Canadian GED

Last Updated on April 9, 2024.

From May 3, 2024, the Canadian GED test is being replaced with the CAED exam. Onsego offers online preparation classes for both exams.

The content of the GED and CAEC exams is comparable, and the Onsego online prep course adjusted its content to continue serving Canadian students. 

Best GED Classes’ free GED online classes and practice tests can also be used by Canadian students to begin their GED or CAEC prep journey.

Both the U.S. and Canadian GED exams are issued by the official GED organization, GED Testing Service. There are, however, a few differences.

The Canadian GED® exam is much like the former U.S. edition and includes five sub-exams since Reading and Writing are separate subtests in Canada, whereas, in the U.S., these subtests were combined into one Language Arts sub-exam.

Furthermore, the U.S. GED test includes questions covering U.S. History, Government & Civics. The questions in Canada, of course, do not relate to the U.S. but to Canadian History, Government and Civics.

For all of the other GED subject matter, you can very well use Best GED Classes lessons and GED practice tests to start your preparation journey for the Canadian GED test.

This free support allows you to see if this way of studying suits you well to begin on your GED prep track. If it does, we suggest you use Onsego GED Online Prep, an accredited, full-scope course that has provided the free lessons and practice test featured on this website.

What’s on the Canadian GED Test?

In Canada, the GED test consists of five independent sub-exams that cover the academic subject areas of Math, Reading, Writing, Social Studies, and Science.

For all GED subject matter, except for History and Government & Civics, counts that it is identical in the U.S. and Canada. So you may very well use what’s published here on our Best GED Classes website to get all set for the Canadian GED as well. On this website, we publish a limited number of video lessons and practice tests at no cost.

As said earlier, the free video lessons and practice tests are generously provided by the premium GED prep course designed by Onsego. As one of only 20 GED prep courses, this GED course is recognized by GED Testing Service as being totally in line with what’s on the current GED tests.

If you are looking for a comprehensive course that addresses all topics found on the GED exam, Onsego’s course is the way to go. Onsego’s courses include lessons and practice tests related to Canadian History, and Government and Civics as well.

So, the Canadian and U.S. versions of the GED test are practically the same, the main difference being that the Canadian Social Studies sub-exam contains questions related to Canadian Government & Civics and Canadian History.

However, for both the Canadian and U.S. Social Studies tests counts that the sub-exam checks predominantly your reading comprehension capacities, not to what extent you know dates and facts.

So, you can use our free support to prepare for the Canadian GED Mathematics, Reading, Writing, and Science subtests because the contents are the same in both the U.S. and Canada. For the major part of the Canadian Social Studies exam, the same applies. You can also check out the post about the Canadian GED test, where Canadians are informed about the GED test in Canada.

The following sections of the Canadian GED exam are the same as on the U.S. version of the GED exam: Economics, Reading & Analyzing Data, and Practice Tests.

GED Ready Test

Before signing up for the real GED exam, you should really take the official GED practice test, the GED Ready test.

This test is about half the length of the real exam, and your score will indicate whether you are “likely to pass” the real thing or that you need more time to get a passing score.

You will receive a score report that indicates which subject fields need your attention most to improve your score.

The GED Ready test is available at GED.com, the official website of GED Testing Service, and there is one GED Ready test for each testing subject.

Canada – Five GED Subtests

In Canada, the GED exam consists of five individual subtests that are available in both paper-based and computerized formats. The exam can be taken both online and at designated testing facilities.

When taken at a testing center, the GED test is usually administered in a 2-day period. The five sub-exams are often scheduled for Friday evenings and Saturdays. Between the subtests, there are usually short breaks.

GED hopefuls who sit for the five exams in an online proctored GED format don’t have to sit for the five subtests all at once. They can go at their own pace and take the five subtests when they want and in any order.

How Long are the GED Subtests in Canada?

In Canada, the allotted time frames for the five sub-exams are

• Mathematics: 90 minutes (multiple choice questions)
• Language Arts Reading: 65 minutes (multiple choice questions)
• Language Arts Writing: Part 1: 75 minutes (multiple choice), Part 2: 45 minutes (writing, essay)
• Social Studies: 70 minutes (multiple choice questions)
• Science: 80 minutes (multiple choice questions)

GED in Canada

• The U.S. and Canadian GED exams are pretty much identical except for the History and Government & Civics sections. Additionally, the Canadian GED exam has separate writing and reading sections, so five subtests in total, and in Canada, the GED exam cannot be taken online, and the scoring is different as well.
• Both the U.S. and Canadian GED tests are designed and published by the official GED organization, GED Testing Service.
• Like in the US, the Canadian GED credential is the equivalency of a regular high school diploma and is accepted as such by employers, government organizations, colleges, and universities.
• In Canada, the minimum required age to be eligible for GED testing is 18 or 19. In Newfoundland, Labrador, and Manitoba, it is 19, while in Ontario, PEI, British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, it is 18.
• In Canada, on part one of the GED Math subtest, you can use a calculator. You cannot bring your own device, but there’ll be one provided by the testing center. You are not allowed to use a calculator on part 2 of the Canadian GED Math test.
• The Canadian GED passing score is 450 out of 800. This minimum score must be reached for each of the five subtests. So, your overall score can, in no case, be under 2250, and you cannot average your scores.
• On May 3rd, 2024, Canada will stop using the GED exam and will replace it with the Canadian-made Canadian Adult Education Credential (CAEC).