Test Fee Observations

[kar5162]

Lately I've been looking around at test schedules and applications in places I'd be able to easily get to, in an attempt to minimize the costs of taking the adults tests - I'm taking at least 6, through Silver...eventually anyway. I've noted somethings that I thought were rather odd and wondered what everyone else thought.

1) high level freestyle tests costing more than moves tests (I would have expected moves tests to cost much more than free tests as they take significantly longer.)

2) adult tests costing more (sometimes significantly more) than the standard tests (I would have expected the Gold test perhaps to cost more since it completes the test stream and some clubs give the gold medal to their members, but was quite surprised when one club had Pre-Pre and Pre listed at $20 a piece and Pre-Bronze and Bronze listed at $35 a piece...1:40 is 1:40, no?)

3) adult tests costing less than standard tests (see #2)

Has anyone else noticed these things? How does your club go about determining test fees? Accountant that I am, I would have assumed on a cost basis...ice time used + portion of judges expenses + some additional amount based on hospitality if you provide any or some coverage in anticipation of not full test sessions.

Kim...very curious

[jenlyon60]

one reason for the high level tests often costing more is that a club may need to pay more expenses to bring in a panel of judges of the right level (Silver or higher Singles judges, or Gold/International rated Dance judges).

For example, where I test, we are fortunate in having sufficient high rank Singles judges to run MIF/FS tests through Senior MIF/FS. But, for Gold/International dance tests (and we have several dancers who are working on their golds and higher), we may have to pay for an out-of-town judge to come in to judge.

Test session fees cover judges expenses, including air fare if they must fly in for the session. The rulebook or other USFSA guidance outlines how judges' expenses for tests and competitions are calculated. There's also ice fees (often including the initial resurface)... where I skate, that's upwards of $240/hour, hospitality fee, etc.

[KJD]

Kim,
I am on the board for our club, and we did it this way. We had someone do a painstaking look at how long each test was and how much that cost per minute for ice time. Then we allocated a portion of judges expenses and hospitality. Then we added in the bade and/or medal cost. So for dance tests for instance, particularly higher level ones, we usually have to import a judge or two, and that is factored in. I'm a little surprised that the freestyle tests for adults and kids would be different. Ours are the same. Its the moves that are a little different but based again on what's on the test. One person wanted the moves to be more because apparently "adults go slower". We vetoed that.

[kar5162]

Originally posted by jenlyon60
one reason for the high level tests often costing more is that a club may need to pay more expenses to bring in a panel of judges of the right level (Silver or higher Singles judges, or Gold/International rated Dance judges).

That makes sense to me, particulary in regards to dance tests,however, there are quite a lot of judges in my area too, and some applications I saw had Novice moves (the longest) $30, Senior moves $45, and Senior free $50??? Another rink just said $50 per test...Pre-Pre to Senior.

[Elsy2]

Our adult freestyle test fees are the same as the regular track as follows: Adult Pre-bronze is the same cost as Pre-pre and Preliminary.
Adult Bronze is the same cost as Pre-juv. and Juvenile. Adult Silver is the same cost as Novice, and Adult Gold is the same cost as Senior.

I expect that our cost for Adult moves tests will correspond in the same manner.

[Mazurka Girl]

Originally posted by kar5162
That makes sense to me, particulary in regards to dance tests,however, there are quite a lot of judges in my area too, and some applications I saw had Novice moves (the longest) $30, Senior moves $45, and Senior free $50??? Another rink just said $50 per test...Pre-Pre to Senior.
Novice MIF can be tested with a double panel, while Senior MIF cannot. When MIF tests first started, many smaller clubs who often could not conduct tests with a double panel, used to charge more for Pre-Juv MIF than some of the higher tests because that was one of the biggest time consumers.

My club charges similar fees for MIF vs FS. I think it's about right. Besides the time of the actual FS program, you have to include the writing time of the judges, which is much longer for the higher FS tests, 2 retries in a FS test (with a warm-up for each if the skater chooses) vs 1 retry in a MIF with no warm-up; & there are many fewer retries in MIF tests than in FS tests.

The Adult MIF tests may be up about $5 per test at some clubs vs the comparable regular MIF test, but that's to be expected for the first season initiating a new test track. Were you around for the original implementation of MIF tests? My mom was a test chair at the time & I remember it took awhile for them to get going efficiently & for the judges, skaters & coaches to all become comfortable with the process. The tests often ran over the expected time the first year.

Bottom line IMHO is that test sessions are supposed to pretty much break even, not be club fundraisers. If a club is making significant income from the tests, they should recalculate their fees. I have seen some clubs overcharge to make money on the sessions & I don't think it's right. But I also hear a lot of parents griping who don't understand how much ice costs & what expenses must be paid. Some of them think judges earn money & others begrudge them travel expenses & decent food. It's sometimes surprising how rude a few coaches can be (inappropriate demands, not returning forms, not having a rulebook but arguing with judges) when they're earning a couple hundred dollars that day while everyone else is working for free. It's a constant education process.

[Mazurka Girl]

One other thing I forgot to add. Many judges do not ask to be reimbursed for mileage when they judge for their own club at one of their rinks. But other clubs in the area do have to reimburse them for travel when they go to their test sessions. So clubs that have a pool of judges probably save a bit from this as opposed to smaller clubs that do not have any judges.