West Virginia

You must be 19 years old to test in West Virginia without an age waiver. However, you must provide verification of having passed the GED Ready® practice test at your local adult learning or Option Pathway program. Additional documentation is required for Option Pathway students. Contact your local adult learning center or Option Pathway program for more information and to get started.

In West Virginia, students under the age of 19 must provide documentation verifying their eligibility to take the GED® test.

If you are officially withdrawn from school or homeschooled, you must contact your local adult learning center to schedule an appointment to take the GED Ready® practice test and complete the required documentation verifying your eligibility to take the test. You may locate your nearest adult learning center by going to https://wvde.us/adult-education/ or by calling 800-642-2670.

Students still enrolled in high school are not eligible to take the GED test unless they are enrolled in the Option Pathway program at their home high school. Contact your home high school for more information.

Once the required documentation has been reviewed and approved, you will be notified of your ability to schedule your test.

No, in West Virginia you are not required to be a resident. However, you must provide proof of having passed the GED Ready® practice test at your local adult learning program and meet all other eligibility requirements for West Virginia before you can take the test.

Some states allow people who don’t live there to take the GED® test and others don’t. You’ll need to check the residency requirement for the state in which you are interested in testing. Only test takers who successfully complete their GED® testing in West Virginia will be awarded a WV high school equivalency diploma.

You are required to enroll in an adult education or Option Pathway program before you can schedule to take the GED® test. Contact your local program for more information.

Yes, in West Virginia, you are required to take and pass the GED Ready® practice test at an approved adult education or Option Pathway program before you can schedule to take the GED® test. Once you pass the GED Ready® practice test and complete the required documentation for testing, you will be approved to schedule for your test. Contact your local adult learning center to schedule an appointment to take the free practice test. You may locate your nearest adult learning center by going to https://wvde.us/adult-education/ or by calling 800-642-2670. Option Pathway students must take the GED Ready® practice test through their program.

Scores from GED Ready® practice tests taken at home or in a location outside of an approved adult education or Option Pathway program will not be accepted.

There is no cost to the test taker for taking the GED® test in West Virginia. However, you may not schedule for the test without going through your local adult learning or Option Pathway program.

In West Virginia, there is a 14-day waiting period for your first two retakes. After the 14 days, you do have to provide proof of having met eligibility requirements for retaking the test to your test administrator.

After taking a test subject 3 times, you’ll have to wait 60 days before retesting. You may only take a given subject six times per year. The 60-day waiting period applies to the 4th, 5th and 6th attempt in a calendar year.

Although West Virginia does not have a specific waiting period for scheduling a missed appointment, your teacher or test administrator may require you to wait if you failed to properly notify them or did not have a valid reason for the missed appointment.

*In West Virginia there is no additional cost for GED® test retakes.

There may be additional requirements that you need to meet. We recommend contacting your state’s office at 800-642-2670 to find out more about your credential.

Test takers in West Virginia must go to DiplomaSender to set up an account and order their transcript and diploma. The first transcript and diploma is complimentary. Replacement documents may be requested for a fee. If you have questions, you may contact DiplomaSender at [email protected] or 855-313-5799.

In West Virginia the credential is called High School Equivalency Diploma.

Yes, in West Virginia you can take all test subjects in the same day if you can find a testing center with hours that accommodate it.

Yes, in West Virginia, you can take the GED^® Test in English or Spanish and you can combine the two languages to earn your credential.

It depends on whether or not that state has a residency requirement.  Check the residency requirements in that state and don’t hesitate to contact the GED Administrator^™ in that state with questions.

Ellen Killion
Option Pathway/HSE Coordinator
Division of Adult & Technical Education
West Virginia Department of Education
1900 Kanawha Boulevard, East
Building 6 Suite 825
Charleston, WV 25305-0330
Phone: (304) 558-2389
Fax: (304) 558-4874