Title IV Federal financial aid, ability-to-benefit, atb testing

Please call 877.605.9494 for more information or to place an order.

Wonderlic Independent Test Administrators (ITAs)

As part of the Wonderlic ATB Program, participating schools must register Independent Test Administrator’s (ITAs) with Wonderlic.

Use the following links to get an overview of U.S. Department of Education regulations that define independent test administration and the steps you need to take to register your own Wonderlic ITA.

Definition of an Independent Test Administrator (ITA)
Definition of an Assessment Center
Independent Test Administrator Certification
Summary of ITA Responsibilities
School Guidelines for Maintaining Test Administrator Independence
ITA Review and Decertification

Definition of an Independent Test Administrator (ITA)

The position of Independent Test Administrator was created by Congress as a provision of the Student Loan Default Provision Initiative Act of 1990. This law was later reversed by the Higher Education Technical Amendments of 1991. The final regulations which govern independent test administration were published in the Federal Register on December 1, 1995. ITAs have been given the responsibility to conduct proper and impartial ATB testing.

The law requires that all non-high school graduates who apply for Federal financial assistance shall pass an independently administered examination approved by the Secretary of Education. This means that ATB testing can be conducted only by test administrators who are not affiliated in any way with the school or its staff. The U.S. Department of Education has published regulations which provide the legal definition of test administrator independence. These regulations state, in part, that tests must be administered by a test administrator who:

“Has no current or prior financial or ownership interest in the institution, its affiliates, or its parent corporation, other than the interest obtained through its agreement to administer the test, and has no controlling interest in any other educational institution;
Is not a current or former employee of or consultant to the institution, its affiliates, or its parent corporation, a person in control of another institution, or a member of the family of any of these individuals;
Is not a current or former member of the board of directors, a current or former employee of or a consultant to a member of the board of directors, chief executive officer, chief financial officer of the institution or its parent corporation or at any other institution, or a member of the family of any of the above individuals; and
Is not a current or former student of the institution.” (U.S. DOE, Dec. 1, 1995, Fed. Reg., §668.151)

ITAs may not administer the WBST for ATB determination without first being issued a Wonderlic Independent Test Administrator Certificate of Registration. All requirements necessary to receive this certification are described in the “Independent Test Administrator Certification” section of the WBST ATB Manual.

Definition of an Assessment Center

The U.S. Department of Education recognizes that some schools have established assessment centers to conduct testing for admissions and counseling purposes. Title IV funding regulations define an assessment center as a testing center which:

Is located at an eligible institution that provides two-year or four-year degrees, or qualifies as an eligible public vocational institution;
Is responsible for gathering and evaluating information about individual students for multiple purposes, including appropriate course placement;
Is independent of the admissions and financial aid processes at the institution at which it is located;
Is staffed by professionally trained personnel; and
Does not have as its primary purpose the administration ofAbility-To-Benefit tests.

Assessment center test administrators may not administer the WBST for ATB determination without first receiving a Wonderlic Independent Test Administrator Certificate of Registration. All requirements necessary to receive this certification are described in the “Independent Test Administrator Certification” section of the WBST ATB Manual.

Wonderlic does not permit assessment center test administrators to officially score the WBST for ATB determination - unless there is a prior written agreement between Wonderlic, Inc. and the designated assessment center. To establish such an agreement, please contact our Testing Services Department at 877.605.9494

Independent Test Administrator Certification

Wonderlic requires all assessment center and Independent Test Administrators (ITAs) to successfully complete the Wonderlic ITA certification process. Prior professional experience or training in test administration is not a prerequisite to becoming a certified Wonderlic ITA. All ITAs, regardless of prior experience, are required to learn and comply with specific procedures which are unique to the WBST and the Wonderlic ATB Program. Certified ITAs will be held accountable by the U.S. Department of Education to fully comply with all procedures defined in the WBST ATB Manual.

Before a test administrator can become certified, Wonderlic must receive the following completed documents:

Independent Test Administrator Registration Form.This form verifies that the test administrator meets all U.S. Department of Education requirements for test administrator independence, and that he or she agrees to comply with all procedures of the Wonderlic ATB Program. A copy of this form is provided at the back ofthe WBST ATB Manual.
School Sponsorship Form for Independent Test Administrators.This form establishes the school’s commitment to the test administrator and to the Wonderlic ATB Program. Any individuals who would like to become certified Wonderlic ITAs must make arrangements to be sponsored by an accredited post-secondary school. ITAs are permitted to conduct testing for more than one school or school location. Each location is required to file a school sponsorship form. Wonderlic must have this completed form on file for a given location before answer sheets can be scored. However, this form can be sent with the initial batch of answer sheets an ITA submits for scoring. A copy of this form is provided at the back ofthe WBST ATB Manual.
WBST Administrator’s Workbook Examination for ATB Testing.This workbook provides test administrators with the essential training, knowledge and skills to test applicants in accordance with the requirements of the Wonderlic ATB Program and the U.S. Department of Education.
Test Instruction Pages (TIPs)These pages provide additional instruction on questions which the test administrator answered incorrectly on the workbook examination.

The ITA certification process must be initiated by a school. Schools can contact the Wonderlic Testing Services Department by phone or by sending a completed School Sponsorship Form for Independent Test Administrators. An ITA registration package will immediately be sent directly to theschool. This package will include the materials listed above, as well as The WBST Administrator’s Workbook Examination for ATB Testing. After all completed documents are returned to Wonderlic, the test administrator will immediately be issued a Wonderlic Independent Test Administrator Certificate of Registration.

ITAs must be issued their certificate before submitting ATB answer sheets to Wonderlic for official ATB scoring. This certificate expires annually on December 31 and must be renewed through an abbreviated recertification process. Certified ITAs should provide a photocopy of their certificate to each school location for which they conduct testing.

Summary of ITA Responsibilities

The Wonderlic ATB Program is designed to meet the highest professional standards for test administration, as well as all U.S. Department of Education regulations. The program requires ITAs to personally conduct each step of the ATB testing process including:

Distributing the materials
Reading test instructions to applicants
Timing the test administration
Monitoring the entire testing session
Collecting test materials
Providing unofficial test results to schools upon request
Submitting answer sheets to Wonderlic for official scoring within two business days of testing

The specific procedures for conducting each of these steps are detailed in the “ITA Proctor’s Guide” part of the WBST ATB Manual.

School Guidelines for Maintaining Test Administrator Independence

The U.S. Department of Education regulations provide the following guidelines which schools must follow to maintain the independence of their ATB test administrator:“ The Secretary considers that a test is not independently administered if an institution:

Compromises test security or testing procedures;
Pays a test administrator a bonus, commission or any other incentive based upon the test scores or pass rates of its students who take the test;
Otherwise interferes with the test administrator’s independence or test administration.” (U.S. DOE, Dec. 1, 1995, Fed. Reg., §668.151)

Under no circumstances should a school allow a test administrator to conduct ATB testing using the WBST without first receiving verification that the administrator is a certified Wonderlic ITA. The Wonderlic Testing Services Department can be contacted at 877.605.9494 for confirmation.

ITA Review and Decertification

U.S. Department of Education regulations require Wonderlic to monitor and review the testing practices of each certified Wonderlic ITA, and to decertify any ITA who violates or compromises approved ATB testing procedures. As specified in these regulations, grounds for decertification include:

Failure to maintain test security
Failure to maintain the integrity of the testing process
Failure to administer the WBST in exact accordance with Wonderlic procedures
Failure to personally submit ATB answer sheets to Wonderlic for scoring within two business days of testing
Failure to remain "independent" from a school as defined in the regulations — for example, by accepting a bonus, commission, incentive, or any other compensation based on the test scores or pass rates of applicants.

On a regular basis, Wonderlic will review the WBST scores of all applicants tested by each certified Wonderlic ITA. The ITA and the schools for which they conduct ATB testing will be sent quarterly reports which can be used to verify that all reported information is complete and accurate. In addition, a review process has been mandated by the U.S. Department of Education and is intended to protect ATB applicants from the improper use of testing materials.