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Accommodations for Applicants with Disabilities
NOTE: The information on this page duplicates information in the MPRE Testing Application Packet. It is provided here for your reference. Online registrants who plan to request accommodations must check the box indicating that intent on the online application and then must submit supporting documentation by mail or fax with a copy of the e-mail confirmation to the MPRE Testing Accommodations Department. If you are not using online registration to apply to take the MPRE, you must obtain the MPRE Testing Application Packet from your law school or by writing to the MPRE Applications Department.The National Conference of Bar Examiners provides reasonable testing accommodations for MPRE examinees who have qualified disabilities as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendment Act of 2008 (ADAAA) and who provide appropriate documentation in a timely manner.
Applicants with diagnosed physical, mental, sensory, or learning disabilities may request accommodations such as a reader, someone to record answers, a separate testing room, stop-the-clock breaks, and/or extra testing time. Presentation of the material in Braille, large-print, or audio formats is also available. Applicants approved for large-print test materials may request 18-point or 24-point type.
All requests are reviewed, and when warranted, reasonable accommodations will be provided in light of the applicant's specific impairment. Applications with requests for accommodations are evaluated by qualified professionals and, when appropriate, may also be submitted to independent external review by specialists in the area of the disability.
In determining whether an individual has a disability for which accommodations may be appropriate, the applicable standard under the ADAAA is whether the individual has an impairment that substantially limits him or her in a major life activity.
If you are requesting accommodations due to a disability, you must provide all the supporting documentation with a copy of the online confirmation received after submission of an online application or with a completed paper application. All supporting documentation must be submitted each time you apply for the MPRE and must be received by the late application receipt deadline.
Mail all documentation to this address:
National Conference of Bar Examiners
MPRE Testing Accommodations
101 ACT Drive
P.O. Box 168
Iowa City, IA 52243
Requests that are not supported by appropriate and timely documentation demonstrating the need for the requested accommodations will be denied. If you are denied accommodations, your registration materials will be processed as a standard registration and you will be assigned to a test center.
All fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable.
All applicants who submit accommodations requests will be notified on the outcome of their evaluations by e-mail and mail. Applicants receiving accommodations will receive a Test Accommodations letter with important instructions. Read the letter carefully and bring it to the test center on test day.
Disability Documentation
1. You must provide your own written request for accommodations, preferably in the form of a letter. Include a detailed description of your diagnosed condition and indicate specifically the testing accommodations you believe are necessary for you to take the MPRE, based on your disability and your receipt of current or past accommodations. Include a telephone number where you can be reached during the day and if possible a fax number or an e-mail address. If you are requesting additional testing time, your letter must specify a precise amount of additional time (e.g., time-and-a-half). A request for an untimed examination, or simply for extra time, is not sufficient and will be denied.
2. Include current documentation by your clinician, physician, or other professional with training and experience appropriate to diagnose and treat your disability. An inidividual is deemed to be qualified to conduct a medical or health-related evaluation if s/he has had comprehensive training and experience in the relevant medical specialty and has appropriate licensure/certification. Therefore, it is not appropriate for a student or trainee to conduct the evaluation even if the final report is signed by a qualified professional. Your professional should include a brief statement of his or her qualifications and areas of specialty.
The documentation must provide detailed results from a complete, appropriate diagnostic examination and an assessment of the functionally limiting manifestations of the condition(s) for which accommodations are needed. It must set forth in detail the diagnosis, the treatment provided, and the last date of treatment and/or consultation with the qualified professional. It must also provide an explanation of the need for the requested accommodation(s) and how the functional limitation of the disability relates to this test-taking activity. A description of the accommodations deemed appropriate should also be included. If you are requesting additional testing time, the documentation prepared by your professional must state the precise amount of additional time that is deemed necessary, as well as the rationale for the additional testing time requested.
The provision of reasonable accommodations is based on assessment of the current impact of your disability on the testing activity. As a general rule, documentation should be from an evaluation conducted within the preceding five years. Older documentation may suffice for conditions that are permanent and nonvarying if it is accompanied by a letter from a qualified professional that provides an udpate on the diagnosis, your current level of functioning, changes since the previous evaluation, current treatment, and continued rationale for the requested accommodations. Reports of previous diagnostic assessments can be helpful in establishing history and precedent, but are not acceptable in establishing current impact on taking the MPRE under standard conditions. More recent documentation may be necessary for some conditions. Please refer to the guidelines below for more information regarding documentation currency for specific disabilities.
3. Enclose documentation regarding accommodations that are currently being made and/or have been made in the past, particularly on the multiple-choice sections of the ACT, SAT, and LSAT, in law school, and on any bar examinations. Note that accommodations granted elsewhere do not necessarily entitle you to accommodations on the MPRE, although considerable weight is given to past accommodations received in similar testing situations or in response to an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Section 504 plan.
4. If you are requesting accommodations of extended time and/or a separate testing room because of a disability affecting cognitive functioning (e.g., LD ), your documentation must include all of the following:
- A description of the presenting problem(s) and the related developmental history;
- A neuropsychological or psychoeducational evaluation with reports of aptitude assessments using a complete comprehensive battery. Acceptable measures include but are not limited to the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV (WAIS-IV), the Woodcock-Johnson III NU: Tests of Cognitive Abilities, and the Kaufmann Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test.
- A complete and comprehensive achievement battery including current levels of academic functioning in relevant areas such as reading (phonetic decoding, reading rate, and comprehension) and written language (e.g., Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT III), Woodcock-Johnson III NU: Tests of Achievement, or the Scholastic Abilities Test for Adults). Screening tests such as the Wide Range Achievement Test-3 and the Nelson-Denny Reading Test sometimes provide useful supplementary information but cannot, in themselves, determine reading ability.
- For assessments containing subtests, (ie. WIAT III or Woodcock-Johnson III NU), the scores from all subtests must also be included. All standard scores should be provided on age-adjusted rather than education-adjusted norms.
- An assessment of information processing (e.g., short- and long-term memory, sequential memory, processing speed, and executive functioning) using appropriate instruments (e.g., Wechsler Memory Scale III, Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System, or relevant subtests from the Woodcock-Johnson III NU: Tests of Cognitive Abilities).
- Other appropriate assessment measures to help support a differential diagnosis or to disentangle the cognitive disability from co-existing neurological and/or personality disorders.
Note: All tests must be reliable, valid, and standardized for use with an adult population. All standard scores must be provided in standard score and percentile formats. All standard scores should be provided on age-adjusted rather than education-adjusted norms. Your professional must provide a specific diagnosis with an interpretation of tests being provided and show evidence that alternative explanations (e.g., poor motivation or study skills, or cultural or language differences) can be ruled out.
An inability to complete the test under standard time conditions is not a reason for testing accommodations. Not all standard test takers are able to complete the MPRE under standard time conditions.
5. If you are requesting accommodations because of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), the professional's report must include a review of the history of each of the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for ADHD and specify which symptoms that cause impairment were present in childhood and which current symptoms have been present for at least the past six months. Relevant batteries described above in section 4 cannot be used as the sole basis of ADHD diagnosis, independent of history and interview. Such batteries, however, often augment the ADHD evaluation and should be reported. They are particularly necessary to rule out intellectual limitation as an alternative explanation for academic difficulty, to describe type and severity of learning problems, and to assess the severity of cognitive deficits associated with ADHD (inattention, working memory, etc.).
Although self-reporting of symptoms and events is helpful, it is critical that information from other sources (e.g., health-care professionals, relatives, teachers, school records, or employers) be presented to your professional and summarized in the report.
A well-written diagnostic summary, based on a comprehensive evaluative process, is a necessary component of the assessment. The clinical summary must include the following:
- A demonstration of the professional(s) having ruled out alternative explanations for the inattentiveness, impulsivity, and/or hyperactivity.
- An indication of the patterns of symptoms across your life span and settings used to determine the presence of ADHD.
- An indication of the substantial limitation to a major life activity (such as learning) presented by ADHD and the degree to which it impacts you in the context for which accommodations are being requested.
- An explanation of why specific accommodations are needed and how the effects of ADHD symptoms, as designated by the DSM-IV, are mediated by the accommodations.
6. If you are requesting accommodations because of a mood or anxiety disorder, documentation should include a review of the family history, age of onset and course of illness, psychological tests used, the history of treatment for the disorder, a detailed description of psychiatric symptoms to support the diagnosis, and a description of symptom frequency and intensity to establish the severity of the disorder. If treatment includes medication, please provide evidence of continued impairment despite benefits of medication. In addition, please provide information as to the substantial limitation experienced as a result of this diagnosis, and how it is relevant to standardized testing. Due to the variable nature of these conditions, documentation of a mood or anxiety disorder should be current within the past year.
7. If you are requesting extended time because of a visual disability, a report of a complete ocular examination relevant to the condition is required. It must include the current diagnosis (including a statement as to whether the condition is progressive or stable), best corrected visual acuities for distance and near vision, all test results, a description of functional limitation, a discussion of the extent to which the limitation has been or can be addressed through corrective devices, and a specific recommendation and rationale for accommodations. If the diagnosed condition is purported to affect reading speed, results of a measure of reading (decoding, rate, and comprehension) are required. Documentation of visual disabilities generally should be current within one year. If you are legally blind, documentation acknowledging this specifically (e.g., from a governmental agency or your eye doctor) can substitute for a complete ocular exam.
8. If you are requesting accommodations because of a chronic medical or physical condition, the diagnostic report typically should be less than 12 months old. Because of the changing nature of some physical or medical disabilities, it is critical that documentation be current. Documentation that is 12 to 24 months old may be acceptable if it is accompanied by a letter from a qualified professional that provides an update on the diagnosis, your current level of functioning, changes since the previous evaluation, current treatment, and continued rationale for the requested accommodations. Reports of diagnostic assessment that are older than 24 months will be helpful in establishing history and precedent but will not be acceptable in establishing current impact.
Documentation should include all of the following:
- A clear statement of the medical diagnosis from a physician, neurologist, or other medical specialist.
- An assessment of the functionally limiting manifestations of the condition(s) for which accommodations are needed.
- A description of present symptoms which meet the criteria for diagnosis.
- A list of medications or treatments currently being used to relieve the functional manifestations of the condition.
- Medical information relating to your impairment, including the impact of medication or other treatments on your ability to meet the demands of a multiple-choice examination.
- Recommendations of reasonable accommodations as applied to the MPRE (a multiple-choice examination) are required. These recommendations should be supported by the diagnosis and by a rationale explaining how these specific accommodations address your functional limitations.
Apply as far in advance of the deadline as possible. During peak times, it may take three to four weeks to process the application and receive a reply. If you apply sufficiently early, NCBE may be able to communicate with you regarding omissions in your documentation in time for you to send supplemental material by the deadline. Additional information will not be accepted after the late application receipt deadline.
Send all materials together. Do not ask your physician or other qualified professional, or any other individual or agency providing documentation, to send materials directly to NCBE. Due to the number of applications received, it is not possible to guarantee that materials can be matched and that an applicant's materials will be complete.
It is your responsibility to notify NCBE of your need for accommodations at the time you apply for the examination.
Requests for accommodations that are received after the deadline for late application will not be considered.
Requests that are not supported by appropriate documentation by the late application receipt deadline will be denied. You may seek clarification on policies regarding accommodations or to inquire about the status of a pending request. by writing to:
MPRE Testing Accommodations
101 ACT Drive
P.O. Box 4001
Iowa City, IA 52243
Fax: 319-337-1187
mpre.ada@act.org
During peak processing times (near application deadlines), it is generally preferable to communicate via fax or e-mail. All accommodation decisions are based on the written record. Requests for reconsideration/appeal must be in writing and should include information not previously submitted.
NCBE is not responsible for administering or determining the criteria for state bar examinations, which are separate and distinct examinations from the MPRE. Policies for determining testing accommodations available to applicants with disabilities in admitting jurisdictions may vary from the policies used to provide accommodations for the MPRE. Any accommodations provided by NCBE are for administration of the MPRE only and are in no way binding on individual admitting jurisdictions. NCBE urges all applicants taking a state bar examination who may require accommodations because of a disability to ascertain the procedure for requesting such accommodations for each jurisdiction where they propose to take the bar examination.
