Student Accessibility Services

Documentation Guidelines

Students and their providers may refer to the Documentation Guidelines for helpful information used to determine reasonable accommodations.

Disability related information is treated in a confidential manner and will only be shared on a need to know basis.

    Registration Process & Documentation

    The registration process is designed to gather and review documentation: 

    1. Register with SAS online and complete the provided intake form. When the form is processed by the department, the student will receive an email notification and will then be able to upload documentation to File Uploads on the SAS Online Portal.
    2. Provide supporting documentation. This would include assessments and letters relating to the disability and requested accommodations from a healthcare provider, mental health professional, school psychologist, teachers or the educational system and documents such as a neuropsychological or psycho-educational evaluation, Individualized Education Program (IEP), 504 Plan, Summary of Performance (SOP), and teacher observations.
    3. Meet with a SAS professional staff member in person or by phone to review your history of disability-related accommodation/service use and to discuss how current needs can be addressed.

    All requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and accommodations are determined through an interactive process. Documentation of a specific disability does not translate directly into specific accommodations. Accommodations are connected to the particular functional limitations associated with the disability and these can vary greatly among individuals with the same condition. Documentation must be current and relevant, but may not need to be recent.

    Documentation Guidelines

    Disability-related information is treated in a confidential manner based on laws, regulations, and university policies. Written documentation should be complete and legible. We request documentation be typewritten letters or reports, or signed by professionals. on letterhead in a PDF format. Documentation must be in English. 

    Documentation should include though not necessarily be limited to the following:  

    1. The credentials of the evaluator(s). Documentation should be provided by an appropriate licensed or otherwise properly credentialed professional who has relevant experience and no personal relationship with the student. 

    2. A diagnostic statement identifying the disability. Documentation may include evaluation methods, procedures, observations, tests, and specific results. 

    3. A description of how the disability impacts the access needs in the higher education environment. Documentation or information should provide a clear sense of the frequency, severity, and duration of the condition. Recommended timelines for re-evaluations can also be helpful.

    Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) & Learning Disabilitys (LD)

    For students who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or a Learning Disability (LD), we request that you submit a complete psycho-educational or neuropsychological evaluation (including all scores) if one has been done. Such reports highlight strengths as well as weaknesses and often provide additional information about what may be needed and helpful in a college setting. See back of sheet for suggested instruments for these evaluations.

    A complete, current psycho-educational or neuropsychological evaluation is recommended. We prefer that students submit an evaluation that has been done using adult scales such as the WAIS (as opposed to the WISC). The evaluation should include instruments that address the following areas:

    Cognitive functioning - A complete battery of tests, appropriate for an adult should be conducted, with all subtest and standard scores reported. One of the following would be required: Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery: Tests of Cognitive Ability, or the Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test.

    Achievement - A complete battery relevant to area(s) of suspected disability(s), often to include a reading assessment, with all subtest and standard scores reported. Examples of commonly used tools include: Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery IV: Tests of Achievement, Stanford Test of Academic Skills (TASK), Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT), and Nelson-Denny Reading Skills Test.

    Information Processing - An examination of the student's processing strengths and weaknesses to include areas such as short and long term memory, processing speed, meta-cognition, etc. gathered from the comprehensive assessment, diagnostic interview, and examiner's observations of test behavior or the administration of additional instruments.

    When documenting ADHD, additional instruments such as those below are usually used in combination:

    • Barkley ADHD Symptoms Scale (Childhood and Current Self Report)
    • Brown’s ADD Scales
    • Conner’s Adult ADHD Rating Scales (CAARS)
    • Continuous Performance Test (CPT)
    • Stroop Color Word Test
    • Test of Variable Attention (TOVA)
    • Trail Making Test A and B
    • Wisconsin Card Sorting test

    Contact Us

    Please contact the SAS office if you have questions about what is needed: