Independent Educational Evaluations in California

An IEE is a full evaluation done by someone the school does not employ. In California that person is usually a Licensed Educational Psychologist. Parents use them when the district’s testing is late, thin, or just wrong.

We list independent California evaluators who do IEEs — LEPs across the state.

Browse California IEE evaluators

What an IEE actually is

It is not a screening and it is not tutoring. A proper independent educational evaluation is a written report: cognitive and academic testing, processing, and a clear statement of whether your child meets criteria for services. The report should be something you can walk into an IEP meeting with.

You can pay for that privately at any time. You can also ask the school to pay for it. Those are different paths.

When the school pays

Under IDEA, if you disagree with the district’s evaluation, you can request an IEE at public expense. The district then has to either pay for one or file for a due-process hearing to defend its own testing. They cannot just ignore the request.

Put the request in writing. Name the evaluation you disagree with. Keep a copy. The district may give you their criteria (who is qualified, what the report must include). LEPs who already do private work in California are used to those criteria.

Paying yourself is still common. Families do it to skip the wait or to get a second opinion the district never ordered. Parent-funded does not make the report unofficial — an IEP team still has to consider it.

Who can do this in California

The usual independent evaluator is a Licensed Educational Psychologist (LEP). California gives LEPs the right to test and diagnose in private practice. That is who most families hire for a school-facing IEE.

A clinic neuropsych can also write a useful report. It is usually more expensive and not always what an IEP team wants. For a school-facing IEE, start with an LEP who says they do independent evaluations.

What it costs and how long it takes

Private comprehensive evaluations in California typically land around $2,000–$4,500. That is a market range, not a quote. Ask what is in the battery, whether the written report is included, and whether they will attend the IEP (some will, some bill extra, some will not).

Three to six weeks from first appointment to a finished report is a reasonable expectation if the evaluator is taking clients. School-only waitlists are often a semester or more. That gap is why people pay.

How to use the report

Send it to the case manager or special-education coordinator before the IEP. Bring a paper copy. You are asking the team to consider specific findings — dyslexia, SLD, eligibility for a 504 or IEP — not to “look at some testing.” If you paid for an IEE after disagreeing with the school’s assessment, say that out loud. The team has to consider it.

Dyslexia testing in California if that is the actual question, or all guides.