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The GED

Author

Listed:
  • Heckman, James J.

    (University of Chicago)

  • Humphries, John Eric

    (Yale University)

  • Mader, Nicholas S.

    (University of Chicago)

Abstract

The General Educational Development (GED) credential is issued on the basis of an eight hour subject-based test. The test claims to establish equivalence between dropouts and traditional high school graduates, opening the door to college and positions in the labor market. In 2008 alone, almost 500,000 dropouts passed the test, amounting to 12% of all high school credentials issued in that year. This chapter reviews the academic literature on the GED, which finds minimal value of the certificate in terms of labor market outcomes and that only a few individuals successfully use it as a path to obtain post-secondary credentials. Although the GED establishes cognitive equivalence on one measure of scholastic aptitude, recipients still face limited opportunity due to deficits in noncognitive skills such as persistence, motivation and reliability. The literature finds that the GED testing program distorts social statistics on high school completion rates, minority graduation gaps, and sources of wage growth. Recent work demonstrates that, through its availability and low cost, the GED also induces some students to drop out of school. The GED program is unique to the United States and Canada, but provides policy insight relevant to any nation's educational context.

Suggested Citation

  • Heckman, James J. & Humphries, John Eric & Mader, Nicholas S., 2010. "The GED," IZA Discussion Papers 4975, IZA Network @ LISER.
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4975
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    File URL: https://docs.iza.org/dp4975.pdf
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    Other versions of this item:

    • James J. Heckman & John Eric Humphries & Nicholas S. Mader, 2010. "The GED," NBER Working Papers 16064, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Borghans, Lex & Meijers, Huub & ter Weel, Bas, 2013. "The importance of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for measuring IQ," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 17-28.
    2. Megan Millenky, 2016. "Connecting high school dropouts to employment and education: an impact study of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program," IZA Journal of Labor Policy, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-17, December.
    3. Heckman, James J. & Kautz, Tim, 2012. "Hard evidence on soft skills," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 451-464.
    4. Greenland, Andrew & Lopresti, John, 2016. "Import exposure and human capital adjustment: Evidence from the U.S," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 50-60.
    5. Marla McDaniel & Daniel Kuehn, 2013. "What Does a High School Diploma Get You? Employment, Race, and the Transition to Adulthood," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 40(4), pages 371-399, December.
    6. Biewen, Martin & Tapalaga, Madalina, 2017. "Life-cycle educational choices in a system with early tracking and ‘second chance’ options," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 80-94.

    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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