What you must know about testing
Special: What you must know 1) before getting private evaluations 2) about accommodations for high stakes exams and collegeStudents who hope to get accommodations, either on high stakes exams like the SAT or MCAT or at their college or graduate school, must submit documentation (i.e. paperwork that contains testing and other relevant information) that demonstrates that they have a disability. Some students may be told that their testing is too old. Others may be told that their evaluation does not contain the necessary tests. Students with ADD/ADHD, depending upon who diagnosed them, may find that they must undergo testing measures in order to support their diagnosis, something they have never had to do before.
If your child is still in high school, your school district is not required to provide the testing s/he might need to request accommodations for the SAT or college, so you may have to pay for what you need. If you have already graduated from high school, the cost of any testing you need must be borne by you.
Testing can be expensive and time-consuming. If you are a parent considering private testing because you assume that a private evaluation will provide him/her with a better chance of receiving accommodations on the SAT or at college, don't be so sure. During her years reviewing hundreds of evaluations over a decade, Elizabeth Hamblet found that some private reports were no better than the ones from public school districts, and that the students who submitted them were no more likely than others to receive their requested accommodations. Don't pay for testing based on a faulty assumption!
Keep in mind that many insurance companies won't pay for psychoeducational or neuropsychological testing at all. Even if they do pay, many won't cover the entire cost of an evaluation. You should check with your insurance company before you start testing. Make sure to ask whether or not you need pre-approval for such testing.
Whether you have to pay for testing or you choose to, you must do your homework first. It is possible to pay someone for an evaluation and still be turned down because that evaluation doesn't contain what the reviewing body (i.e. the testing board or college) requires. Psychologists and other professionals who do testing cannot be expected to know the documentation requirements for every entity from whom their clients wish to request accommodations. You must know what you need before you even call for a testing appointment, and make sure that the person you hire for testing can do what you need for your particular documentation requirements.
Based on her experiences in the college disability services world and her constant research to keep current in the field, Elizabeth Hamblet offers the following advice:
- Are you a college or graduate student? You may be able to get low-cost testing
- Elements of a good report - what the one you pay for should contain, what the one you have may already contain
- Don't be dazzled - assumptions you should not make if you pursue private testing
- Be an educated consumer of private testing! How to check documentation requirements to make sure you get the evaluation you need
- Links to documentation guidelines for students wishing to take the SAT, GRE, or other tests administered by Educational Testing Service (ETS), the MCAT, the LSAT, and the GMAT.
