Does Providing Transition Services by Age 14 Produce Better Vocational Outcomes for Students With Intellectual Disability?

This study examined the potential impact providing transition services early had on the vocational outcomes achieved by young adults with intellectual disability. Two groups were compared: 7,520 individuals from states requiring transition services be addressed in individualized educational programs (IEPs) by age 14 and 7,520 individuals from states requiring transition services be addressed by age 16. Individual from both groups were matched based on seven demographic variables. Results found that, in each of the 4 years (2007-2009) examined, individuals from the early transition states were more likely to be employed by the time their cases were closed than their matched peers from the later transition states. Specifically, over this 4-year period, 58.8% of participants from the early transition states became employed compared with 45.6% for individuals from later transition states.