Transition planning for youth with traumatic brain injury: findings from the National Longitudinal Transition Survey-2

Despite of a growing body of research on vocational and educational difficulties for students with traumatic brain injury (TBI), only limited empirical studies specifically examined how school transition services facilitate later employment outcomes.

This exploratory, prospective longitudinal study examined the prevalence of employment and characteristics of transition planning practices that promoted positive school-to-work transition for students with TBI.

The participants (n = 200) was drawn from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS-2), a ten-year study which followed a large nationally representative sample of youth with disabilities through secondary education in into young adulthood. Logistic regression was used to investigate the associations between student, school, and collaborative engagement in the planning process and employment outcomes up to 8 years after high school.

Among youth with TBI, 51% held current employment at the time of interview and 73% had been employed at any time after high school. Findings showed that students with TBI who had transition goals for postsecondary education were more likely to be employed at some point since leaving high school. The findings also support active student engagement and leadership in the transition planning process, and the inclusion of outside organizations and individuals.

Findings indicate the impact of student, school and adult service agency engagement in transition planning processes. Implications for educational practices and future research are discussed.