Psychoeducational Assessments
Psychoeducational assessments are available at Collegiate Coaching Services for adolescents 12 and older, as well as adults.
What is a Psychoeducational Assessment?
Psychoeducational assessments are used to evaluate underlying mental processes that impact a person’s academic or professional performance or their life management abilities. Evaluations are conducted using the tools of psychological measurement, which can include tests, surveys, interviews and observational data.
Just as a medical doctor runs tests to identify the cause of a patient’s symptoms, trained and licensed clinical psychologists can perform a psychoeducational assessment to help diagnose and guide treatment for a client. Some of the mental processes evaluated in a psychoeducational assessment include attention, concentration, processing speed, working memory, reasoning, novel problem-solving, language abilities, spatial abilities, memory, and executive functions like planning and organizing.
Other more applied performance domains may also be tested during a psychoeducational assessment. These include academic skills like reading, writing, and mathematics. If the need arises, a psychoeducational assessment can also screen for psychological traits, like depression and anxiety, that can impact a person’s performance on these sets of skills. It can also screen for neurodevelopmental issues, such as autism spectrum disorder, dysgraphia, dyslexia, and specific learning disabilities (e.g. writing, reading, math), and ADHD.
Who Is a Good Candidate for a Psychoeducational Assessment?
People who struggle in a certain academic subject or task and want to know how to improve their performance, especially as they enter higher education, may seek a psychoeducational assessment. A psychoeducational assessment can also be helpful for those who are employed or seeking to be employed as it can provide specific recommendations for improving your academic and workplace achievement, as well for staying more organized in your personal life.
Additionally, most universities and colleges require a psychoeducational assessment to approve accommodations when enrolling for the first time. Even if the student has been tested in the past, it may be considered outdated. Many higher education disability offices require assessments completed within the previous four years from enrollment. [Please note that the awarding of the amount and type of accommodations are at the sole discretion of the university or colleges disability office and is not guaranteed.]
Collegiate Coaching Services offers psychoeducational assessments to adolescents 12 and older, as well as to adults of all ages. Our clients often struggle with educational and professional achievement or life management abilities. Often they did well in school when they were younger, but as they mature and begin encountering new responsibilities, their difficulties become more apparent. To understand why they are facing these challenges, it’s critical to measure various aspects of cognition using the tools of psychological measurement.
How Does a Psychoeducational Assessment Work?
A psychoeducational assessment will consist of tests, surveys, interviews, and observational data. School and medical records may also be reviewed. It’s not a one-size-fits-all process. Rather, each element of the assessment is selected based on the individual client.
Part of a psychoeducational assessment includes obtaining personal history from the client. This will include an intake interview, and we may ask you to complete self-report questionnaires. Family members, teachers or other people close to you may be asked to complete questionnaires, as well. At Collegiate Coaching Services, psychoeducational assessments typically require 5-6 hours of face-to-face evaluation with Dr. Nicole Hipp. These meetings can be completed in one day in the office or broken up over two separate days.
When it comes to undergoing a psychoeducational assessment, there are no wrong answers. The goal is to get a well-rounded picture of your strengths and challenges to determine the best course of treatment for you.
It’s important that you understand your results and can ask questions about your performance. After you complete the formal assessment, a feedback session with the psychologist provides you with information about your results, diagnoses, and specific recommendations to improve functioning and overall well-being. Feedback meetings occur a few weeks after test administration.
While Collegiate Coaching Services may be able to conduct some of the psychoeducational assessment process virtually, most assessments require you to attend in person. Dr. Hipp and her colleagues have taken significant steps to protect our patients and staff members due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This includes:
• Social distancing & face covering precautions
• Increased ventilation and air flow to the outside
• Plexiglass barriers between patient and staff during test administration
• Gloves and face masks offered to all patients
• Sanitization of all reusable materials
• Options for outdoor meetings
Read about neuropsychological evaluations for adolescents and young adults 12 and older.