According to the ACE, the minimum score would be attained by 60 percent of graduating high school seniors if all were required to take the battery of tests. To earn a GED now, test-takers must score at least a 410 out of a possible 800 on each of the five subject tests, with an overall average of 450 across all subjects.

The GED exams are updated periodically, the most recent revision occurring in 2002.

In 2004, some 662,000 people nationwide took the GED tests. The tests became available to civilians in 1947, and since 1973 have been given in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Hosted and coordinated by the American Council on Education, a Washington-based umbrella group for higher education, through its GED Testing Service, the exam was developed in 1942 to help returning World War II veterans complete their studies and re-enter civilian life. The GED is a battery of five tests taken over the course of 7½ hours that cover mathematics, science, reading, writing, and social studies, designed to certify the mastery of high-school-level knowledge and skills. Costs of Not Graduating Tallied by Researchers.Many people believe it has something to do with “equivalency,” while others may even echo the comedian Chris Rock (himself a GED recipient) and claim it stands for “Good Enough Diploma.” In fact, the GED is not a diploma, nor, some research suggests, is it equivalent to one. Though many people have a vague notion of what it means to “get” a General Educational Development certificate, few can identify the “Educational Development” portion of the name.

“What does the GED stand for?” is a deceptively simple question.

Ged stands for