How College Impacts Your Social Security Claim

Girl in a library

Do you know how your education impacts your social security case?

Sometimes I get too involved in the subject I am writing about for a blog. On occasion, I’ll hear a coworker say something and it will spark a bit of inspiration. Both of these things happened when I heard case manager Kelly Fritz talking to a client recently. She was advising the client about college and how it impacts an individual who is trying to get approved for disability. I immediately thought of myself. Granted, most people who know me will tell you that I immediately think of myself in most situations. Kidding aside, I really hadn’t thought about how education plays a part in the disability process. So, I decided to look into it further.

I think it’s obvious that the purpose of social security disability is to determine if you can work or not. That is somewhat of a generalized version of how Social Security works. Unfortunately, it’s not that black and white. However, for this blog, let’s keep things simple. When looking at everyone applying for social security as a whole, we see a diverse group of people with one thing in common; a disability is keeping them from working. Social Security has two ways to determine if a person is disabled; The Social Security Administration (SSA) evaluates applicants for disability in two ways:

  • whether an individual’s impairment(s) meets or equals the criteria of an official disability listing in the Social Security disability handbook (often referred to as the listing of impairments, or the blue book), or
  • whether the individual’s medical and vocational factors, when considered together, prevents he or she from performing any of their old jobs and any other job in the national economy (disability examiners refer to this as a medical-vocational allowance).

To keep things simple, we will just be focusing on the 2nd option. In this case, yes, your education level can make it more difficult to get approved. If an applicant’s disability or impairment doesn’t meet or equal a listing, and the applicant can’t return to his or her former work, the applicant’s age, work history, and educational background are evaluated to determine if an individual has the capacity to perform less demanding work in a competitive workforce.

How can your education level impact your claim? Well, your ability to perform other types of work sometimes comes down to something called transferable skills. Transferable skills are skills that you have acquired through your past jobs or through schooling that you can use in other areas of the work force that are less demanding. Therefore, if you return to school, you may have additional skills that can be used in other jobs even if you are unable to perform your old jobs.

So, yes, college can impact your claim for social security disability. Just keep in mind that this is not the only factor that impacts your claim and we certainly do not discourage you from furthering your education. You also have your age, health, and many more factors to consider. Let us know if you like to learn more about social security. Call us today for a free consultation. Our toll-free number is 1-877-526-3457. If you can’t talk now, fill out this form so that we may call you at a better time.

 

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Jan Dils, Attorneys at Law

Jan Dils, Attorneys at Law
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