When your child turns 14, the IEP conversation changes.
It’s no longer just about grades, reading levels, or behavior plans. The focus shifts to something much bigger: What happens after high school?
In Maryland, transition planning is not optional. It is a required part of the IEP process, and it must begin by age 14. But in practice, many families are handed vague goals and recycled language. Believe it or not, we see a lot of “professional football player” and “TiKTok creator” career goals.
If your child is 14 or older, this is the stage of the IEP that can shape college access, employment opportunities, “adulting” skills, and long-term independence. And it deserves careful attention.
What Transition Planning Means in a Maryland IEP
Transition planning is the legal process of preparing a student with a disability for life after high school.
At that point, the discussion should expand beyond “How is your child doing this year?” to “Where is your child headed?”
Transition planning must address post-secondary education or vocational training, employment, and independent living skills when appropriate.
This is not a box to check. It is supposed to be a roadmap.
When Transition Planning Must Begin in Maryland
In Maryland, transition planning must begin by age 14.
The IEP must include accommodations, measurable post-secondary goals, age-appropriate transition assessments, specific transition services, and a course of study that supports the student’s goals. In order to do this, the student themselves needs to be consulted. This is often done in the form of a survey or interview.
If your child’s IEP says something like “will explore careers” year after year, that is not meaningful transition planning.
A well-written transition plan should be specific enough that anyone reading it understands what the student is working toward after graduation. For example, “After graduation, the student will enroll at the Baltimore County Community College information technology program.” Objectives could look at reviewing the application with a school counselor, filling out the application, or practicing transportation skills to get there.
Transition Assessments Are Required — Not Optional
Transition goals must be based on age-appropriate assessments.
That may include career interest inventories, vocational evaluations, independent living assessments, and student interviews.
If these kinds of assessments are not documented, it raises an important question: How were these goals developed? Was the student consulted? Is the plan specific to this student or is it something that was copied and pasted?
Transition planning should reflect the student’s strengths, preferences, and realistic supports.
Services Must Match the Goals
A transition plan should connect goals to action.
If a student wants to work in a technical field, are they enrolled in relevant Career and Technology Education classes? Are there internship opportunities during the school day? Is there vocational training? Who is teaching the skills that will be needed after graduation? When are they teaching these skills?
Every student will have a different starting point. Some students may be starting with how to take the bus independently, while others are learning college study skills. Some students may need to be planning for accommodations in college, and others may be ready to graduate from accommodations.
If independent living is a goal that the student will need to work on, is the student receiving instruction in budgeting, hygiene, or self-advocacy?
The services listed in the IEP should clearly support the student’s stated post-secondary goals. If they do not, the plan may not be appropriate under special education law.
Involving Adult Service Agencies Before Graduation
Good transition planning looks ahead.
If a student may qualify for support through agencies such as the Maryland Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS) or the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA), those connections should begin while the student is still in school, and the IEP team should be advising the student and family about the options.
Waiting until senior year can create unnecessary gaps in services.
When to Speak With a Maryland Education Lawyer or advocate
Not every transition concern requires legal action. But families may want guidance if transition planning did not begin at age 14, post-secondary goals are vague or copied year after year, required services are listed but not provided, assessments were never conducted, or the school is pushing graduation despite unmet transition needs.
Transition services are enforceable under special education law. When planning is superficial or misaligned with a student’s needs, families have options.
Transition Planning Is About the Future — Not Just Compliance
At its best, transition planning gives students confidence and direction. It helps them understand their strengths. It teaches self-advocacy. It connects school to real-world goals.
At its worst, it becomes a paragraph in the IEP that no one revisits.
If your child is 14 or older, take time to read the transition section carefully. Ask how goals were developed. Ask how services connect to those goals. Ask what progress looks like.
Because transition planning is not just about finishing high school.
It is about whether your child leaves high school prepared for what comes next.