If you are considering a psychoeducational assessment, for your child or for yourself, you have probably noticed that most descriptions stay vague. "Comprehensive testing." "A full report." It is hard to know what you are actually signing up for, how long it takes, or why it costs what it costs. This is a plain walkthrough of the whole process as it works at Vancouver Psychology Centre, from the first call to the final report.
The first call
Everything starts with a conversation with our intake team. We will ask what prompted the question: a teacher's comment, years of homework battles, a university accommodation deadline, or an adult's long-standing sense that focusing has always been harder than it should be. This call helps us confirm that an assessment is the right tool for your question, and it helps us match you with the right assessing clinician. At VPC, assessments are conducted by Dr. Jessica Presutto, Josh Mugford (Registered School Psychologist), Dr. Jessie Sandhu, Dr. Katrina Milani, and Dr. Zarina Giannone, who works with youth 13 and up and adults.
Once you decide to proceed, a $300 non-refundable booking fee reserves your testing dates. Assessment appointments are long and prepared in advance, so we ask for 14 days notice if you need to cancel or move them.
The intake appointment
Before any testing begins, the clinician sits down with you to gather history. For a child, this usually means a detailed conversation with parents: developmental milestones, school history, report cards, previous supports, what a hard evening at the kitchen table looks like. For an adult, it means your own story: school, work, relationships, and how the difficulties have shown up over time. The clinician may also send questionnaires to teachers, partners, or others who see the person in daily life. Good history is what turns test scores into meaning.
Testing days
Testing happens across one or more sessions, usually in person at our office on West 8th Avenue. The measures are standardized, which means they are administered the same way to everyone and compared against large normative samples. Depending on the referral question, testing typically covers reasoning, memory, processing speed, academic skills such as reading, writing, and math, and attention.
Most people find testing days less intimidating than they feared. There are puzzles, word tasks, timed activities, and plenty of breaks. Children often describe it as "doing activities with someone who is really paying attention." There is nothing to study for, and there is no way to fail. The point is not to perform well; it is to produce an accurate picture.
Scoring and report writing: the invisible hours
This is the part nobody sees, and it is where much of the work happens. After testing ends, the clinician scores every measure, compares results across domains, integrates questionnaires and history, and considers what patterns do and do not support. Then they write the report: a comprehensive document that describes strengths and challenges, gives diagnoses where the evidence supports them, and lays out specific recommendations for school, work, and home. These hours of scoring, analysis, and writing usually exceed the face-to-face hours, which is a large part of what the fee reflects.
The feedback session
When the report is ready, you meet with the clinician to go through it together. This is not a hand-off of paperwork. The clinician walks through the findings in plain language, answers your questions, and connects the results to daily life: why reading takes so long, why instructions evaporate halfway through, what kind of support is worth asking for. For parents, this session often reframes years of confusion. You leave with the full report and a clear sense of next steps.
What the report can do
A psychoeducational report is a working document. At school, it can support an Individual Education Plan, classroom accommodations, and exam accommodations. At the post-secondary level, accessibility offices generally require exactly this kind of documentation. For adults, the report can support workplace accommodation conversations and inform decisions about further support. Where appropriate, and with your consent, the clinician can also communicate directly with a school.
What the $3,900 covers
The full Psychoeducational and Psycho-Vocational Assessment fee at VPC is $3,900, billed in three parts: the $300 non-refundable booking fee, $2,300 for intake and testing, and $1,300 for the feedback session and final report. That figure covers every clinical hour in the process: intake, all testing sessions, questionnaire scoring, interpretation, report writing, and the feedback meeting. We accept VISA and MasterCard, we do not direct-bill insurance, and we issue receipts you can submit to an extended health plan. We confirm all of this in writing before you commit. No surprises on a first invoice.
Where to start
If you are weighing whether an assessment makes sense for your child or for yourself, the next step is a conversation. You can read more on our psychoeducational and ADHD assessment page, or book a call with our care team at 604-733-7709 and we will help you think it through.