The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) made postsecondary goals a requirement in 1990. Although the federal government mandates that Individualized Education Program (IEP) students must have postsecondary goals by the age of 16 (not standard across the U.S.), more than 50% of states decided to start as early as 14—the extra time improving outcomes.
For example, a 2012 study found that only 44.8% of autistic students had measurable postsecondary goals in each domain (Landmark & Zhang, 2012). Since that time, an increased number of states have provided earlier benchmarks to help IEP students become more successful.
What an IEP Transition Plan Must Include Under IDEA
IDEA requires six specific requirements from every IEP transition plan. Each plan must:
- focus on improving functional and academic achievement;
- rely on age-appropriate assessments;
- consider a student’s strengths, interests, preferences, and needs;
- produce measurable results;
- include activities that align with objectives; and
- support transition from school to post-school domains.
Building a Positive Personal Profile
Although not legally required under the IDEA, many schools have created positive personal profiles for each IEP student—a strengths-based summary of a student’s experiences, preferences, interests, and support needs. To complete a positive personal profile, it’s necessary for students to explore various facets of their identity such as:
- areas of specialized interest or knowledge;
- personality traits;
- skills, talents, and personal values;
- dislikes, challenges, and triggers;
- environment preferences;
- supportive accommodations and people;
- meaningful experiences in life and at work; and
- future possibilities and career interests.
Informal and Formal Assessments Across Multiple Domains
A transition assessment becomes more effective when it uses validated tools to measure a student’s strengths, interests, preferences, and needs. At the same time, it should include informal tools, such as:
- questionnaires and interviews;
- personal reflections and profiles;
- interest checklists and inventories;
- observations in living and learning settings; and
- contemplations of transition activities.
It’s important to also assess both functional performance and academic achievement across a variety of environments. These transition-specific assessments evaluate many areas, such as work readiness, learning skills, career interests, personality, and self-determination. Assessing a student’s independent living skills (Fisher et al., 2025), particularly executive functioning and adaptive behaviors, can also be beneficial in evaluating their possible post-secondary success.
The Six Transition Assessment Domains
An IEP transition plan must look at the whole person. This brings into consideration six separate assessment domains, with each one having an assessment recommendation. Please note that there are alternate assessments for each domain as well.
Transition and Career. Evaluates readiness, interests, work goals, and personality. The BRIGANCE Career Inventory is one assessment option that can help align postsecondary goals with employment, vocational training, and decisions regarding independent living.
Disabilities and Differences. Evaluates how a student’s disability affects interaction, learning, adult life, and work. The Social Responsiveness Scale, Third Edition (SRS®-3) measures a student’s social responsiveness and behavior, helping clarify any support needs or limitations that need to be included in their transition plan.
Self-Determination. Determines self-advocacy, choice-making, self-concept, and self-regulation skills. The AIR Self-Determination Scale gathers student, parent, and educator ratings, supporting improved student participation in goal setting and IEP meetings.
Academic and Cognitive Skills. Measures a student’s learning strategies, academic performance, and cognitive processing to help determine what coursework is feasible. The School Motivation and Learning Strategies Inventory (SMALSI™) helps pinpoint poor learning strategies affecting academic performance, allowing the evaluator to address these issues to
improve on education and training goals.
Adaptive Behavior and Independent Living. Determines conceptual skills, along with practical, social, daily living, and sensory skills. The Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, Third Edition (ABAS®-3) highlights what skills the student needs to successfully function across school, home, work, and community settings.
Mental Health and Communication. Captures a student’s resilience, depression, pragmatics, anxiety, listening comprehension, and language abilities. The Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale, Second Edition (RCMAS™-2) measures a student’s anxiety levels, supporting individualized communication goals and continuity of care.
Aggregating the Data Into a Plan
After gathering data from informal and formal assessment tools, it’s vital to work with the student and their family to determine the following:
- where the gaps are between the student’s experience and knowledge;
- which postsecondary education and training goals should be prioritized; and
- what course of study must be prepared to help the student move forward with their goals.
The answers to these questions will vary with each individual depending on their priorities, capabilities, and personality. While challenging, this can help build a successful transition plan that delivers a greatly rewarding experience for the student.
Research and Resources
Landmark, L., & Zhang, D. (2012). Compliance and Practices in Transition Planning: A Review of Individualized Education Program Documents. Remedial and Special Education, 34(2), 113–125. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741932511431831
Fisher, M. H., Englehart, V., Kam, C., Norwine, L., Patino, K., Patterson, A., Rodríguez, M., Bouck, E., Sung, C., & Taylor, J. C. (2025). Successful Transition Planning for Students with Intellectual Disability and Extensive Support Needs. Springer International Handbooks of Education, 371–391. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-60258-0_18
