Navy COOL Announces Expanded Opportunities for Funding of Credentials

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PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- Navy Credentialing Opportunities On-Line (COOL) announced expanded credentialing opportunities for active and Reserve enlisted Sailors, May 1.

A new policy update now provides a wider array of opportunities for Sailors to earn civilian certifications and licenses (credentials) funded through Navy COOL. Expanded opportunities for funding of credentials now include:

* Sailors who have cross-rated remain eligible for credentials mapped to their prior rating.
* Navy Reserve Sailors currently working in a civilian occupation to which the credential is mapped for credentials outside of their specific rating, and the credential has relevance or applicability to the current or future needs of the command or the Navy. 
* Sailors who have documented completion of on or off-duty training or course that fully prepares the Sailor for an associated industry certification or state license (e.g., working on a degree in biotechnology and passed a semester course on instructional design and facilitation relates to CompTIA certified technical trainer certification; command-sponsored course on emergency medical technician (EMT) relates to EMT basic certification; command provided training on welding relates to certified welder certification; and/or attended a seminar, webinar or boot camp on Microsoft Word relates to Microsoft Office Specialist certification).

"Widening the aperture of credentialing opportunities provides Sailors greater flexibility in managing their military careers," said Jim Johnson, the Navy's voluntary education service chief. "In the future, the marketplace detailing environment will draw on a more holistic set of each Sailor's information, including credentials, to match them with possible assignments, a key element of the Sailor 2025 Rating Modernization initiative. These changes further align with education trends toward 'stackable' credentials, which can be a blend of academics, technical training, apprenticeships, certifications and licenses."

These expanded opportunities add on to the already available credentialing opportunities based on rating, collateral duty, out-of-rating assignment, or current work in a position to which the credential is mapped. Sailors may also be funded for credentials based on an earned academic degree or Service Members Opportunity Colleges (SOC) Career and Technical Education (CTE) certificate, which can be directly associated to an industry certification or state license.

Navy COOL provides information about licenses and certifications applicable to all Navy occupations, offering resources and funding to help Sailors gain appropriate civilian desired, and in many cases required, credentials.

For more information about Navy COOL, visit http://www.cool.navy.mil/ or call (850) 452-6683.

Navy COOL is located with the Center for Information Warfare Training, which delivers trained information warfare professionals to the Navy and joint services, enabling optimal performance of information warfare across the full spectrum of military operations.