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ABSTRACT
Guided by human capital, socialization, and institutionalization theories, this study examined mid-life health and economic well-being of General Education Development (GED) certificate recipients. Relying on a study sample (N = 1,927) obtained from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, GED recipients were found to have worse mid-life outcomes than conventional high school graduates on measures of family income and depression and to have better mid-life outcomes than high school dropouts on measures of assets, family income, depression, and self-reported physical illnesses. Findings suggested that GED recipients should not be unnecessarily lumped together with high school graduates and that programs and services targeting potential and subsequent GED recipients and high school dropouts to remain in school might not only improve their mid-life labor market and economic outcomes, but also their physical and mental health.