JD-Next Test Accommodations Guidelines

The accommodations application process has closed for the December 2023 JD-Next Exam. The accommodations application process will re-open in early Spring 2024 for the June 2024 JD-Next exam.

In the meantime, if you are considering applying for accommodations for a future JD-Next exam, we encourage you to review the Documentation Guidelines and share these with any professional who will be preparing supporting documentation on your behalf.

Please read these Guidelines carefully. If you do not follow these Guidelines carefully, you might receive a letter indicating that your request is not approved, and you may not have enough time to rectify your request before the deadline expires

The JD-Next program (JDN) provides a preparatory course and examination to individuals as part of the admissions process for law school. To that end, JDN is committed to ensuring that the security, integrity, and validity of its examination is not compromised.

Likewise, JDN is committed to providing access to its programs and services to individuals with documented disabilities. A disability is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.

The following information is provided for candidates, evaluators, educators, and others involved in the process of documenting a request for accommodations. We strongly encourage candidates requesting accommodations to share this information with any professionals who are preparing supporting documentation, so the appropriate materials can be assembled to support your request for accommodations.

Many candidates with disabilities need only modest accommodations in order to meet their access needs, as described in the Short Process section below, and these can be reviewed and approved more quickly and easily. The emphasis in this Short Process is to gather documentation from other organizations and/or professionals who know you well, that demonstrate your ongoing, continued need for accommodations in order to reduce common barriers to access.

Other candidates with disabilities have more extensive accommodations needs, as described in the Standard Process section below. These individuals may have a larger volume of documentation to review, and there may be complex accommodations implementation considerations. These candidates will need to go through the Standard Process accommodations request process and provide sufficient documentation to allow us to fully understand their access needs.

For ANY amount of extra time that is approved, if you are also approved for unscheduled breaks:

- The exam clock will keep running even if you take an unscheduled break

- The proctor will lock the exam if you take an unscheduled break

Personal Medical Items and Comfort Items

For the exam, please closely review the Personal Medical Items list for items that are allowed and for those that require accommodation pre-approval

Short Process for testing accommodations

Candidate can request any combination of these accommodations:

- 15% ET (~30 minutes extra time)

- 15% ET including unscheduled breaks as needed

- 25% ET (~60 minutes extra time)

- 25% ET including unscheduled breaks as needed

- Personal Medical Items list

- Diabetes testing and management supplies

- Other requests that do not involve timing modification or use of electronic devices or software

This Short Process allows for more flexibility in terms of the types and sources of documentation that can be provided that will demonstrate your disability access needs. To these ends, supporting documentation can come from organizations who have previously granted you test accommodations, or can come from professionals who know you well. Rather than focusing on your diagnosis per se or the self-reported symptoms that led to the diagnosis, this documentation should speak to your current functional limitations and challenges in major life activities or activities of daily living (not just test-taking), how these limitations interact with specific barriers, and what types of accommodations have been helpful to improve access and reduce barriers. Again, this documentation of a disability should come from a professional who knows you well on a regular basis.

Note that a specific diagnosis is not required, and accommodations decisions are not made on the basis of any particular diagnosis. Likewise, a formal diagnostic evaluation is not required for the Short Process and we do not require sensitive medical or psychological documentation for the Short Process.

The goal of this Short Process is to streamline and simplify the accommodations request and approval process for applicants who only need modest accommodations in order to ensure access.

The Short Process requires either TWO documents from Column A, or ONE document from column A and ONE document from Column B.

COLUMN A

Documentation from a qualified professional who knows you well

A) A letter or report from any of these sources who know you well:

- Employer or internship supervisor

- Medical or psychological professional

- Therapist or related mental health professional

- Vocational counsellor

- Psychologist

- Rehab counsellor

- Physical therapist

- Faculty advisor

- Disability Services staff person

- Educational therapist

- Nurse Practitioner, Physician Assistant, or other medical or mental health professional involved in your ongoing treatment, therapy, or assistance programming

B) Currency and relevance:

- The documentation is dated no more than 12 months prior to your anticipated exam date

- The evaluator must be a neutral, unbiased professional. Documentation from friends or family members will not be accepted, regardless of their professional qualifications.

C) The letter or report must meet standard format guidelines:

- Be legible and printed in English

- Signed and dated

- Printed on the professional’s (or their institution’s) letterhead

D) The documentation should address the following:

1) How the professional knows you well: The professional’s relationship to you, how often this person has interacted with you over the past 12 months, and detailed information that demonstrates that they know you well (i.e., your employer who interacts with you in the workplace every day)

2) Your current levels of functioning in the setting in which the professional knows you well

3) Current functional limitations and challenges in the setting in which the professional knows you

4) Current barriers to access in the setting in which the professional knows you

5) Accommodations or modifications in the setting in which the professional knows you

6) Anticipated barriers to access on the JDN exam, and how the requested accommodations will mitigate those barriers

E) Notes

- Documentation that focuses mainly on your medical or mental health diagnosis will not be helpful. The focus should be on a discussion of your functioning, as outlined in D above.

- The Short Process does not require a formal psychoeducational or neuropsychological evaluation, or other comprehensive diagnostic evaluation, although if one is provided to us, it should conform to the terms noted in A-D above.

- A letter from an evaluator, such as a doctor or psychologist, who only knows you from the context of a diagnostic evaluation, and that only describes your diagnosis, will not be helpful.

- Computer-generated reports or printouts of medical records are neither required nor helpful.

COLUMN B

Other high-stakes testing approval:

1. Official verification of approval for accommodations on a prior high-stakes, standardized exam, such as the ACT, SAT, LSAT, GMAT, MCAT, or GRE, that was administered within the past five (5) years.

Standard Process for testing accommodations

Applicant can request any combination of these accommodations:

1. 50% ET

2. 50% ET including unscheduled breaks as needed

3. Personal Medical Items

4. Other unique requests

BACKGROUND AND GOALS

Some candidates with disabilities have more extensive access needs, and these candidates will need to go through the Standard Process and provide sufficient documentation to allow us to fully understand their access needs.

Note that a specific diagnosis is not required, and accommodations decisions are not made on the basis of any particular diagnosis. Likewise, a formal diagnostic evaluation is not required, and we do not require extensive medical or psychological documentation. However, if such documentation is provided (Column C), it must meet our guidelines as described below.

The Standard Process requires any combination of the following:

1. TWO documents from Column A
2. ONE document from Column A + ONE document from Column C
3. ONE document from Column B + ONE document from Column C

4. ONE document from Column A + ONE document from Column B + ONE document from Column D

COLUMN C

Individualized evaluation report

A. A Report from any of these sources:

- Medical or psychological professional

- Nurse Practitioner, Physician Assistant, Physical Therapist, or other medical or mental health professional involved in your ongoing treatment, therapy, or assistance

B. Format:

1. Be legible and printed in English

2. Signed and dated

3. Printed on the professional’s letterhead

4. If objective tests were administered, all scores and test-scores should be provided, using age-based norms unless unavailable

C. Qualifications of the evaluator: The evaluator must be a neutral, unbiased professional. Your supporting documentation should be from a qualified professional who has appropriate training and expertise. Documentation from friends or family members, even if otherwise qualified, will not be accepted. The qualified professional’s documentation must be objective. Typically, a qualified evaluator has a Master’s degree or higher in a relevant field, and licensure or other credentials in an appropriate discipline.

D. Currency: The documentation must be current, such that it can reasonably reflect your current levels of functioning, current limitations, and current access needs.

- No more than 1 Year prior to anticipated JDN exam date for physical disabilities, chronic health conditions, psychological, and psychiatric disorders.

- No more than 3 Years prior to anticipated JDN exam date for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning, and all other disorders.

E. The documentation should demonstrate that you have a disability: Evidence that you are substantially limited in one or more major life activities, compared to most people in the general population.

- Regardless of your diagnosis, your documentation must establish that you are a person with a disability. That is, you must show that you are substantially limited, in a major life activity, as compared to most people in the general population (not as compared to your IQ or your college-educated peers). Likewise, simply demonstrating a significant discrepancy between test scores is not sufficient to demonstrate that you are disabled.

- Major life activities are central to daily life, such as seeing, hearing, reading, learning, walking, thinking, or major bodily functions. Narrow aspects of learning—such as “math fluency” or “oral reading rate” are not major life activities. Also, “test taking” is not a major life activity under the ADA.

- The appropriate reference group for establishing disability is MOST PEOPLE IN THE GENERAL POPULATION-- not college seniors, your own IQ, or other high-functioning populations.

- It is important to understand that simply having a valid diagnosis of a condition does not automatically mean that you are disabled.

- Note that speaking English as a second language is not a disability and will not be accommodated.

F. Demonstrate that you need accommodations in order to access the test.

- It is important for you and your evaluators to remember that unlike the school setting, accommodations under the ADA are meant to provide access to the test, not to enhance performance, allow someone to “reach their potential,” “do better on the test,” “finish the test,” “pass the test,” or achieve any other specific outcome.

- The ADA is outcome-neutral.It is possible that current or previous academic institutions have provided you with accommodations and support services that go above and beyond what the ADA requires, in order to help you “reach your potential” or otherwise be “successful.” However, our obligation is to ensure access to the test.

G. Content Requirements: The report must include:

- A discussion of the current functional impacts of the disorder/condition—not just on test-taking.

- A discussion of the current functional limitations likely to affect your ability to take the JDN exam under standard conditions.

- Specific recommendations for testing accommodations. Note that vague requests such as “extended time” or “magnification” will be returned as incomplete.

- A specific rationale for each requested accommodation. Simply naming your diagnosis is not an appropriate rationale. The rationale must make it clear how your requested accommodation(s) will reduce or remove specific barriers on the test, thus allowing you access.

- Evidence that the evaluator reviewed other sources of collateral or corroborating evidence, such as educational plans, transcripts, results of prior evaluations, or employment records. That is, the evaluator’s conclusions and recommendations should be based on a holistic review of multiple sources of information, not just subjective impressions, subjective self-report checklists, and test scores.

- If the report includes a diagnosis, it should include evidence as to how all ICD-9(10) or DSM-5 diagnostic criteria were met.

H. The report should include specific recommendations that are appropriate for the JDN task and the setting:

The task: The JDN exam is a standardized exam. This is different than other tasks for which you have been approved for accommodations, such as a non-standardized test in school. For example, a school may have approved the accommodations of “unlimited time” or “preferential seating” in class, but these accommodations would not be appropriate for a standardized exam.

The setting: The JDN exam is administered remotely with no other test-takers. Candidates are responsible for ensuring that their test-taking setting conforms to JDN guidelines. Within those guidelines, candidates are responsible to ensure that test-taking conditions are appropriate and meet any disability-related needs, such as being quiet, distraction-free, and have lighting and temperature that meet your needs.

I. Be reasonable. Accommodations will not be provided if they could compromise the security, integrity, or validity of the test.

COLUMN D

Evidence of formal accommodations or support services provided in a post-secondary academic setting within the past 12 months.

- This evidence should be printed on the institution’s letterhead

- The documentation should outline the specific accommodations or support services that have been approved

Specific circumstances

1. ADHD or learning disorders. Psychologists and doctors may diagnose someone with ADHD or a learning disorder—but as explained above, this diagnosis itself is not required.

- Your documentation must adequately describe your current functional limitations to major life activities—not what your performance was like in elementary school or many years ago.

- If your documentation indicates that you have difficulty sustaining your attention over time—yet you are requesting significantly longer seat time on the exam—you and your evaluator must explain why this accommodation would be appropriate. Please note that simply providing evidence that you have been diagnosed with ADHD or a learning disorder is not sufficient to demonstrate that you are disabled.

2. Temporary disabilities or circumstances. Requests based on a temporary disability such as a broken arm, or temporary circumstances such as pregnancy, will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

3. Medical conditions (including diabetes) requiring medical or assistive devices or equipment. If you use assistive devices (other than ordinary eyeglasses) or need to have medical equipment with you during your exam, you should submit a written request for accommodations along with appropriate documentation from your health care provider that indicates the need for such devices. Be sure to see the list of Personal Medical Items to determine which medical items are allowed and which items require accommodations pre-approval.

4. Anxiety. It is perfectly normal to be anxious during your exam (“test anxiety”). However, accommodations are not provided solely for this circumstance, because “test-taking” is not a major life activity under the ADA. If the only impact of your condition is on test-taking, then it is likely that you are not a person with a disability.Lack of English language proficiency. We do not provide disability-related accommodations to individuals based on lack of proficiency with English.

5. Lack of English language proficiency. We do not provide disability-related accommodations to individuals based on lack of proficiency with the English language.

6. Deaf. If you are deaf or hard-of-hearing, a written copy of the check-in procedures and rules can be provided to you. However, since the course and the exam are entirely written, with nothing to listen to, you should not need a sign language interpreter during the course or the exam. We do not translate the course or the exam into any other language, including ASL. As indicated above, accommodations must be relevant to the specific task and setting.

7. Blind or low vision. If you have a visual disorder that cannot be corrected with ordinary eyeglasses, there are many possible accommodations that we could provide to you, based on your specific needs. Be sure to provide information about your actual functional limitations, any assistive technology you regularly use, and what accommodations, devices, or technologies you may need in order to access the course and the exam.

Other things to note

1. Communication with JDN regarding your request.

- General inquiries regarding accommodations: All accommodations inquiries must be made in writing via email; we do not discuss accommodations inquiries or requests over the phone. accommodations@aspenpublishing.com

- Accommodations requests and supporting documentation: All accommodations requests must be uploaded through the accommodations request portal (link below); we do not accept requests by mail or email.

2. Confidentiality. JDN and Aspen Publishing staff will ONLY communicate with the candidate per se. We do not discuss accommodations issues with ANY third party, including parents.

3. Professionalism. Communications should be courteous and professional. Any candidate (or an advocate of a candidate) who engages in verbal abuse, uses profanity or threatening language, or is otherwise unprofessional, may forfeit their right to participate in any JDN service or program, regardless of disability status.

4. Personal statement. It is helpful (but not required) for you to provide your own personal statement that explains how your disability affects your functioning in major life activities or activities of daily living (work, home, school, etc.), and how you expect these limitations might impact your ability to take the JDN Exam under standard conditions

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