Autism Diagnostic Evaluation

About the Autism Diagnostic Evaluation Process

First, contact us

If you, your child's physician, or educators working with your child believe your child may benefit from an autism diagnostic evaluation at the UGA School Psychology Clinic, first contact the clinic and speak with the clinic coordinator. The clinic coordinator is available to answer questions, explain the process, discuss the referring concern, and make appointments.

You and your child will attend an initial intake appointment (1-2 hours) and a testing appointment (approximately 4 hours). We will conduct a feedback session about two weeks after the evaluation where we share the results of the evaluation along with any diagnoses. A major component of the feedback session and the report to be provided to you will be a set of recommendations to help address challenges your child is experiencing. The official report will be mailed to you after the feedback session. The evaluation process differs depending on the specific child so occasionally will change as our team learns more about the client throughout the assessment

Appointments typically are scheduled on Wednesday mornings.

Typical Assessment Battery

• Parent interview
• An IQ test specifically designed for children/teens to measure general cognitive abilities
• Direct Observation: Diagnostic structured play based observation of child's social communication and social interaction skills (typically including the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule or ADOS)
• Measures of adaptive functioning
• Social-emotional and behavioral screeners
• Other autism symptom measures

Leading up to your appointment

After you have made an appointment, we will send you a packet of information with a confirmation of the appointment, information about the evaluation and payment options, directions to our clinic, and a parking pass. Rating scales for parents and teachers to complete may be sent via traditional mail.

The full assessment process costs $1000. Unfortunately, our clinic does not take insurance but we do operate on a sliding scale for autism diagnostic assessments, which we will evaluate on a case by case basis.