rstevens@aquaticXtremes.com

STOP! Before signing up for any Scuba Diving Lessons, Read This First!

The following information was written by Scuba Diving Instructors for new students and divers.

Scuba Diving is a great sport, full of excitement that will always make you come back for more. If you are looking into taking Scuba Diving Lessons, please be sure to read the following information for your protection and general overall wellbeing.

The first thing you need to know as a new student is that although you may have been diving before, Scuba Diving is not a self-taught course. There is information and skills that you will need to know that only the course Instructor will be able to teach you the correct and incorrect ways of doing them. With that said, a certification is recommended. There are only a few certifying agencies that can issue Scuba Diving Certifications. Think of it as a drivers liscense. You get your liscence from Florida, but you can legally drive in any state you choose. When you are scuba certified through one agency, you may shop at any dive shop and dive with any charter. This is a regularly misunderstood concept with many new divers.

What is the difference in the agencies?

The main certifying agencies are Scuba Schools International (SSI), Professional Association of Dive Instructors (PADI), National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI) and YMCA Scuba. When you call or enter a dive shop requesting information, that particular dive shop will be affiliated with a certifying agency. You do not get to choose the agency you would like to go with. That being said, the instructors from those dive shops are also certified Instructors through that particular agency.

Each agency carries its own curriculum with videos and books, its own set of scuba diving standards to be taught, rules and regulations, and a few other minor details. With that said, although they may be different, they all answer to the same governing body that oversees all of them and all standards taught. That major difference in the agencies is how the local dive shops run their personal businesses.

Make sure you…

Get all of your book work and videos prior to class starting. Come in prepared and ready to go. You will be learning a lot of new things in a short amount of time, depending on the length of your class.

Purchase your own personal Mask, Fins, Boots/socks, Snorkel, Weights and weight belt, wet suit, and Buoyancy Compensator (BC). Although most dive shops do not require you to purchase a BC or wet suit before the start of class, these are two items you do not want to rent. The BC needs to be form fitting just for you, and you should be comfortable in it at all times and know where everything is and how it works. You just can't do that in a rental. As for your wet suits, all we can say is a dive can last a long time and under that much pressure, things will happen in that suit you don't want to know about. The other items, mask, fins snorkel and weights, are required by most dive shops before the start of your class.

Ask about your Instructor. The length of time they have been an instructor isnt as important as how many dives they have done or how many classes they have taught. SSI so far is the only Certifying agency with a requirement that all their Instructors must have a minimum of 125 logged dives before entering their Instructor training course. The other agencies have a series of courses that must be taken before becoming an instructor, however, no minimum number of dives are required.

Tell your Instructor your feelings on the water and any apprehensions you may have about diving.

Make sure you DON'T…

Come in to your class feeling like you already know everything. Even if you have gone diving before, there is still a lot to learn. Even after you have finished your entry level Open Water Certification, there is still a lot to learn!

Miss any classes or scheduled dives. Pick a class that you know will work all the way through. If you cant make a class or a dive, find one that will work. You may have to wait a few days longer, but you will be better off in the long run.

Loose affiliation with your local dive shop. Dive shops get to know you as you get to know them. The best thing you can do is get put on the mailing list once you are certified and get connected with what is going on.

How much should this cost?

The cost of scuba diving lessons vary depending on location, time of year, and what mask, fins, and snorkel you purchase, but one general consideration to live by is this, be sure to get a total of what it will cost you before committing to anything. All dive shops have run enough classes to know what it is going to cost you up front, or at least get you within a few dollars of what it will cost. If possible, get an all inclusive price. Most dive shops will charge you one price and they will pay for everything as they go. Some shops even go one step further and sell their snorkeling equipment and dive classes together in one large package price.

Here is a list of what a class may cost an individual:

Class: (includes all books, videos, log book, open water dives, and certification card processing fees) $300-400

Scuba Quality mask: $50-80

Snorkel: $10-40

Fins: $50-130

Booties: $20-40

Weights/Belt: $60-80 depending on how much weight you will use

Exposure suit: $100-200

Buoyancy Compensator: depends greatly on the style and manufacturer of the BC. $250-500

What does the class consist of?

Most local dive shops want your business and will find scuba diving lessons to work with your schedule. If you join a class that has already been scheduled, be sure you know how many classroom sessions you will be having and how many pool sessions also. Ask for what parts of the books you will be going over and on which days so you can come to class prepared. Ask where the open water check out dives will be held. If your area doesn't have a whole lot of diving, you may have to plan on a weekend trip for your class. Even if you do have a body of water near by, they may not use that for their check out dives. For example, some Instructors will not take beginning divers in the salt water or low visibility conditions, but rather drive to fresh, clear water to teach them their skills.

What's next?

After you have completed your Entry Level ‘Open Water Diver' certification, the learning has only begun. From here you will move on to Specialty courses to hone in on your skills as a Scuba Diver that your Open Water Course just touched on, such as Navigation, Deep Diving, Equipment Repair, Night Diving, Boat Diving, and others. The two that are highly suggested are your Nitrox and Stress and Rescue Courses. Nitrox will allow you to breath on Enriched Air that has a higher percentage of Oxygen. A much safer gas when doing dives at depth of less then 100 feet because it lessens the amount of Nitrogen entering your blood stream and can in turn give longer bottom times. Stress and Rescue offers you the ability to be able spot stressfulness in other divers as well as yourself, in turn turning you into a much more relaxed and confident diver.

From these scuba diving lessons you can move your way up the ladder to eventually being a Professional diver by completing your Dive Master Certification and eventually your Instructor, if that is the path you would like to takess.