CHIPS Articles: Navy COOL Expands Funding Eligibility for E-6 and Above

The waiver now allows E-6 Sailors and senior enlisted who have completed 19 years of service and will end their careers at the 20-year mark to use Navy COOL's services, including possible funding, to earn civilian credentials. These Sailors must be able to complete the requirements no less than 60 calendar days prior to their separation.

This change replaces the OPNAVINST 1540.56A requirement that personnel who had less than one year remaining in service must have already completed 20 years of service to receive funding from Navy COOL.

"No matter where you are in your career, you may be able to benefit from getting a credential that is related to your training and experience in the Navy," said Michael Talley, Navy COOL's assistant program director. "While the Navy's Credentialing Program highly recommends that Sailors get credentialed as early as possible in their career, in reality this doesn't always happen. For this reason the Navy has built in several waivers to the time-in-service requirement."

Navy COOL also offers waivers for Sailors who are being discharged due to combat-related injuries and Sailors who are approaching the end of their enlistment and are waiting for a reenlistment or extension to go through.

All waivers must be approved by Naval Education and Training Command through the Navy Credentials Program Office.

According to Talley, credentialing is beneficial to a Sailor's career because it is part of the Sailor's Learning and Development Roadmap (LaDR). He stated that credentialing is included in the LaDR, because it can contribute to military career development, self-development requirements and performance evaluations.

He went on to say that, in the civilian sector, credentialed service members demonstrate to prospective employers that their skills are on par with their civilian peers for as many years as the credential has been maintained.

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.