Should you apply for ASWB exam accommodations? Here's how the process works, to help you decide. ASWB calls accommodations nonstandard testing arrangements. They're available to test-takers with a disability or health condition, to lactating test-takers, and to test-takers whose primary language isn't English. The purpose is to let you show what you know under conditions that don't put you at a disadvantage for reasons unrelated to social work competence.
Current forms and instructions are on ASWB's nonstandard testing arrangements page, along with the Nonstandard Testing Arrangements Handbook, which is worth reading before you start. For the rest of the registration process, see the ASWB exam FAQs.
Arrangements must be requested and approved before you register and pay for the exam with ASWB. Don't register until you've received ASWB's decision email. If you schedule an appointment first, you'll have to cancel it, because arrangements can't be added to an existing appointment.
That makes timing the main practical consideration. ASWB reviews requests in the order received, and a reply can take up to three weeks. Build that into your timeline, along with however long it takes your practitioner to complete their part.
Start with your board. Your state or provincial board has to approve you to sit for the exam before anything else happens. For ESL arrangements specifically, board approval is required before you can submit the request.
Then submit the request through ASWBCentral. Log in, open the Nonstandard Testing Arrangements dashboard, choose your request type (disability or health condition, ESL, or lactation), and complete the online application.
For a disability or health condition, your part of the request includes your diagnosis, the specific arrangements you're requesting, your practitioner's contact information, and a personal statement. The personal statement is your chance to explain your situation in your own words, including arrangements you've received in the past. You can also upload supporting documentation, such as records of past accommodations. If you have a diagnosed learning disability, you're required to upload your most current psychological evaluation confirming the disability and recommending arrangements for standardized testing.
Your practitioner completes a separate part. It must come from someone who evaluated you, is familiar with your condition, and is qualified to make the diagnosis. If you list their email address in the application, ASWB sends them an electronic form directly. Alternatively, you can download the form, complete Part II with your practitioner, and upload it with your application.
ASWB will email you if it needs more information and when a decision has been made. If you haven't heard anything after three weeks, it's up to you to contact ASWB.
Once approved, register and pay for the exam. Your approved arrangements will appear in your Authorization to Test. Many test-takers with arrangements need to schedule their appointment with Pearson VUE by phone rather than online. If your arrangements include a reader, scribe, or ASL interpreter, canceling or rescheduling requires two business days' notice.
If you need to retake the exam, ASWB's Candidate Services can tell you whether your arrangements are still valid.
Documented disabilities generally cover a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, and ASWB and your board make determinations under the Americans with Disabilities Act and other applicable law. That can include learning disabilities, ADHD, psychological conditions, physical disabilities, and vision or hearing impairments, and arrangements can include extra time, additional breaks, a reader, a scribe, or an ASL interpreter.
Arrangements also cover needs that aren't disabilities in the usual sense. ASWB's examples include a monitoring device for a condition such as diabetes, ambulatory arrangements for a broken bone, and additional breaks during pregnancy. Lactating test-takers can be approved to pump during the exam appointment.
ESL arrangements are available in every state and province. Qualified test-takers receive up to two hours of additional time and may request up to two dictionaries: one bilingual word-to-word translation dictionary and/or one general English dictionary. The exam itself is given only in English. California test-takers need preliminary ESL approval from the Board of Behavioral Sciences first, and California doesn't permit dictionaries.
Some needs don't require a request at all. Every test-taker has access to drinks and snacks during breaks, and items on Pearson VUE's comfort aids list can be brought into the testing room without prior approval. It's worth checking that list before applying for something it already covers.
If standard testing conditions would get in the way of showing what you know, a request is worth making. Standard conditions mean 122 questions in two 61-question sections of two hours each, with a single 10-minute scheduled break between them, in a shared testing room with other test-takers coming and going.
Timed practice under realistic conditions can help clarify the question. If full-length practice tests consistently leave you short on time for reasons connected to a documented condition or to reading in a second language, that's useful information for you and your practitioner. Either way, don't let the decision drag on, since the request has to be resolved before you can register.
Whether you test with arrangements or without, familiarity with the format and pacing helps. SWTP's full-length practice tests match the current exam, with explanations for every answer option.
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