How You Can Benefit From Vocational Assessment Services

Vocational assessment services are helpful for disabled or injured individuals as they provide an expert opinion on their inability to work. Depending on the circumstances, the full extent of some

medical conditions may be obscure, which is why obtaining a report from a vocational expert is often indispensable.

Here’s what vocational assessment entails and how you can benefit from vocational assessment services.

What Is The Goal Of Vocational Evaluation?

The main purpose of the vocational assessment/evaluation is to accurately determine the present and future employability, as well as earning potential for legal purposes or filing for disability. 

The report may contain a vocational plan which describes details on how the individual can return to the workforce through the aid of additional training or programs, all the while taking into account the current job availability. 

What Happens During Vocational Evaluation?

If this is your first time using vocational assessment services, here’s what you can expect. 

Typically, the first step will be an interview during which the vocational expert will gather information about your situation. For instance, they may inquire about your work experience, health, age, educational background, career goals, personal situation, and so on. 

After the initial interview, you’ll go through vocational tests to accurately assess your employability. The expert will test you on:

• Aptitudes and abilities
• Personality/interests
• Work values
• Transferable work skills

Afterwards, the expert will conduct labor market research to establish information on earnings, employment outlook, and training required for different job positions in a particular geographic area. This information will be combined with other data gathered during the assessment. The final report will include counselor observation, test data, medical and psychological reports, as well as other diagnostic information.

Lastly, the vocational expert will recommend possible steps which are in line with your abilities and long-term career goals. 

Can You Prepare For The Evaluation?

Since it’s not a fail/pass kind of evaluation, there’s no need to prepare. Still, make sure to bring a copy of your resume and expect an in-depth discussion on past work history and educational background.

If you’re attending any training programs, gather information about the details regarding the program such as its goal, length, price, etc. 

The most important documents are your medical records so make sure to bring along any and, once again, expect to discuss the details of your injury/disability at length. 

What Are The Benefits Of Vocational Assessment Services?

On the whole, vocational assessment will provide you with an opportunity to expand your vocational knowledge and learn more about potential career options. The main benefits are:

1. Get an accurate description of job responsibilities

By reviewing your resume, the vocational expert can analyze all the responsibilities required in previous jobs. However, workplace responsibilities often go beyond what’s written on paper and during your interview, the expert will try to ascertain in detail all the activities you performed in your line of work. 

In addition, they will review your medical history to better understand your current limitations. 

The report will then include a comprehensive record of job responsibilities and skills in your previous jobs and will break them down into primary and auxiliary responsibilities. With this information, you’ll have an easier time proving you’re no longer able to perform all the tasks necessary to fill the roles from your work history.

For example, if you’re filing for disability and you’re testifying in front of the administrative law judge, they may claim you’re still able to do your previous job because your current abilities are in line with the responsibilities essential for the role. Nevertheless, as we said earlier, most jobs include actions that aren’t written in the job description - a vocational assessment helps you prove this. 

2. Receive a complete analysis of your skills and abilities

A vocational expert can corroborate your inability to perform certain tasks by diving deeper into the skills and abilities required for different jobs. They’ll make use of various databases and resources to support their assessment and put together a reliable breakdown of your limitations.

They may evaluate:

• Ability to concentrate
• Ability to analyze written material
• Communication skills
• Tolerance to stress
• Ability to work for extended periods
• Ability to walk, sit, and bend for extended periods
• Analytical skills
• Ability to focus on a computer screen
• Problem-solving skills
• Ability to recall detailed instructions

This is important because you might fit a job description on paper, but it may be in need of any of the skills listed above that you may no longer be able to perform. The vocational expert has the mandatory credentials to offer an informed opinion on this topic. 

As an example, a former surgeon may be denied benefits because their insurer may claim that the surgeon is only required to use their hands occasionally, and as such, an arthritis diagnosis isn’t considered a disability. 

A vocational expert will explain that surgeries can last hours and call for fine hand manipulations. Thus, a surgeon with arthritis can be considered disabled. 

3. Provides a full picture of your disability

With vocational assessment services, you will receive an analysis of how your medical condition impacts your ability to perform work-related activities. The vocational expert will identify which tasks you’re no longer able to perform and explain why. 

When it comes to disability benefits, if you are unable to meet a key work responsibility for a particular job, an assumption will be made that the job in question is not a good fit for you. In case enough jobs are successfully eliminated, you’ll be one step closer to getting approved for disability. 

Build A Stronger Claim

Vocational assessment services are an integral part of filing for disability. You can be completely truthful about your limitations, but there’s always a possibility that you will get denied despite comprehensive medical evidence.

With a report put together by a vocational expert, you’ll have the necessary supporting evidence which is difficult to ignore.

In the event you require a vocational evaluation, you can’t go wrong with OAS Inc. We’ve been in the field for over two decades and we’ve assisted numerous clients all over the country through objective consulting, analysis, and vocational testing.

Call 800-292-1919 to schedule an appointment and start building a stronger claim today.