Join DefendX Academy
Tell us where you are in your service and where you want to end up. We will send back a certification pathway, not a brochure.
Membership application
Your details
Leave blank if you are not separating. This drives how we sequence your certifications.
This prototype form does not process payment. In the live build, paid tiers continue to a secure checkout.
What happens next
Three steps, no sales call
1. We read it
A person reviews your status, code and timeline. Usually within one business day.
2. You get a pathway
A specific certification sequence, the funding that applies to you, and where to sit the exam.
3. You start
Study group access, discount codes and your referral link land in your account.
Applying for an organisation? Use the contact form instead and tell us your seat count. We will quote and set up billing directly.
Before you join
No. DefendX Academy is built around the military community, but membership is open to active duty, National Guard and Reserve members, veterans, military spouses and dependants, and civilians working toward the same certifications.
No, and no reputable academy does. Certifications are issued by the vendors and bodies that own them — CompTIA, ISC2, ISACA, Cisco, GIAC, EC-Council and others. DefendX helps you choose the right one, prepare for it, find funding, and book the exam.
In many cases, yes. VA benefits can reimburse approved certification test fees, and several of the training providers we list are approved for VA education benefits or COOL funding. Bring us your situation on the contact form and we will point you to the right route.
It depends on your clearance, your current role and the job you are targeting. For most people leaving a technical MOS or AFSC, the sequence is CompTIA A+ or Network+, then Security+, then a specialisation. Our IT certifications page lays out the full sequence.
DoD 8570.01-M set the baseline certification requirements for anyone with privileged access to DoD systems. It is being superseded by Directive 8140 and the qualification framework in Manual 8140.03, which moves from broad categories to specific work roles. Both are in use during the transition, so we publish the matrix for each.