Company Policies

About Us

TEC: The Evaluation Company was founded in 1982 and has locations in Houston, Texas, Miami, Florida, and New York, New York. TEC provides foreign academic credential evaluation, verification, and translation services. In 1996, TEC joined the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services, Inc. / NACES® as a member. Membership in NACES® establishes that the member organization maintain an extensive library of resources, share expertise in the industry, remain active in professional development, and conduct evaluations supervised by evaluators with years of experience. Affiliation with a selective association such as NACES® is an important indication of the quality of work accomplished by a foreign credential evaluation service and an assurance that the evaluation reports it prepares will be reliable. TEC is a NAFSA Global Partner and its evaluators maintain affiliations and memberships with such organizations as TAICEP, NAGAP, NAFSA, AACRAO, TACRAO, SACRAO, and MSACRAO.

Policy Statements

TEC: The Evaluation Company, does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, handicap, religion, sex, national origin, or age. Nevertheless, as a private company not supported by any governmental / public funds, TEC retains the right to decline to provide services.

TEC: The Evaluation Company, Inc. considers verification / authentication to be of paramount importance; therefore, TEC does not knowingly translate / evaluate falsified or altered documents. As such, we reserve the right request verification service or the official documents be sent directly from a source institution. A department within TEC works diligently to verify / authenticate credentials. TEC notifies appropriate entities of confirmed forgeries. These entities may include the referring and target schools / colleges / universities, local / state / federal governmental agencies, law offices, and employers, among others. As a member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services, Inc., TEC participates in the NACES fraud notification exchange by which NACES members share information concerning confirmation of document falsification and / or alteration.

Occasionally, after a translation / evaluation is issued, we learn of document falsification and / or alteration. TEC therefore reserves the right to void the translation / evaluation, notify appropriate institutions of document inaccuracy, and require that the work be returned. In such cases, no fees are refunded.

Institutional accreditation is carefully checked before any evaluation is released. TEC does not knowingly evaluate documents from diploma mills, unaccredited institutions, institutions lacking government recognition, or institutions with candidacy for accreditation. The concept of accreditation, however, is subject to the governmental policies of the educational system under review and may seem arbitrary to those unfamiliar with the credentialing process.

TEC bases its evaluations on extensive in-house research and on information available to U.S. credential analysts in light of prevailing placement guidelines and methodologies, as well as industry developments shared by member organizations of NACES®. Since guidelines vary depending on the prevailing members and on changes in educational systems, credentials and methodologies, individual recommendations may differ. Target / admitting institutions / entities, in compliance with their internal policies and procedures, retain the absolute right to accept, modify, or reject the advisory recommendations expressed in our credential evaluations. Furthermore, target / admitting institutions retain the right to require challenge testing of all coursework, especially, in English and mathematics.

For identity protection, full Social Security Numbers generally will not appear on evaluations. Some entities however, require that the full Social Security Number be clearly stated. Therefore, if the full SSN is needed, this should be noted by the applicant via email, by phone, or in person.

TEC retains files for five years from the date of completion. Questions regarding completed translations / evaluations must be submitted in writing or by email within 30 calendar days of issuance. Questions submitted after 30 calendar days must be submitted in writing or email, accompanied by a non-refundable review fee of $50.00 which does not guarantee that any changes are justified. All correspondence regarding completed evaluations must be submitted in writing.

‘Official’ above refers to credentials mailed by the issuing institution directly to TEC in a pre-printed envelope bearing the institutional name, address, and, usually, logo or emblem. Documents must be stamped and signed by appropriate institutional authorities.

All fees are non-refundable. TEC reserves the right to cancel services for any reason, including cases in which academic fraud is discovered. TEC cannot guarantee that your TEC evaluation will be accepted for admission, employment, or any other purpose or by any particular entity.

TEC bases its evaluations on the documentation submitted during the initial application process. Additional charges may incur if TEC is asked to evaluate documentation after the initial application has been sent to TEC.

  1. All payments made to The Evaluation Company are non-refundable except for fees judged by The Evaluation Company to be over-payments.
  2. I authorize The Evaluation Company to release and request information to relevant third parties solely to verify my academic credentials. The Evaluation Company will not use my personal data for any other purpose. The Evaluation Company will follow GDPR guidelines as required.
  3. My evaluation and/or translation will be based exclusively upon the documents I submit as part of my application and I certify that all information and documentation I provide to The Evaluation Company is true and accurate.
  4. The Evaluation Company will not issue my evaluation until I provide all necessary documentation and pay my balance in full.
  5. There will be no refund if The Evaluation Company does not perform an evaluation because fraud is discovered with regard to the credentials to be evaluated. If fraud is found, The Evaluation Company will advise the relevant parties listed in this application, including my academic institution, agency, or employer. The Evaluation Company will not be liable for any damages as a result. I will pay for any legal fees or expenses resulting from any claim I make based on incorrect information I provide to The Evaluation Company.
  6. There will be no refund for verification services except for fees judged by The Evaluation Company to be over-payment for services not needed. Our verification process encompasses three attempts to contact the applicant’s previous institution. There will be no refund if the applicant’s previous institution does not reply to The Evaluation Company’s s verification request. In certain cases, I understand that The Evaluation Company may issue my evaluation with “Verification Pending.”
  7. Once an evaluation is issued, I have 30 days to submit in writing any questions or appeals. The Evaluation Company reserves the right to deny my request(s). I understand that a $50 administrative fee applies if I submit an appeal beyond 30 days of receiving my evaluation.
  8. The Evaluation Company is not responsible for mail that is lost or wrongly delivered by the post office or a courier.
  9. If I am paying by credit or debit card, I agree for this account to be charged for the total amount of all services requested in this application.
  10. The Evaluation Company is not responsible for lost or damaged original documents.
  11. The Evaluation Company reserves the right to cancel my file if required. In such cases, The Evaluation Company may issue a full refund minus a $50 processing fee.
  12. CUBA – I understand that documents from Cuba are subject to additional review by The Evaluation Company. After review, The Evaluation Company reserves the right to cancel my file if my documents are deemed unacceptable for evaluation. In such cases, The Evaluation Company will issue a full refund minus a $50 processing fee.
  13. The Evaluation Company will not issue a refund if I choose to cancel my application for any reason. I understand that I have a responsibility to cooperate with The Evaluation Company’s policies, especially those concerning translation, verification, and evaluation.
  14. Processing times listed on the application are estimates. In certain cases, additional research and/or verification may be required to complete an evaluation.
  15. The Evaluation Company reserves the right to retain all service fees including rush fees in the case that additional research or verification increases the processing time required for evaluation.