I’ve read before that a GED is the legal equivelant of a diploma. If this is true, what exactly does that mean? I assume it varies by state, but is there a consensus?
I mean - does this mean that legally, if a job requires a high school diploma, and you present a GED, they can’t discriminate against you on education. Does it mean that you can say you have a diploma? Say, if a job said ‘high school diploma required’, and you applied, suggesting you had the necesary education, would a GED legally be considered enough for that position?
That may depend. In 1990, during the build up of Desert Shield, I decided to enlist. I was told by recruiters of all 4 DOD branches that since I had a GED, I also needed 15 credit hours of college on top of that. I noticed the Coast Guard phone number under recruiting ( I had no idea the CG was military) and called. They had no such policy at the time, and I enlisted with them. This is of course on a Federal level, I’m sure each state has their own laws, if any.
GEDs are considered high school diplomas, on the basis that you passed the exam that shows you have the requisite knowledge that you would’ve learned, had you actually finished high school. They’re administered and granted by the states, so a GED issued in California is valid in Pennsylvania.
For all intents and purposes, these are high school diplomas, although some employers may not consider them such and may say they’re not good enough for employment, at least not at their company.
GED is an initialization for General Education Development and is a high school education equivalency. It is equal to, but not the same as, a high school diploma. Companies can use any policy they wish to consider hiring future employees, and it is not discrimination so long as they apply the same policy equally.
That’s not true. It is illegal for companies to discriminate on the basis of race, age, gender, marital status, or many other things. I haven’t run into any issues with GED’s, as the company I work for generally requires a bachelor’s degree or better for the positions I have exposure to. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s no law against differentiating between a high school diploma and a GED, but I’m just not sure.
Why it would be illegal to discriminate against someone who had a GED? Of course where someone received their education is a resonable basis for discrimination. I’ve attended two top universities with the expectation that employers would discriminate in my favor.
I was referring to GED vs. HS diploma. Of course there are laws preventing discrimination, as well as constitutional prohibition. But policies which do not violate the Constitution or statute are within the purview of the company.