High School Equivalency Program in Texas

Over the years, Texas is experiencing a continuous decline in college-ready graduates. The Texas Tribune reports a 50.6% dropout risk in 2019-2020. Texas lost one in five students in 2021, equivalent to 10 students per hour. At this rate, Texas will not reach universal high school education in 2038. The High School Equivalency Program (HSEP) prevents dropouts, enabling at-risk students to obtain a high school equivalency credential. Its aim is to prepare eligible students for equivalency exams rather than traditional diplomas. Students who do not have the option to attend high school can still apply to college and university once they earn the certificate of High School Equivalency, or reflect it in their resume. The student eligibility requirements include the following:

• The student must be at least 16 years old at the beginning of the school year or semester
• At least two school years have elapsed since the student first enrolled in ninth grade
• The student has completed fewer than ⅓ of the credits required for graduation under the district’s or the open enrollment charter school’s minimum graduation plan

*Note: Students ordered by a court under Family Code, Truancy Court Proceedings, Section 65.103 or directed by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department are automatically accepted to the program.

High School Equivalency Program (HSEP) Locations

The HSEP is operated in some participating school districts or open enrollment charter schools. The following is a full list of Education Service Centers with a HSEP location:

High School Equivalency Exams

There are currently two high school equivalency assessments: the GED test and the HiSET exam. Both assessments offer the same test language: English, Spanish, or a combination of both languages. The GED test covers 4 subjects: Math, Science, Social Studies, and Reasoning Through Language Arts; whereas, the HiSET exam covers 5 subjects: Math, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts – Reading, and Language Arts – Writing. The score range for the GED test is 100-200 while the score range for the HiSET exam is 1-20. Students are required to score at least 145 on all GED subjects, or at least 8 for all HiSET subjects as well as a minimum total score of 45 for HiSET exam.

Although Educational Testing Services (ETS) has announced that they will not administer the HiSET test in Texas after August 31st, 2021, the GED test allows students to earn the same high school equivalency credential. In fact, more than 98% of schools in the United States accept the GED, including community colleges, universities, and private schools. The GED also works for those who would like to dive straight into the workforce. Employers view the GED as equal to a high school diploma, and many GED graduates make $9,000 USD more per year than those without a high school diploma. 

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Citations:

State of Texas – https://schools.texastribune.org/
Attrition and Dropout Rates in Texas – https://www.idra.org/
High School Equivalency Program – https://tea.texas.gov/
High School Equivalency Program Locations – https://tea.texas.gov/
Test Information At A Glance – https://tea.texas.gov/
What’s the Difference Between the GED and a High School Diploma? – https://ged.com/
Certificate of High School Equivalency – https://tea.texas.gov/