ADA Documentation Guidelines

Overview

NCEES requires candidates seeking accommodations on an NCEES examination to provide documentation from a qualified healthcare professional that provides a diagnosis of the candidate’s impairment and discusses the functional impact of the impairment on the candidate.

Documentation serves three purposes:

To establish that the candidate can be considered a person with a disability.
To supplement information from the candidate regarding the impact of his or her impairment.
To inform the determination of reasonable accommodations designed to facilitate equal access to the examination on a case-by-case basis.

Documentation needs to include:

A diagnosis of the relevant impairment
A description of the current functional impact of the impairment on the candidate, with, ideally, a specific focus on any barriers to taking a standardized examination under standard testing conditions
A discussion of whether the impairment is permanent or temporary

Documentation needs to be from a qualified healthcare provider and include the provider’s:

Contact information
License number
Signature or electronic signature

Documentation may be submitted in―but is not limited to―one of the following formats:

NCEES Healthcare Provider Form (PDF) (except for learning disabilities)
Letter on a qualified provider’s letterhead
Official summary or report from a visit to healthcare provider
Neuropsychological or psychoeducational assessment (if applicable with respect to a given impairment)

Documentation needs to be current

In evaluating a candidate’s need for accommodations, it is important to know how an impairment is currently impacting the candidate. The impact of some impairments does not change over time, but that is not true for all impairments. Please see the guidelines applicable to your specific impairment(s) for a discussion of how recent your supporting documentation should be.

Guidelines for Specific Disabilities

Candidates should review the applicable documentation guidelines, as these guidelines may call for additional information to be provided by a candidate:

Documentation for Physical Disabilities
Documentation for Learning Disabilities

Documentation for Psychological Disabilities
Documentation for ADHD

Documentation for Physical Disabilities

Overview

For candidates requesting accommodations based upon a visual, hearing, or other physical impairment, NCEES requires documentation from a qualified professional that describes the impairment and its functional impact on the candidate. This documentation serves three purposes:

To establish that the candidate can be considered a person with a disability.
To supplement information from the candidate regarding the impact of his or her impairment(s).
To inform the determination of reasonable accommodations, when warranted, designed to facilitate equal access to the examination on a case-by-case basis.

Documentation needs to include:

A diagnosis of the relevant impairment
A description of the current impact of the impairment on the candidate, with a specific focus on barriers that the candidate encounters in a testing environment
A discussion of whether the impairment is permanent or temporary

Documentation needs to be from a qualified healthcare provider and include the provider’s:

Contact information
License number
Signature or electronic signature

Documentation may include — but is not limited to — one or more of the following, as necessary to provide the information requested above:

NCEES Healthcare Provider Form (PDF)
Letter on a qualified provider’s professional letterhead
Official summary or report from a visit to healthcare provider
Audiogram
Results from a comprehensive eye exam
Documentation of accommodations received in any academic context
Documentation of accommodations received in any employment context
Documentation of accommodations received on other standardized tests

Documentation should address your current functional limitations:

The functional impact of many physical impairments changes over time. Therefore, the documentation that you provide from your qualified healthcare professional generally should reflect an evaluation done within five years of the date on which you submit your request for accommodations. If you have a physical impairment whose functional impact does not change appreciably over time, however, older documentation may be provided.

Documentation for Learning Disabilities

Overview

Specific Learning Disabilities are a group of neurologically based difficulties that negatively impact a person’s ability to demonstrate specific academic skills. In the examination setting, these disabilities may interfere with reading, writing, concentrating, or computation. Such difficulties are not a reflection on a person’s overall intellectual ability.

For candidates requesting accommodations based upon a learning disability, NCEES requires documentation from a qualified professional that describes the impairment and its functional impact on the candidate. This documentation serves three purposes:

To establish that the candidate can be considered a person with a disability.
To supplement information from the candidate regarding the impact of his or her impairment(s).
To inform the determination of reasonable accommodations, when warranted, designed to facilitate equal access to the examination on a case-by-case basis.

Documentation needs to include:

A DSM-5 or ICD diagnosis of a learning disability and/or clinically significant results as demonstrated in psycho-educational test scores (If psycho-educational testing is included, it should be performed at the adult level)
A description of the current impact of the impairment(s) on the candidate, with a specific focus on barriers that the candidate encounters in a testing environment

Documentation needs to be from a qualified healthcare provider and include the provider’s:

Contact information
License number
Signature or electronic signature

Documentation may include — but is not limited to — one or more of the following, as necessary to provide the information requested above:

Letter on a qualified provider’s professional letterhead
Copies of any Section 504 Plan or IEP
K-12 Summaries of Performance
Psycho-educational evaluation (Psychometric test results from general measures of aptitude and academic achievement)
Documentation of accommodations received in any academic context
Documentation of accommodations received in any employment context
Documentation of accommodations received on other standardized tests

Documentation should address your current functional limitations:

Documentation from your qualified professional generally should reflect an evaluation done within five years of the date on which you submit your request for accommodations. Earlier documentation may also be submitted to supplement a more recent evaluation.

Because learning disabilities are lifelong impairments, academic records can also be helpful in establishing a need for accommodations and may be submitted with your request for accommodations. Examples of such records include transcripts, report cards, letters from teachers, and score reports from other standardized tests.

Documentation for Psychological Disabilities

Overview

For candidates requesting accommodations based upon a psychological disability, NCEES requires documentation from a qualified professional that describes the impairment and its functional impact on the candidate. This documentation serves three purposes:

To establish that the candidate can be considered a person with a disability.
To supplement information from the candidate regarding the impact of his or her impairment(s).
To inform the determination of reasonable accommodations, when warranted, designed to facilitate equal access to the examination on a case-by-case basis.

Documentation needs to include:

A DSM-5 or ICD diagnosis of the psychological condition
A description of the current impact of the impairment on the candidate, with a specific focus on barriers that the candidate encounters in a testing environment
Information on any medications that the candidate is taking, if the medications affect the accommodations that a candidate may need

Documentation needs to be from a qualified healthcare provider and include the provider’s:

Contact information
License number
Signature or electronic signature

Documentation may include — but is not limited to — one or more of the following, as necessary to provide the information requested above:

NCEES Healthcare Provider Form (PDF)
Letter on a qualified provider’s professional letterhead
Official summary or report from a visit to healthcare provider
Psycho-educational evaluation
Documentation of accommodations received in any academic context
Documentation of accommodations received in any employment context
Documentation of accommodations received on other standardized tests

Documentation should address your current functional limitations:

Documentation from your qualified professional generally should reflect an evaluation done within four years of the date on which you submit your request for accommodations. Earlier documentation may also be submitted to supplement a more recent evaluation.

Documentation for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Overview

For candidates requesting accommodations based upon ADHD, NCEES requires documentation from a qualified professional that describes the impairment and its functional impact on the candidate. This documentation serves three purposes:

To establish that the candidate can be considered a person with a disability.
To supplement information from the candidate regarding the impact of his or her impairment.
To inform the determination of reasonable accommodations, when warranted, designed to facilitate equal access to the examination on a case-by-case basis.

Documentation needs to include:

A DSM-5 or ICD diagnosis of ADHD (Assessments should be performed at the adult level, and should include a summary of assessment procedures and evaluation instruments used to make the diagnosis, including evaluation results and standardized test scores, if applicable)
A description of the current impact of the impairment on the candidate, with a specific focus on barriers that the candidate encounters in a testing environment
Information on any medications that the candidate is taking, if the medications affects the accommodations that a candidate may need

Documentation needs to be from a qualified healthcare provider and include the provider’s:

Contact information
License number
Signature or electronic signature

Documentation may include — but is not limited to – one or more of the following, as necessary to provide the information requested above:

NCEES Healthcare Provider Form (PDF)
Letter on a qualified provider’s professional letterhead
Copies of any Section 504 Plan or IEP
K-12 Summaries of Performance
Psycho-educational evaluation (Psychometric test results from general measures of aptitude and academic achievement)
Documentation of accommodations received in any academic context
Documentation of accommodations received in any employment context
Documentation of accommodations received on other standardized tests

Documentation should address your current functional limitations:

Documentation from your qualified professional generally should reflect an evaluation done within five years of the date on which you submit your request for accommodations. Earlier documentation may also be submitted to supplement a more recent evaluation.

Because ADHD is a lifelong impairment that affects individuals in multiple domains (e.g., socially and academically), academic records can also be helpful in establishing a need for accommodations and may be submitted with your request for accommodations. Examples of such records include transcripts, report cards, letters from teachers, and score reports from other standardized tests.