From Denied to Rated

Who this course is for

• You are a veteran or service member getting ready to file, or you were denied or rated lower than you expected
• You are a spouse or family member helping a veteran get organized
• You want a plain language roadmap, not a shortcut

What you will be able to do

• Know the seven rules that decide most claims
• Protect your filing and effective date windows
• Read a decision letter and find what was missing
• Organize medical records by condition and write stronger lay and buddy statements
• Prepare truthfully for a C&P exam and understand secondary, presumptive, and PACT Act pathways
• Use AI to organize your own facts without inventing evidence

Syllabus

4 modules · 9 lessons · each lesson includes an exercise, a reflection, and a worksheet

Module 1: Start Here

• Lesson 1: Seven rules that decide most claims (free preview) Free preview
• Lesson 2: Still in uniform: build your claim before you separate
• Lesson 3: The day after service: timing, effective dates, and your first claim

Module 2: Read the Decision

• Lesson 4: Know what you already won and what VA left behind, and why denied does not mean dead

Module 3: Build the Evidence

• Lesson 5: Diagnosis, nexus, and impact, and your medical records
• Lesson 6: Lay statements and AI: telling the story the record cannot
• Lesson 7: C&P exams and the power of functional impact

Module 4: The Bigger Picture

• Lesson 8: Secondary claims, mental health claims, and PACT Act and presumptive claims
• Lesson 9: After the decision: P&T, TDIU, SMC, and your first 90 days roadmap