Test Taking Tips
How to Study for your GED Exam
The best way to study for the GED tests is to study smart, not hard.
Know what is on GED exam
Focus when you are the most alert on the material that you don't know or are not good at.
Develop a flexible study schedule
Study when you are the most alert
Practice
You should practice for the test as much as possible.
Fully understand all the questions you got wrong by carefully reading the explanations on your score report
Try to tackle one section of the exam at a time
Take exams with self-imposed time constraints – this will help you insure that you know the material
Use Good Study Materials
Good study materials will help you focus your study to just what you need to know.
Read the questions carefully before you look at the answers. Read each answer twice before you answer.
Don't read the questions too fast and fall into traps.
The same goes for answers.
Don’t miss the question because you misread it.
You should also be careful not to read too much into the question.
Read The Full Question – CAREFULLY
Read each question twice before you look at the answers. Read each answer twice before you answer.
People often read questions too fast and fall into traps.
The same goes for answers.
Don’t miss the question because you misread some of the terms.
You should also be careful not to read too much into the question.
Questions are typically straight forward and don’t require a “leap of faith” to answer correctly.
In other words, don’t over-read the question and look for a “theoretical” answer versus a “common sense” answer.
Don't Jump To Conclusions
Some questions on your GED Test require careful analysis.
Some of the wrong answers may appear to be the right answer at a casual glance.
Often times test writers will put misleading answers first to tempt you to choose them – don’t fall into this trap!
Also, there may even appear to be more than one right answer!
If this is the case, make sure to choose the best answer based on what is in the question (not based on your assumptions).
Trust Your First Answer
After you have read the question carefully (twice!) and all of the answers carefully (twice!) you will select your best answer.
Trust yourself!
If you have time left over to review your GED Test – don’t change any answers unless you find an obvious error that you are sure about.
Your first answer is usually the right answer.
Keep Time On Your Side
Although the time limits on the GED Test should allow you to finish your exam, it is still important to keep a correct pace going.
Determine how much time to “budget” for each question.
For example, if you have 40 minutes to answer 20 questions, then you have about two minutes per question.
After every few questions, check the time to see if you are still on schedule.
Don’t dwell on questions that you don’t know – skip them and move on.
Conversely, don’t rush questions that you think you know – read them twice and pick the best answer.
Careless mistakes are often what separate a superior score from an average score.
Go With What You Know
You should answer questions that you know first, and skip the ones that you are unsure of.
Do not dwell on any one question – answer all the questions that you are sure of first.
If you are in doubt about an answer, mark the question, skip it, and go to the next one.
When you are finished answering all of the questions that you know, then go back and look at your skipped questions.
Sometimes the other questions in the exam will provide you some clues on how to answer some of your skipped questions that you were unsure of.
Have An Answer For Everything
The GED Test does not penalize you for guessing.
You should make sure that you answer every question, even if you are unsure of the answer or have to guess.
If you have to guess, you can probably eliminate 1 or 2 answer choices immediately.
Of the remaining choices pick the answer that you feel the best about – and move on.
Know The Tricks
If you understand the following “tricks” about questions, you’ll increase your score:
Absolute No No’s – Answers with absolutes such as always, never, greatest, must are generally not the correct answers
Beware the “except” – Questions with “except” (or “which of the following is NOT true”) are often read too fast and missed. A good way to answer these questions is to cover the word except or not and then choose the answer that does not belong.
Valid information – All of the information in the question is probably there for a reason. Don’t ignore anything in the question – you will need it to correctly answer the question.
It's All In The Attitude
Your attitude when it comes to preparing and acing your GED Test is the most important factor that you can control.
You need to be positive and have confidence.
You need to believe that you will score high on your exam.
While you are taking your exam, you need to have confidence and relax.
If you come across an answer that frustrates you – just skip it and come back to it later.
DO NOT PANIC!
If you have studied with the resources – YOU WILL SCORE HIGH!
Strategies for Answering Each Type of Question
Basic Strategies
Know the time limit for each test and pace yourself.
Read all directions on the GED’s official practice tests before taking the actual test. Knowing those directions will save you time on the actual exam.
Relax and trust yourself. You can do it!
Multiple Choice Question Strategies
Think about what each question is asking in your own words to make sure you understand it. (Just don't do this out loud!)
Go back to the passage for any information that will help you figure out the answer.
Try to come up with your own answer before looking at the answer choices. Some of the incorrect choices are designed to tempt test-takers into choosing them.
Eliminate the options that are definitely wrong.
Choose from the remaining options.
Don't change your answer unless you have a good reason to do so.
There is no penalty for incorrect answers, so you should choose an answer for each question if you are running out of time.
If you are not sure of an answer, you can flag it and guess. An item review screen will keep track of the flagged questions for you, and you can return to them at the end of the exam.
Tips for Questions in Reading
Try to determine the type of question that is being asked: Is it asking you to find a detail, make an inference, or draw a conclusion?
Look back to the passage for the answer or for proof of the answer.
Be careful not to choose answers that are too "absolute" – answer choices that use 'all, never' and 'none' are often too exclusive.
Tips for Questions in Math
Make sure you understand what you are being asked for before you start working with the numbers.
Write down every step on your note board. This is the erasable notepad that will be provided.
Sketch any figures that are described but not pictured.
Use the formulas on your reference sheet when necessary.
Do not spend too long on questions that are hard for you. Skip them and go back to them later.
Tips for Questions in Social Studies and Science
On the GED, the information you need to answer the questions is on the page, so you do not need to memorize a lot of content knowledge. You mainly need to use your critical thinking skills to figure out answers.
Read the titles of all charts and visuals.
Do not assume charts and graphs are drawn to scale. Use the numbers to find answers.
When choosing answers, be careful not to choose statements that may be true but do not actually answer the question.