Scuba Diving Certification

Learning how to scuba dive is your ticket to the ultimate underwater adventure. The scuba certification that you earn is internationally recognized, never expires, and allows you to rent or purchase your own diving equipment. You’ll soon discover, however, that there is no shortage of dive companies out there competing for your hard earned dollars.

It can be a daunting task trying to find one that has a proven track record of honesty, integrity, and reliability, while at the same time providing a positive certification experience for both you and your family. To help you comparison shop, I’ve compiled a list of questions any potential certification student needs to ask before getting certified. (There are a number of different scuba training organizations that a dive company can be affiliated with. This article deals primarily with certification courses sanctioned by PADI: Professional Association of Diving Instructors, the largest scuba training organization in the world).

How Long Does The Certification Course Take?
Scuba certification is performance based, meaning there is no set amount of hours required for completion. You move from one level to the next during the course at your own pace. You will find that most PADI certification courses advertised are based around an estimated 3 day time frame for completion. For the average person, however, this may not be enough time. 4 days for certification is a much more realistic goal.

How Much Does The Certification Course Cost?
Lowball prices are designed for 2 reasons.... to attract your attention, and to get you in the door. The hidden charges for the course, such as books and equipment rental, are conveniently never advertised. Look for an all inclusive certification course experience. Remember, in the end, you always get what you pay for.

Ask For References
Always ask for phone or E-mail references from the most recent certification students who have just completed the course. Don’t settle for written quotes that are years old and taken from some database of generic customer comments. If a lame excuse or noncommittal answer is given, take your business elsewhere. A quality dive operation that has nothing to hide will be happy to provide such references.

Who Is The Instructor?
Good instructors, who have an extensive resume of experience teaching scuba certification courses, are extremely hard to find. Dive shops have a notoriously high turnover ratio of scuba instructors to staff. Many of the ones who are there are recent hires, and have very little real world experience. They also work long hours for very little money, generally getting paid by the activity, not by the hour. Insist on someone who has certified at least 25 people, and has been teaching a minimum of one year.

More information on certification for scuba diving can be found at Scuba Gods