Jake Mariani

Biography

Jake Mariani joined KWVRS in February 2026 as a vocational rehabilitation expert. He is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor and Certified Vocational Evaluator providing forensic vocational analysis in litigated disability matters, including transferable skills analysis for acquired physical, sensory, cognitive, and psychological disabilities; labor market surveys establishing return-to-work options; and evidentiary support for expert reports subject to adversarial challenge. His analyses draw on the Occupational Requirements Survey, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, the McCroskey Transferable Skills Analysis, the Economic Research Institute, and TalentNeuron. His clinical and program experience preceded his time at the firm. As Vocational Rehabilitation Supervisor at VISIONS Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired he designed and launched a diagnostic vocational evaluation program and a 60-day residential work readiness program, facilitated a 15-week residential Pre-Employment Transition Services program for transition-age youth with multiple disabilities, supervised vocational rehabilitation assistants, and established a graduate internship partnership with Rutgers University. He also serves as a Research Assistant with the Rutgers Institute for Inpatient Psychiatric Rehabilitation, where his work in collaboration with the New Jersey Department of Health includes psychometric and inter-rater reliability analysis of the Competency Restoration Fidelity Scale for a national state hospital initiative, evaluation planning, IRB and Data Use Agreement development, and federal grant writing; he held the same role in the Rutgers Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions. He holds a Master of Science in Rehabilitation Counseling (Clinical Mental Health Track) and is a doctoral candidate in Psychiatric Rehabilitation (Research Track) at Rutgers with completion anticipated in 2028. He is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, Certified Vocational Evaluator, National Certified Counselor, and New Jersey Licensed Associate Counselor. He is a co-author of peer-reviewed articles in the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, Rehabilitation Research, Policy, and Education, and the Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, with further manuscripts under review, and has presented at the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies Annual Meeting and the Rutgers School of Health Professions Research and Scholarship Symposium. He is a student member of the American Board of Vocational Experts and a member of the International Association of Rehabilitation Professionals, the American Counseling Association, and the New Jersey Counseling Association, and has served on the Program Advisory Committee of the Rutgers Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation and Counseling Professions since 2020. He has served as a teaching assistant for Statistics and Research Methods and the Seminar in Psychiatric Rehabilitation in the Rutgers graduate program in rehabilitation counseling.

Areas of Expertise

• Vocational Evaluation
• Earning Capacity Analysis
• Transferable Skills Analysis
• Labor Market Research
• Research
• Expert Testimony

Areas of Practice

Jake works in these KWVRS service lines.

Education

• Ph.D., Psychiatric Rehabilitation (Research Track), in progress, anticipated 2028, Rutgers University
• M.S., Rehabilitation Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Track, Rutgers University (2021)

Publications

• Roads to self-care: Teaching vs. self-guided - Journal of Creativity in Mental Health (in press) (2026)
• The role of college self-efficacy and the development of professional identity: Preparing psychiatric rehabilitation practitioners - Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal (advance online publication) (2025)
• Mediating role of ableist microaggression impact between self-esteem and perceived stress in disabled adults - Rehabilitation Research, Policy, and Education, 39(1) (2025)
• Focus groups on employment related soft skills for transition age youth with disabilities - Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 59(2) (2023)
• Service needs assessment of employment-related soft skills for transition age youth with disabilities - Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 56(1) (2022)