Accommodations Process for College Board Testing

Enclosure 1 - Accommodations Process for College Board Testing

To Parents and/or Guardians of Students with Disabilities: 

Students with disabilities who have testing accommodations documented in an IEP or 504 Plan may be eligible for accommodations on the PSAT/NMSQT or SAT School Day assessment. However, not all testing accommodations in an IEP or 504 Plan are permitted by the College Board, and not all students with Standards of Learning (SOL) testing accommodations will require these accommodations on the PSAT/NMSQT or SAT School Day. Information about eligibility for testing accommodations for these assessments is available on the College Board website (https://accommodations.collegeboard.org/eligibility).  

• For the October 9, 2024, test administration, the PSAT/NMSQT and the SAT School Day will be delivered digitally. Some accommodations are administered differently for digital tests than they are for paper/pencil tests. A College Board chart explains the method for using accommodations on digital tests (https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/digital/accommodations-digital-testing/using-accommodations-digital-tests).  
• If the student already has accommodations approved by College Board SSD (Services for Students with Disabilities) from a previous PSAT 10, PSAT/NMSQT, SAT, or AP test, there is no need to resubmit accommodation requests. Once approved for accommodations by College Board SSD, accommodations remain in place until one year after high school graduation. As noted above, some accommodations may change or may not be needed for the digital tests. Be sure to review your student’s approved accommodations and talk to your student to make sure that they understand how they will be testing.  
• For a student to receive new or amended accommodations, the College Board must approve a formal request for the student. Each high school has a designated staff member who serves as the SSD coordinator and works with the College Board to make these requests. All accommodations requests are due from the school to the College Board in August. The school may not make a request without consent from you and your student. Parents/guardians must give their input and consent to the school by August 5, 2024, using the forms enclosed here.

Below you will find information on possible College Board testing accommodations. As you and your student consider which accommodation(s) may be appropriate for the PSAT/NMSQT or SAT School Day, please keep in mind the following:

• the content, format, and purpose of the assessment;  
  • SAT (https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat/inside-the-test) 
  • PSAT/NMSQT (https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/psat-nmsqt-psat-10/inside-the-test)
• implications on overall testing time or setting for some accommodations (see notes on Enclosure 2); and
• duration of the accommodation approval (once approved, College Board accommodations must be used for all future College Board tests, including future PSAT/NMSQT, SAT and AP exams, unless a written refusal is submitted). 

If you would like the school to request College Board accommodation(s) for your student, follow these three steps. 

1. Complete the Accommodations Input Form (Enclosure 2):
   1. Circle the accommodation(s) in the list that you would like the school request from your student’s IEP or 504 Plan;
   2. Initial and date at the bottom of the form to confirm your input;
2. Complete the Accommodations Request Consent Form (Enclosure 3):
   1. Write in your student’s name, school, and date of birth;
   2. With your student, sign and date to verify your consent for release of records to the College Board; 
3. Return copies of both forms to the high school by August 5, 2024. 

After receiving your forms, school staff will review your student’s IEP or 504 Plan and academic records to verify the testing accommodation(s) and collect documentation the College Board requires for each request. School staff will contact you if there are any questions about your selected accommodation(s). 

Please contact your student’s high school at ____________________________ if you have questions about testing accommodations for the PSAT/NMSQT or SAT School Day or wish to discuss the request process. When returning accommodation input and consent forms (Enclosures 2 and 3), send or deliver to:

       ATTN: ______________________________

       _________________________ High School

       ___________________________________

       ____________________, VA  ___________

Enclosure 2 - Accommodations Input Form for College Board Testing

The College Board accommodations listed below apply to the PSAT/NMSQT and SAT School Day are available only to students with disabilities, as documented in an IEP or 504 Plan, or to students with documented medical needs. If you would like the school to request new or amended College Board accommodation(s) for your student: 

• Circle the accommodation(s) below that you would like requested from your student’s IEP or 504 Plan; 
• Initial and date at the bottom of this form to confirm your input; 
• Return this form along with Enclosure 3 to the high school by August 5, 2024. 

College Board accommodations are different from SOL testing accommodations. Review the notes below to  understand implications for testing. The College Board website provides additional explanations of how accommodations are implemented (https://accommodations.collegeboard.org/typical-accommodations). 

Footnotes:

1. Extended time: Students must stay the entire amount of time for which they are approved. They cannot leave early, and they cannot  move onto the next test section until the allotted time has passed, even if they finish the section early. Students will not be able to  participate in the school’s early dismissal on test day. 
2. Limited testing time: Testing may need to be administered over two days. If this is the case, students will miss classroom instruction  on the day following PSAT/NMSQT or SAT School Day.
3. Reader: (person) - for paper tests only. Testing must be administered one-on-one, reading word-for-word for the whole test or parts of the test.  Screen Reader for Digital test (text-to-speech) - for digital tests only. 
4. Writer/scribe: (person) - for paper tests only.  Must be administered one-on-one with 50 percent extended time. Students dictate responses to the adult scribe. See also Footnote 1 above, regarding implementation of extended time. Dictation for Digital Tests (speech-to-text) - for digital tests only. 

Parent/Guardian Confirmation of Selected Accommodations:

By initialing, I confirm that I would like the high school to request the College Board accommodations circled above after considering my student's needs in relation to the information available about the PSAT/NMSQT or SAT School Day assessment. 

                                 Parent/Guardian Initials: ________________   Date: __________________

Enclosure 3 - Accommodation Request Consent Form for College Board Testing

Services for Students with Disabilities

Consent Form for Accommodations Request

Student Information

Student Name: _______________________________________________

School: _____________________________________________________

Student Date of Birth: _________________________________________

Student and Parent/Guardian Signature

I wish to apply for testing accommodation(s) on College Board tests (SAT, SAT Subject Tests, PSAT 10, PSAT/NMSQT, and/or Advanced Placement Exams) due to disability. I authorize my school to: release to the College Board copies of my records that document the existence of my disability and need for testing accommodations; to release any other information in the school's custody that the College Board requests for the purpose of determining my eligibility for testing accommodations on College Board tests; and to discuss my disability and accommodation needs with the College Board. I also grant the College Board permission to receive and review my records, and to discuss my disability and needs with school personnel and other professionals. 

Student Signature: _____________________________________ Date: ____________

Parent/Guardian Signature: _______________________________ Date: ___________

(Parent/guardian signature is required if Student is under 18.)

Instructions to the School

This form should be used when a request for accommodation(s) is submitted electronically (via SSD Online). The form should be maintained by the school with the student’s records. It does not need to be sent to the College Board. You will be asked to verify that a signed Consent Form is on file at the school prior to submitting a request for accommodations. 

Copyright College Board, Revised November 2017

Copied and translated with permission by Fairfax County Public Schools