Design a future that works for you, even when you don't fit the mold.

A person in a wheelchair participating in a video call with a woman with short gray hair, smiling. The scene is set indoors with wooden furniture, glasses, and a computer monitor showing the video call.
Logo of New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services with yellow and purple text.
Logo of New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services with yellow and purple text.

Open the Path provides New Jersey residents with FREE services to help you figure out life after high school.

Age 14 to 21 and In High School?
Age 16 to 24 and Out of High School?

Not sure which button to press? Parent, school staff, counselor, or looking for a workshop or speaker? Contact us HERE.

Two Ways In

  • Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS)

  • Explore what comes next while you're still in school.

  • FREE for New Jersey students through the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services (DVRS).

  • No cost to you or your family.

Still in High School, 14 to 21

Learn About Pre-ETS

Out of High School, 16 to 24

  • Out of School Youth Services

  • Job search, GED, training options, and college support.

  • One steady professional helping you navigate your path.

  • FREE for New Jersey students through DVRS.

  • No cost to you or your family.

Learn About Out of School Youth

Still in high school at 21? In college? About to turn 18 or about to leave school?
Ask us and we will tell you which one fits.

A woman with short gray hair, glasses, and a bright smile standing against a colorful mural wall, pointing to her left.

We meet you where you're at

  • You set your own goals, and we help you build toward them.

  • You bring your interests into your sessions. Art, cars, cooking, advocacy, baking, tech, whatever it is, we find ways to make it work for you.

  • Emotional safety always comes first. Your confidence grows when you feel understood and heard.

If you're creative, curious, passionate about something, or still figuring it out, you belong here.

Either Way, Here's What You Work On:

  • Speaking up for yourself

    Say what you need and how you work best, in your own way. Know your rights.

    Self-Advocacy Instruction

  • Getting job ideas

    Find out what you’re into, and what kinds of work match it.

    Job Exploration Counseling

  • Learning job skills

    Communication, money, getting places (including help getting your driver’s license!), time management, and knowing what’s expected at work.

    Workplace Readiness Training

  • Getting help with money and college or job applications

    College, training programs, certifications, applications, financial aid. We are here to help with whatever comes up.

    Post-Secondary Education Counseling

Do you qualify?

Logo for New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services

Probably, and it's easier than you think.

  • If you have an IEP or a 504 plan, you qualify.

  • If you don't have a plan but you have a documented disability that gets in the way of work or school after graduation, you qualify too. You'll need a note from a medical provider.

  • If you're parenting, working, dealing with court, or taking care of family, you can still do this. We help you learn the skills you need through the life you're already living.

  • Ink, braids, hoodies, side hustles. Come as you are.

Not sure? Just ask. The application has some strange language in it and we help with that part too.

Three Things People Say to Us at Every Single Event

A group of smiling people taking a selfie in a room with tables and children's toys in the background. The group is diverse in age and ethnicity, and they are wearing colorful casual clothing.

“I don’t like online stuff.”

  • Neither do a lot of our students.
  • This is not online school.
  • It’s a dedicated professional whose whole job is helping you build a life you want to get out of bed for. Because it's built around you, there isn't much chance of being bored. There's a good chance of being challenged.
  • Some students meet once a week. Some meet four or five times a week.

“I’m just trying to get through school. I don’t know if I qualify yet.”

  • If you’re 14 to 21 and you have a disability, you qualify.
  • You do not have to be ready for a job to start.
  • Working out what you don’t want your life to look like matters, and most people skip that part.
  • If you don’t want to work somewhere loud, or you don’t want to work around food, or you need to be around animals, that’s where we start.

“People tell me I’m not employable.”

  • We hear that from adults, but we don’t hear it from students. Almost every young person we meet believes they can work someday.
  • Usually what is missing is not ability. It is knowing what you are into, and how to turn that into a job.
  • You may also qualify for more school or training, at your pace, built around what you are interested in.
  • We work with non-speaking students. Some of them run their own businesses.
Ask Us How We Can Help You
Man wearing headphones, smiling in a video call, with a framed picture on the wall behind him.

What Your Sessions Look Like

  • You meet online, on Zoom or Google Meet.

  • Sessions are usually less than an hour, based on your needs.

  • Students meet one to five times a week, based on their needs and schedule.

  • Your teacher knows the basics of what you're into, because we match on interests and learning style.

  • We see you as more than your disability. Your identities, your interests, your culture, and your life all help create your path forward.

Let's Get You Started!

Who You'll Work With

  • Your teacher is a certified teacher or a licensed professional.

  • Most have decades of experience working with students with disabilities.

  • A staff member matches you with the teacher who fits you best, based on your interests and how you learn.

  • Your teacher does your full intake, so the person who gets to know you is the person you work with.

  • Spanish-speaking professionals available.

  • If the match isn't right, tell us. Our goal is to help you, and if that means moving you to a different teacher, that's part of what we do.

One person, steady sessions, and a system dedicated to listening to you and your needs.

How to Start

1. Say hey in the form below.

Tell us the best way to reach you. Text, call, or email. Your choice.

2. We'll connect.

We'll learn a bit more about you, so we can match you with the best teacher and help with any paperwork.

3. Pick a first step.

Meet your teacher and choose one thing to start on.

Six people participating in a virtual video call, each in their own space with various backgrounds.
Six people participating in a virtual video call, each in their own space with various backgrounds.

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What are you interested in? Choose as many as you like.

It’s not about perfection or pressure. It’s about progress you can track and feel good about.

Create Your Future.