People say that for success to be achieved: “you have to dress for the job you want, not the job you have.”
And so, if it were not for the embarrassment, you would wear scuba gear to the office.
If you keep wondering how to become a Scuba Instructor, let us tell you that every adventure begins with a first step and by reading this article, you have just taken it. It is time to “Go Pro.”
How to Become a Scuba Instructor / Steps to Becoming a Scuba Instructor
1.1. Scuba instructor requirements
1.2. How Long Does It Take to Become a Scuba Instructor
1.3. How Much Does It Cost to Become a Dive Instructor
2. Becoming A Scuba Instructor
2.2. Scuba Instructor Examination
The first step to becoming a Scuba Dive Instructor is choosing the right IDC (Instructor Development Course).
Learning a series of specific skills is an essential step to becoming a Diving Instructor.
For this purpose, there are different prestigious organizations with developed systems to help you achieve this goal. SDI, ACUC, NAUI, IDEA, CMAS with a strong presence in Europe and, of course, PADI.
Through Dressel Divers, you can become an SDI instructor and a PADI instructor, expanding the possibilities of being hired in the world.
Doing your IDC through Dressel Divers, you will be entrusting your training to one of the most important diving chains in the Caribbean, operating since 1993. In addition, the expertise of the Course Directors and the work practices in Dressel Divers really make a difference.
The methodology goal is to develop good diving instructors and prepare them to face the issues in their working lives as Scuba Instructors, not only in passing the exam.
For these reasons, this article is focused on knowing how to become a Scuba Diving Instructor.
The main requirements to become a scuba instructor are age, health and experience.
In other words, whoever wants to become a Dive Instructor must:
Take note of the certifications you will need:
If you have done only a few dives and don’t have all these certifications yet… Keep calm! Because you can opt for Dressel Divers PREMIUM IDC packages. This brings us to the next point to consider.
It depends on your certification level and the time you need to complete all the requirements. Nonetheless, the scuba Instructor Course takes between 2 and 3 weeks.
Program To Become a Scuba Diving Instructor
Keep in mind that, during the instructor training, you will not have a theoretical part of diving. You already got it in your Dive Master course. What you will learn is how to teach all this previously acquired knowledge.
This depends on whether you take your course as a professional, during an internship, or as a student.
It also depends on your previous scuba level.
In Dressel Divers, through an internship, you can do your SDI Instructor Course for free with a just about guaranteed job possibility waiting for you upon graduation. And, if you take up instructor employment for a whole year, after that time, you will be offered a PADI Scuba Instructor certification through a free PADI crossover program as bonification.
The IDC is divided into two parts, the Assistant Instructor (AI) course and the Open Water Scuba Instructor (OWSI) course. Also, we must add the Emergency First Responder Instructor (EFRI) course. So, you can become a Dive Instructor in 16 days.
In the practical classes, you will learn to explain the theory of diving to students in knowledge presentations.
During the presentations in confined water and open water, you will do skill circuits where you will have to demonstrate your abilities to recognize the learning difficulties of your students and correct them.
The next step will be to take the Instructor Exam (IE).
When the time to take the IE comes, if you choose to become an SDI Scuba Instructor, our course certifier will examine you.
With PADI there is a meeting of candidates from the different PADI centers in an area and a PADI examiner. The exam is two days long and has 5 sections with theoretical tests and practical demonstrations. You must pass all of them to become a Scuba Instructor. Let’s see them!
Section 1: Theoretical exams.
Physics, Physiology, Equipment, Environmental conditions, and Tables. Each exam has 12 questions. You will only get the passing score if you can correctly answer 80% of them.
Standards. This is an exam with 50 questions and you will have an hour and a half to answer them. During this exam, you will be able to consult your book to obtain the minimum qualification to pass, 80% of correct answers.
Section 2: Theoretical presentation.
The PADI examiner will have an evaluation sheet with the skills an instructor must demonstrate in his or her presentations (Topic Knowledge, oral fluency, structure, clarity of the explanation, etc.) The maximum score you can get in this section is 5. You need a score of 3.5 points to pass the exam. Watch out! Although in the IE you will only do 1 theoretical presentation, during your IDC you will have to pass a minimum of 3 theoretical presentations, although the “Course Directors” usually insist on 4 or 5, so you can practice.
Section 3: Presentation in confined waters.
In this exam you will demonstrate your skills during 5 diving exercises. These will be assigned to you by the PADI examiner. In addition, you must submit a confined water class. The minimum grade to pass the exam is 3.4 points out of 5.
Section 4: Presentation in open water.
You will pass if your examiner gives you 3.4 points out of 5 for your class presentation and the exercises assigned to you.
Section 5: Rescue.
Finally, if you successfully perform the rescue of an unconscious diver on the surface, your IE will be finished and you will be a Scuba Instructor.
However, if you fail to overcome any of the sections, which is extremely unlikely, rest easy! SDI & PADI allows you to retake the suspended exam sections within a maximum period of one year. In addition, you will only pay the fees for the failed parts and not the full exam.
If you become a Diving Instructor with Dressel Divers, you will have a close to certain job offer waiting for you with a standard instructor’s salary. You will be able to forget about writing your CV. This way, you will have the opportunity to immediately build the experience to put on your future CV.
If you have not chosen Dressel Divers, our CV writing tips are:
Again, the answer is it depends on:
If you want to know how much you will earn at Dressel Divers as a Scuba Instructor, contact us.
Would you like to receive more info on how to become a scuba instructor? Then, drop us a line and we will provide you with the info you need.
