Gateway Offering Computer-Based GED Tests; State Funds Available to Pay 50% of Cost

Computer-based GED testing (CBT-GED) is now available at Gateway Community & Technical College. The cost of the CBT-GED is $120; however, the first 60 students in the state of Kentucky to sign up for the computerized version will be able to take the test for $60, the same fee as the paper-based test, thanks to limited state funding.

The CBT-GED increases access to the test by enabling 24/7 registration and scheduling. Computer-based test-takers receive an instant score report, an advantage not available with the paper-based test. The computer version offers greater flexibility because it can be taken in separately timed sections on different dates or on one date in separate timed sections.

The increased availability will help those who need to test at a time when a paper-based test is not scheduled or when they are off work or have childcare available, said Cindy Sproehnle, Gateway Assessment Center director. Computer-based GED test-takers also have more opportunities to pass. The computer-based test can be taken six times in a calendar year versus three times for the paper-pencil test. Plus, some test-takers prefer to test on computer.

GED test preparation is offered by Kentucky Adult Education (KYAE), which is providing the funds to cover 50 percent of the cost for computer test-takers for the first 60 people statewide who sign up between now and Dec. 31, 2012.

We encourage anyone who has met the state requirements for testing eligibility and who is interested in the computer-based test to sign up as soon as possible to have an opportunity to take advantage of this limited short-term savings, said Peg Russell, director of adult education for Gateway, which administers KYAE in Boone, Grant, Kenton and Owen counties. The normal fee for the computer-based test is $120.

Complete information on GED preparation is available at http://www.kyae.ky.gov/students/ged/. Students should work with their Adult Basic Education instructors before they register for the computer-based test to receive a coupon code for the discount, Russell said. Local Adult Education programs will help students through the test registration process.

Students interested in taking the CBT-GED must register through Pearson VUE at www.GEDcomputer.com or by calling 1-877-392-6433. Registrants should have payment information ready to submit online or by phone. The computerized version is currently available to first-time test-takers only. The official GED Testing Center at Gateway's Boone Campus, 500 Technology Way, Florence, Ky., offers the CBT five days a week and on some Saturdays.

For more information on Adult Education and GED test preparation, contact Russell at (859) 442-1186, peg.russell@kctcs.edu. For more information about the CBT-GED procedures or any of Gateway's other assessment and testing services, contact Sproehnle at (859) 442-1159, cindy.sproehnle@kctcs.edu.