Wealthy Parents Seek $10,000 Neuropsych Evaluations for Children for Academic Advantage
An increasing number of affluent families are opting for extensive evaluations to gain insights into their children's learning styles and potentially secure accommodations, a trend experts say is being overused.
Wealthy parents are increasingly paying significant sums, often between $5,000 and $10,000, for comprehensive nine-hour neuropsychological evaluations for their children. These evaluations, traditionally used to diagnose significant learning disabilities or neurodevelopmental conditions like autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), are now being sought by affluent families to gain advantages such as extra time on tests or a deeper understanding of their child's learning processes.
Jessica, a mother of six in California's Bay Area, has had each of her children undergo these evaluations, which she refers to as "recreational." She states, "I am a total data person. I want to know how each kid’s brain works, what are their strengths, what are their weaknesses." Through these assessments, she discovered one child was an auditory learner, another had facial blindness, and two were diagnosed with dyslexia, with one also diagnosed with ADHD. These diagnoses have led to adjustments at home and school, including the provision of extra test time for the latter three.
This trend coincides with documented increases in diagnoses of ASD and ADHD. According to CDC data, the prevalence of ADHD diagnoses in children aged 3 to 17 more than doubled between 1997 and 2024. Similarly, the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder rose from 1 in 150 children in 2000 to 1 in 31 in 2022.
Clinical neuropsychologists are observing a notable shift in the reasons parents seek these evaluations. Dr. Katie Davis, a neuropsychologist in New York City, reports that a decade ago, approximately once a month she would test a child who didn't appear to need such an evaluation. Now, she estimates that about 40% of the children she tests are "neurodevelopmentally completely normal," leading her to believe the practice has been "twisted and bastardized." She notes that many middle- and upper-class families seek these evaluations hoping to give their children an edge, sometimes becoming frustrated when the results do not yield a diagnosis that grants specific academic accommodations.
Dr. Sanam Hafeez, clinical director and CEO of Comprehend The Mind, a medical group in Queens, also has seen a rise in self-referred cases, where parents seek evaluations without a prior medical referral. She suggests that social media may be contributing to this trend, but also views the evaluations as beneficial for understanding learning styles. However, she cautions that not all perceived issues may stem from neurodivergence.
Davis emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between genuine neurodevelopmental disorders and the typical academic challenges faced by students, particularly in demanding environments. "It is very common for parents to come in and say, ‘My kid is so disorganized, my kid is so dysregulated,'" she said. "We have to figure out if this is a kid with actual ADHD, or a high schooler who just thinks AP chem is really hard. Not every kid is an A-student in every class, and not every kid is an A-student at every school. It doesn’t mean the kid is neurodivergent."
Some parents of children with diagnosed special needs express concern that the increasing use of these costly evaluations for non-essential reasons may devalue the tool for those who genuinely require it. Jessica, however, views the evaluations as a valuable "gift we can give our children and ourselves."