NJ Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) Through DVRS

What Pre-ETS Actually Provides

Pre-Employment Transition Services are the earliest employment-focused support available to students with disabilities in New Jersey. Funded through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and administered by the New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS), Pre-ETS covers five required activities: job exploration counseling, work-based learning experiences, postsecondary educational counseling, workplace readiness training, and self-advocacy instruction.

The program is free. No formal DVRS eligibility determination is required. Any student aged 14 through 21 with a documented disability — whether through an IEP, a 504 plan, or medical documentation — qualifies for a basic Pre-ETS referral.

Why Age 14 Matters

New Jersey starts transition planning in the IEP developed for the school year the student turns 14, two years earlier than the federal baseline of 16. Pre-ETS aligns with this timeline. A 14-year-old can be referred to DVRS for Pre-ETS the same year transition language enters their IEP.

Starting early has practical consequences. A student who begins workplace readiness training at 14 has seven years of structured employment exposure before aging out of the school system at 21. A student whose family waits until age 18 to engage DVRS has three years — and those three years are also consumed by SSI applications, DDD intake, guardianship decisions, and the age-of-majority transfer of rights.

How to Request Pre-ETS

The referral process is straightforward. A parent, teacher, or school transition coordinator submits a basic Pre-ETS referral to the DVRS field office assigned to the student's school district. Each district has a designated DVRS transition liaison who coordinates Pre-ETS delivery either on-site at the school or in community settings.

The referral does not open a formal vocational rehabilitation case. It does not require diagnostic testing, eligibility paperwork, or a counselor interview. The referral begins the process of arranging services — such as career interest inventories, job shadowing, interview practice, and workplace behavior coaching — alongside the student's regular school programming.

Pre-ETS vs. a Formal DVRS Case

Pre-ETS is a gateway, not a substitute. Around two years before the student's expected school exit, the IEP team should coordinate a formal DVRS application. At that point, a DVRS rehabilitation counselor conducts a survey interview, reviews medical and educational records, and determines eligibility for adult vocational rehabilitation services within 60 days.

If eligible, DVRS opens a full case and drafts an Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE). This unlocks intensive services that Pre-ETS does not cover — one-on-one job coaching, supported employment placements, postsecondary training tuition, and assistive technology for the workplace.

If the counselor determines the student's disability is too significant for competitive integrated employment, DVRS issues the F3 Form — a formal denial that authorizes DDD to fund employment and day supports directly from the student's adult Medicaid budget. The F3 Form is an administrative bridge, not a dead end; it ensures that students who cannot access standard VR still receive structured employment programming through DDD.

Getting Pre-ETS Written Into the IEP

The most common failure point is not the referral itself — it is the school district's coordination with DVRS after the referral goes in. Parents should request that the IEP explicitly name Pre-ETS activities under the transition services section (N.J.A.C. 6A:14-3.7(e)12). When Pre-ETS appears in the IEP as a documented transition activity, the district must coordinate with DVRS to deliver that activity; the IEP does not itself make the district the DVRS provider.

Ask the IEP team to invite the assigned DVRS transition liaison to the annual review meeting. Under IDEA, outside agency representatives can attend IEP meetings with parental consent. Having the DVRS liaison at the table ensures that Pre-ETS goals align with the student's postsecondary employment objectives and that the handoff to a formal VR case happens on schedule.

The New Jersey IEP Transition to Adulthood Guide includes the full DVRS-to-DDD handoff sequence — from the initial Pre-ETS referral at age 14 through the F3 Form mechanism and adult employment supports after school exit.

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