Free Online Courses & Certifications for Veterans and Military Spouses

Free or Low-Cost Online Courses for Military & Veterans

Are you looking to upskill or reskill to land the job you want? You’re in luck! Several companies offer free or low-cost certifications for veterans and military spouses. Certifications and courses can vary by organization, so we compiled a list for you. Online certifications available for veterans and military spouses include Six Sigma, project management, salesforce, and more.

Free Courses

Sigma Forces

Military-focus

Sigma Force’s certifications and education programs are globally accredited. Sigma Forces is a veteran/military spouse-owned business, giving them a unique understanding of the importance of upskilling and reskilling for the military community. Learn more here.

Courses offered by Sigma Force:

• • Marketing and Sales
  • Scrum
  • Lean Six Sigma
  • Six Sigma

SalesForce Military

Military-focus

SalesForce Military program offers free 100% remote Salesforce courses for military and military spouses. The program covers certification costs, can be completed in 6 months, and the opportunity to participate in a 12-week paid job training program is available to all who qualify. Learn more here.

Courses offered by Salesforce Military:

• • Salesforce Administrator
  • Salesforce Developer
  • Sales Cloud
  • Marketing Careers
  • Salesforce Architect
  • Business Analyst
  • Salesforce Consultant
  • Service Cloud
  • Salesforce Designer

Syracuse University Veterans Career Transition Program

Military-focus

Through Syracuse University’s Onward to Opportunity (O2O) program transitioning military members and military spouses can take free accredited courses. Learn more here.

Courses offered by Onward to Opportunity (O2O):

• • Customer Service
  • Information Technology
  • Entry Level IT Technician
  • Cyber Security
  • Cloud Services / Information Security
  • Business Management
  • Project Management
  • Six Sigma
  • Human Resources

FEMA Independent Study Program (FEMA ISP)

FEMA Independent Study Program (FEMA ISP) offers over 200 free self-paced courses. The courses are similar to military experience, making them a great fit for the military community and first responders. FEMA has its own professional certification. Learn more here.

Courses offered by FEMA ISP:

• • An Introduction to Hazardous Materials
  • Special Events Contingency Planning for Public Safety Agencies
  • Civil Rights and FEMA Disaster Assistance
  • Public Information Officer Awareness
  • Introduction to Emergency Management for Higher Education
  • And More

The USO Pathfinder Transition Program

Military-focus

The USO Pathfinder® Transition Program is available to active duty, reserve, national guard, and military spouses. The program offers 3 professional development courses in partnership with Microsoft. Learn more here.

Courses offered by USO:

• • Skillsoft
  • IBM SkillsBuild
  • Coursera

Career Forward by HOH

Military-focus

Career Forward is a career program offered by Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) for veterans. The program is designed to help veterans get certifications in as little as 6 months. Veterans can enroll in the self-paced Google Career Certificate program to help launch a new career. Learn more here.

Courses offered by Career Forward:

• • Data Analytics
  • IT Support
  • Project Management
  • User Experience (UX) Design

Free or Low-Cost Courses

Chartered Certified Project Manager Certifications (CCPMC)

CCPMC has developed the Military Governmental Educational Advanced Placement Exemptions program that allows for special military exemptions for the MPM and CIPM certifications. If military members meet the eligibility requirements for the two courses, they would be exempt from the training or accredited college degree requirements, fees may apply. CCPMC also offers over 100 certificate courses. Learn more here.

• • Courses offered by CCPMC:
  • MPM Master Project Manage
  • CPM Chartered Process Manager
  • CIPM Certified International Project Manager
  • Engineering Certifications
  • CSSA Certified – Six Sigma Analysis
  • OSHA Safety Credentials
  • And more

Coursera

Courses offered by Coursera:

• • Data Science
  • Health
  • Arts and Humanities
  • Information Technology
  • Business
  • Social Sciences
  • Physical Science and Engineering
  • Math and Logic

Alison

Alison offers over 4,000 accredited online courses. The courses are free to take and self-paced. There is no cost to take the classes, however, users will incur a cost to obtain a diploma or certificate. Learn more here.

Courses offered by Alison:

• • IT
  • Health
  • Language
  • Business
  • Management
  • Personal Development
  • Sales & Marketing
  • Engineering & Construction
  • Teaching & Academics
  • English

Skill Storm – Military Focus

Skill Storm works with transitioning service members, veterans, and military spouses to develop their technology career goals. Skill Storm courses are approved for VA funding and offer scholarships for military spouses. Learn more here.

Courses offered by Skill Storm:

• • Introduction to Coding
  • Objected-Oriented Programming
  • Programming in JAVA
  • Data Structures
  • Relational Database and SQL
  • Introduction to Pega
  • Introduction to AWS
  • Full Stack Java Development
  • Introduction to Salesforce

Added Benefit

Not only are you getting a leg up on the competition by upskilling/reskilling for free or low-cost and advancing your career by obtaining certifications, but many of the organizations listed above have employment assistance programs specifically for the military community. Career services include interview prep, resume building, work programs, personality tests, career guides, and more.

 

RELATED:

• Free Six Sigma Courses for Veterans & Military Spouses
• List of Companies that Hire Veterans & Transitioning Service Members
• SkillBridge Upcoming Events [updated]