Welcome to the Vocational Rehabilitation Series, where we will be taking a closer look at Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) programs to shed some light on how they work, demystify the process, and offer some advice on how to navigate a VR program to meet your needs and goals or the needs and goals of someone you are supporting. 

In Part 1, we will be going over the basics of VR, including who is running it, what they do, and how you can contact a VR program in your own state.

Vocational Rehabilitation can be a valuable tool for an Autistic person with an official diagnosis seeking work in their state. While every state varies in what exactly it does, and you should check your own state’s VR program to confirm what is available to you, it is fair to say that all are established with the primary goal of assisting people with legally qualifying disabilities in finding employment through various means. 

Let’s take a closer look at what that means in practice!

While Vocational Rehabilitation is a helpful umbrella term to describe the type of program on offer, the term “Rehabilitation” can feel a little bit stigmatizing and make someone wonder who exactly is running these things! 

The reality is that each state runs its own VR program through the state government, typically the Department of Education. 

Some states have even decided to move away from “Vocational Rehabilitation” as a term and toward more neutral terms like Career Programs and Services in Massachusetts, but may still clarify that they are a VR program, so people know they are in the right place. 

Many state VR programs provide a similar broad range of services, but describe what they do very differently. MassAbility Career Services suggests they “can help you find a job that fits your lifestyle needs.” 

North Carolina’s program, on the other hand, emphasizes “overcoming disability-related barriers,” “[achieving] goals for competitive employment,” and “more independent living in their community.” 

It is worth taking note of how states describe their own program, as while they might offer similar services on paper, it can also offer an indication of how their approach might align with your goals (for better or worse!) and how you might want to approach the situation with that in mind.

As a general rule, VR programs should be thought of as more than a basic job matching service (not to discount the value of job matching!). VR programs can offer services ranging from counseling and aptitude testing to diagnostic evaluations to pre-employment transition services for people still in school. 

If you are facing a barrier related to employment, it is worth checking out if the program in your state might offer a service that can help! Speaking of which…

You may have noticed from the pages we linked that states tend to offer their VR programs through official websites. We can see another example in the Missouri Department of Education, which just lists its own program as Vocational Rehabilitation. 

If you want to contact the Missouri Department of Education, there is a chat service that primarily acts as an FAQ but may eventually reach a live person, an email address for inquiries under the Work with Us page, and an Online Referral Questionnaire. 

If you live in Missouri, one or more of these approaches might stand out as a viable option, depending on whether you have a strong idea of what you want or might need more guidance. 

The important thing is identifying which starting point feels like the best fit for your needs, which we will explore further as the series goes on!

We hope that Part 1 has offered a helpful overview of what Vocational Rehabilitation is all about, even as it varies across states in terminology and exact services offered. If you would like to share some important information about the VR process in your state, or if you would be interested in seeing a more comprehensive state-by-state guide, then we would love to hear from you! Just drop us a line at hello@autismgrownup.com, and we will be back next week to explore the application and eligibility process in Part 2.