New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 12 - LABOR AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT › Chapter 51 - VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION SERVICES › Subchapter 4 - VOCATIONAL EVALUATION › Section 12:51-4.1 - Vocational evaluation, description

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) Vocational evaluation is a comprehensive, individualized and systematic process in which an individual, in partnership with the evaluator and DVRS counselor, learns to identify vocational options consistent with his or her abilities, capabilities, preferences and interests and develop employment goals and objectives. This process incorporates background information (for example, information on education, psychological history, work history, medical/physical capabilities, behavior status, and financial status) and uses a combination of testing, work samples, situational assessments, community-based job tryouts, prevailing labor market data, occupational information, assistive technology, functional capacities, accommodations, and modifications. It incorporates respect for the consumer's personal processes of growth, self-empowerment, and development of insight leading to the consumer's informed choice of meaningful career progression goals.
(b) The vocational evaluation process must include intake procedures as well as an orientation procedure in order to define reasonable expectations for all parties involved. In addition, the range and scope of the evaluation services should be sufficiently comprehensive to obtain information about the individual such as: ability to learn about oneself as a result of the information obtained and furnished through the evaluation experience; educational and vocational achievements; assistive technology and reasonable accommodations needed; community and employment supports needed; environmental conditions needed; the need for tool and job-site modifications or adaptive equipment that may enhance the employability of the persons receiving services when their disabilities may invalidate otherwise standardized procedures; work and non-work needs; independent living skills; intellectual capacity; interests, aptitudes, and career aspirations; job-seeking and job-keeping skills; knowledge and occupational information; learning styles, including ability to understand, recall, and respond to various types of instruction; loss of access to the labor market and/or loss of earning capacity; personal, social, and work-related behaviors; physical and psychomotor capacities; possible employment objectives; transferable skills; work skills and tolerances; and modes of communication.
(c) The length of the basic vocational evaluation process should be based upon the time necessary to identify the individual's vocational goals which generally should be completed within a five-week (25 days of work) period, but may be more intensive and thereby shorter by mutual agreement of the client, evaluator and DVRS counselor. Those facilities that have not received approval for a five-week evaluation will continue to provide a 10-week evaluation at the approved 10-week evaluation fee. Further time extensions will depend entirely upon justification, viable staff conferences which include the individual, the evaluator and the DVRS counselor and written reports. The evaluation shall result in:
1. Development of a rehabilitation plan with a vocational goal in an integrated competitive setting with, if required, a description of supports that are required for such a placement. The evaluation report must identify the number and types of support that are required;
2. Development of the organization's rehabilitation plan, indicating the services to be provided in order to prepare for integrated employment; or
3. Determination that a vocational program is not appropriate at this time.