A study was conducted to provide information on the job requirements for Minnesota coordinators of special needs, those people at the local school district level who are responsible for services to handicapped and/or disadvantaged students in vocational education. Information on the coordinator job came from three major sources: the state Plan for Vocational Education; a questionnaire survey of position and background, in which all 33 Minnesota coordinators of special needs participated; and the performance referents contained in 44 statements of required competencies as rated by job incumbents. State plan certification requirements were summarized as calling for a high degree of competence in special or vocational education, but allowing for exceptional instances in individuals who were qualified by some other route. Findings from the questionnaire sent to state coordinators were divided into three areas (sample findings are in parentheses): organizational variables (most of the coordinators were employed in Area Vocational-Technical Institutes); program variables (most programs were not restricted to a single age range); and incumbent variables (experiential backgrounds of incumbents were heterogeneous within education). A job description uas derived from rated competency statements and included the supervision and evaluation of the performance of staff personnel. (Appended are a summary of the study conducted to investigate competencies perceived by incumbents to be required by the job and a sample copy of the survey questionnaire sent to the 33 Minnesota coordinators. (SBH)