The External Diploma Program (EDP) is an alternative to the GED exam for earning a high school diploma.  EDP is designed for mature adults who have learned life skills at work, at home, or in the community.  EDP allows you to demonstrate your high school-level skills by applying your skills in real life situations and can be completed in 6-12 months. Please call SBLC at 410-625-4215 or email to find out if you are eligible and to schedule an information session and assessment.  Applicants must be at least 18 years old and a Baltimore city resident.

         EDP awards a traditional high school diploma to adults who have acquired many of their high school level abilities through work, family, and community experiences. EDP is not a traditional instructional program. Instead, it provides the opportunity for participants to demonstrate their skills and knowledge. Because EDP participants are adults, the program structure offers considerable flexibility. Participants complete parts of the program at home and the other parts in a series of meetings on site with a trained EDP advisor and assessor.  The program consists of two phases: the Diagnostic Phase and the Assessment Phase.

         In the Diagnostic Phase an EDP advisor evaluates the participant’s basic skills in reading, writing, and mathematics, and completes a survey of prior life experiences.  Once the participant has met the requirements of the Diagnostic Phase, the Assessment Phase begins. In this phase, the participant demonstrates writing, speaking, mathematics, problem-solving, reading, and critical thinking academic skills through the performance of real-life tasks. Embedded in these real-life tasks are sixty-five individual competencies. A trained EDP assessor determines that the participant has demonstrated each of these competencies with one hundred percent accuracy.  The Assessment Phase also requires that each participant satisfy an individualized competency. This is verified through an assessment in either an occupational or vocational competency, a specialized competency, or an advanced academic competency.  Once the EDP participant has satisfied all Assessment Phase requirements, the high school diploma is awarded.