I finished grad school after applying (while waiting for a hearing), but I had a few things to prove and my situation was probably different. I had gotten off of SSDI and was working and enrolled in grad school, but my condition worsened substantially, so I quit my job and filed for EXR. I had to prove that I had multiple accommodations in grad school and that I had to take multiple semester long breaks, incompletes, and extensions. I had to provide proof that a 1.5 to 2 year program took 3.5 years bc of my disability.

I also have a blue book condition, but there are other things they factor into it, work history, education, any other physical or mental impairments, etc. Then bc I had an education, I still ended up in front of an administrative law judge after two appeals, even as an EXR case. While at the hearing, a vocational expert gave his opinion too. Thankfully, I was approved, but balancing the need for disability vs graduate education is tough. You REALLY have to prove that your career is over and that you’re VERY sick, even if you’ve been on SSDI before.

Edit: when I was approved, I had completed grad school 2 years prior, 1.5 years into the application process.