WHAT IS SVP? HOW DO YOU FIGURE?

If you've ever attended a disability hearing, you may remember hearing the term " SVP" tossed around by the vocational witness. This stands for "Specific Vocational Preparation," and represents how long it takes to train or prepare for a particular job.

SVP classifications range from an unskilled SVP of 1 up to a highly skilled SVP of 9.

So, a vocational expert may classify a particular job as unskilled, semi-skilled or skilled, using the following guidelines:

• SVP 1 – occupation that requires a short demonstration only

• SVP 2 – beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month of training

• SVP 3 – occupation that requires over 1 month, up to and including 3 months

• SVP 4 – over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

• SVP 6 – occupation that requires over 1 year, up to and including 2 SVP years

• SVP 7 – job that requires over 2 years, up to and including 4 years

• SVP 8 – occupation that requires 4 years, up to and including 10 years

• SVP 9 – occupation that requires over 10 years

In Social Security, an SVP may often answer the question, "Could this claimant perform any of his/her past relevant work? " Or, an SVP classification may help a judge decide how a claimant's physical or mental limitations would affect the ability to perform a certain job.

Part of the disability attorney's job at a hearing is to be sure each job is described accurately, so that it is given the proper SVP classification. Sometimes a small detail left out of a job description can change the SVP dramatically and alter the course of the disability decision.