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Jerzi

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Location
Orlando, FL
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I was talking with a DiveMaster/trainer about advancing my dive experience and he said after AOW the best route to take would be PADI for Divemaster as most resorts and destinations are mostly PADI. He also mentioned that they offer business courses and if looking for a career in diving that would probably be the most beneficial.

I'm also planning on going to commercial dive school in the near future and want to have possibilities of employment in both fields if one slows down.

The LDS I'm at now trains in SSI,PADI,NAUI for different specialties because they feel certain courses by these organizations offer a more in depth course.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks, Jerzi
 
If you browse through SB threads you will find many that discuss the pursuit of a career as a dive pro. They should help you get the big picture, both in terms of making a living as a dive professional and selecting the proper training agency(ies).

Seeing that - like myself - you are a new diver, I would recommend that you first concentrate on building solid diving skills and becoming a good diver, and then think about going pro. There are ways to get all the required certs in the space of a few months, but awareness and skill need time, practice and commitment to be mastered.

Best of luck in your endeavors and safe dives!
 
Someone posted (over a year ago?) with a message something like "don't become a divemaster." I can't find that thread. However, that OP author felt that the costs of maintaining accreditation and insurance were not explained to her (?) and that (for her) the expense was not worth it. I believe that she felt that the minimum she would need to make any money was to be an instructor at a resort.

That is one person's opinion and may not be relevant to you and your aspirations.

Enjoy diving!
 
To be a valuable/employable "dive professional" in the recreational end you really need to be an instructor. DM is a great way to work with students and certified divers in exchange for free fills, gear discounts, training etc. But if you really want to earn money, you need to be an instructor.

BTW - do you know the difference between a scuba instructor and a large pizza?

A large pizza can feed a family of four...

:shocked2:
 
what do you want to do?

If you want to become a pro, then DM is in line. You'll have to buy insurance every year & it changes things.

If you want to stay strictly recreational, then becoming a DM is prolly not the right path.
 
BTW - do you know the difference between a scuba instructor and a large pizza?

A large pizza can feed a family of four...

:shocked2:

LMAOOOOOOOOO!!

:rofl3::rofl3::rofl3::rofl3::rofl3::rofl3::rofl3:

The funniest thing I have read all night!!!
 
To be a valuable/employable "dive professional" in the recreational end you really need to be an instructor. DM is a great way to work with students and certified divers in exchange for free fills, gear discounts, training etc. But if you really want to earn money, you need to be an instructor.

BTW - do you know the difference between a scuba instructor and a large pizza?

A large pizza can feed a family of four...

:shocked2:

:rofl3: Good thing I'm single with no kids.
 
what do you want to do?

If you want to become a pro, then DM is in line. You'll have to buy insurance every year & it changes things.

If you want to stay strictly recreational, then becoming a DM is prolly not the right path.

Dive as much as possible
Travel the world
Gas Blending
Tech Diving
Photography
Work on a boat/Live aboard
Help out with people who want to dive or learn
Work in a LDS fiiling tanks/ servicing equipment etc.
Open my own shop one day down the road.
 
FWIW, I would not go pro if I had it to do again. I am a DM, and really the only thing that gets me is air fills, tips, and the obligation to guide a bunch of people who are sometimes very bad at diving and very demanding, which makes me an underwater babysitter/steward. I have a graduate degree in education, so I am pretty well versed in the various methodologies of didactic instruction, supervision, and blah blah blah. I feel like my background in education adds a lot of value to new divers as I know how to teach for a living. However, that value does not typically get returned to me. It costs me about 125 bucks a year to keep my DM card active, plus another 300 bucks a year for insurance. If you add up all the tips that you make assuming that you lead a full six passenger boat EVERY weekend (which won't happen) and factor that every diver will tip you twenty bucks (which they won't), then you can feasibly (though not likely) make 120 bucks per weekend, for a total of 480 bucks a month. Multiplying that by 12 gets you 5,760 dollars per year, which unless you live in the PI is not enough with which to sustain yourself. Keep in mind that you are going to have to buy dive gear throughout the year, which even at keyman prices pretty much takes up all the money you just made from tips once you subtract insurance and dues to PADI. I am not an instructor, but this is the reality of being a DM in the southeastern United States. We have it better than a lot of people.

Making a living diving is a nice thought, but unless you want to live like a poor person, be single forever, or live in a foreign country, you are better off getting a CCNA, welding certification, your EMT-B, or some industry certification in your field for a real job. Make good money at your day job, and dive for fun and as a hobby. There's no law that says you cannot help out a shop or club as a DM or instructor in your off time. I do that, I just do not depend on it for money to eat (which is good, because I would not be eating very much if I did). You will also find that you are a lot nicer to people on a dive boat when you are there because it if fun, not because it is paying to keep your electricity on in your 400 square foot apartment.

Making money as a reg tech and retail guy isn't too terrible, I've have done it a bit and I have a few friends who still do it. You will make about 25,000 thousand dollars per year if you have a great job in retail diving, which is not enough to sustain you. You will also need to work retail, which for many of us is a fate worse than death. If I worked at another dive shop it would only be part time for beer money. Besides, the more time you spend at a dive shop, the more crap you buy and the smaller your already small paycheck becomes.


This is what you listed:

Dive as much as possible
Travel the world
Gas Blending
Tech Diving
Photography
Work on a boat/Live aboard
Help out with people who want to dive or learn
Work in a LDS fiiling tanks/ servicing equipment etc. (Note that tank monkies typically do not get paid, but techs do)
Open my own shop one day down the road.

Of the above, the following do not pay you any money unless you are certified to teach them:

Travel the world
Gas Blending
Tech Diving
Photography
Help out with people who want to dive or learn

Of the above, the following will pay you a substandard living as a DM or OWSI:

Dive as much as possible
Work on a boat/Live aboard
Work in a LDS fiiling tanks/ servicing equipment etc.
Open my own shop one day down the road.

YMMV. If you really want to do it that bad, you will not listen anyway. I didn't, but now I have a fancy wallet full of plastic cards and a job that doesn't involve diving for a living :wink:
 
Last edited:
YMMV. If you really want to do it that bad, you will not listen anyway. I didn't, but now I have a fancy wallet full of plastic cards and a job that doesn't involve diving for a living :wink:

Thank You.

That post probably contained the most valuable information I have received yet.

I want to do it bad, but I want to be realistic about it and that's why I'm here gaining advice from people who have already traveled this route. I'm now thinking EMT is a solid idea while still being able to continue with my plans.

Thanks again Slonda,
Jerzi
 
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