New Hampshire Vocational Rehabilitation Transition Services

New Hampshire Vocational Rehabilitation (NHVR) is one of the most underused resources in the disability transition toolkit. While families focus on guardianship decisions, SSI redeterminations, and Area Agency intake, NHVR operates a separate funding stream for career exploration, job coaching, and employment training that can start years before the young adult exits the school system. The two programs — NHVR and the Area Agency waiver system — serve different purposes and can run in parallel.

When Transition Planning Starts in NH

New Hampshire requires transition coordination to begin earlier than the federal minimum. Under state-specific standards, an IEP in effect when a student turns fourteen must include a formal course of study focused on transition — two years before IDEA's Indicator 13 compliance threshold at sixteen. By sixteen, transition services must be formally incorporated into the IEP, and the meeting notice must indicate that a purpose of the meeting is the consideration of postsecondary goals and transition services.

This timeline means the school district should be inviting the student to participate in transition planning and connecting with external agencies — including NHVR — by sixteen.

Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS)

Pre-ETS are available to students with disabilities aged sixteen and older (or younger in some cases) who are eligible or potentially eligible for VR services. These services include:

• Job exploration counseling — identifying the student's career interests, aptitudes, and labor market opportunities
• Work-based learning experiences — internships, job shadowing, and on-the-job training in community settings
• Counseling on postsecondary education — evaluating trade programs, community college, and supported higher education options
• Workplace readiness training — soft skills, professional communication, self-advocacy in employment settings
• Self-advocacy instruction — teaching students to understand their disability, request accommodations, and communicate their needs to employers

Pre-ETS are funded through a dedicated set-aside in NHVR's federal allocation, meaning they don't compete with the general VR caseload for funding. Students can receive Pre-ETS while still enrolled in school and participating in IEP-based transition activities.

Full VR Services After School

Once a student exits the school system (either by graduating, aging out at twenty-two, or leaving), they can apply for full VR services through NHVR. Full VR services include individualized employment planning, job placement, assistive technology for the workplace, transportation assistance, and post-employment support to help the individual maintain their position.

NHVR operates under an "order of selection" — when demand exceeds capacity, individuals with the most significant disabilities receive services first. Priority is based on the disability's functional impact and the services needed, not simply on having an IEP.

How VR Fits With the Area Agency

NHVR and the regional Area Agencies under BDS serve different functions:

• NHVR focuses on competitive integrated employment — getting the individual into a job in the community
• Area Agencies coordinate broader community-based supports — residential, day programs, personal care, respite

A young adult can receive VR employment services and Area Agency residential/support services simultaneously. The two agencies should be coordinating through the student's transition team, but in practice, families often need to facilitate this coordination themselves.

The Legal Authority Connection

At eighteen, NHVR must work directly with the adult client — not the parents — unless an applicable authorization or guardianship order permits parental involvement. If the young adult has difficulty understanding employment planning concepts, communicating with VR counselors, or managing the decisions involved in job placement, a supported decision-making agreement or power of attorney whose granted authority covers the relevant decisions may help authorize or structure that involvement.

Under Senate Bill 134, when an IEP team discusses adult guardianship in the context of transition planning, they're required to inform the student and family about supported decision-making under RSA 464-D as an alternative. This requirement applies when an IEP team discusses adult guardianship in the context of transition planning.

Getting Started

Contact NHVR at least two years before your child expects to exit high school. If they're already sixteen or older, inquire about Pre-ETS immediately — the earlier the student begins work-based learning experiences, the stronger their employment trajectory at exit. The New Hampshire Guardianship & Alternatives Guide includes the full transition timeline that coordinates VR engagement alongside legal authority planning, Area Agency intake, and SSI redetermination.

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