for spatial orientation.
Ear plugs  Large print version.
Magnifying device.
Priority seating to avoid distractions.
One test per day.
Wearing hats with brims to minimize effects of fluorescent lighting.
Straightedge to aid in spatial orientation

The GED examiner will inspect these aids for security purposes.

The following accommodations are NOT allowed:

Use of a computer.
Word processing/spell-checking programs.
Rulers and weigh scales.
Use of a test reader.

Top of page