Documenting Hearing Loss

October 2010

Office of Disability Policy
Educational Testing Service
Princeton, NJ 08541

For individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, certain accommodations can be approved on the basis of Part III (the Certification of Eligibility, or COE) of the accommodations request form, without other documentation. These are: 50 percent extended time (time and one-half); extra breaks; and/or a sign language or oral interpreter for spoken directions only. These are the only accommodations that can be approved based on a COE.

If you are requesting accommodations other than those listed above, or if you are unable to use the COE for another reason:

• Please submit a copy of your most recent audiogram or audiometric report. Note that the currency requirement for documentation does not apply to "physical or sensory disabilities of a permanent or unchanging nature," which generally includes hearing loss. (See the Bulletin Supplement for Test Takers with Disabilities or Health-related Needs)
• On Part I, please be sure to answer the question, "When was your disability first diagnosed?" If you do not know this date, please write a few sentences about when and how you, your family or others first became aware that you were deaf or hard of hearing.
• If you are requesting accommodations other than double time (100 percent extended time) or those listed on the COE, please explain the reason for the request and how it is related to your being deaf or hard of hearing.
• You may wear hearing aids or cochlear implants on test day without accommodations approval, but assistive listening devices (ALDs; infrared, loop, FM, etc.) require review and approval from ETS in advance of testing. If you are requesting to use an ALD, please specify exactly what type of device you wish to use and how it is necessary in the test setting.

Contact ETS Disability Services

If you have questions or need additional information, contact Disability Services.