Scared Silly
Contributor
I seriously have to laugh at the variety of responses to this simple question. You are an amazing group of diversified people!
Is that a polite way of saying you think we are all narked???
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I seriously have to laugh at the variety of responses to this simple question. You are an amazing group of diversified people!
It is what you should expect.I seriously have to laugh at the variety of responses to this simple question. You are an amazing group of diversified people!
After reading every single response to date I have decided to answer either AOW or SOLO. Either answer would likely allow me to do the dive I want without the potential negative possibilities so many of you have highlighted.
Thank you all.
Not at all. I was very serious. A lot of unexpected answers.Is that a polite way of saying you think we are all narked???
You hit the nail on the head.It is what you should expect.
We are all individual and have our own opinion.
Two certifications required for PADI master diver are AOW and Rescue; those are the ones that carry more weight IMO than the 5 specialties and a dive op should know that.So after reading your many varied responses (thank you), it appears that there is no consensus about what to say when asked "what is your highest certification level".
I apologize for not realizing that many people reading my original post are super qualified. I should have been more specific and asked for "relative" rankings of certification for recreational divers (of which I am one).
PADI says that "Master Scuba Diver Is the Highest Recreational Scuba Diving Certification Level" but it seems to me that the Master Scuba diver certification can be achieved with so many low level activities such as Boat Diver, Fish Identification, etc. as to make that a non contender for highest certification level. A dive operator would then have to ask what courses you did to qualify for Master Diver.
I am in no way trying to denigrate the Master Diver certificat. Just saying that there are many paths to earning that certificate that dive operators would have to ask additional questions.
Yes. I don't think any agency actually ranks specialties, or other certs. other than the usual OW-AOW-Rescue and of course the numerous pro certs. So it is only opinion to say "Wreck is higher than Deep or Nitrox, etc.".It is what you should expect.
We are all individual and have our own opinion.
A few specialties take AOW and thus trump it in terms of certs.Yes. I don't think any agency actually ranks specialties, or other certs. other than the usual OW-AOW-Rescue and of course the numerous pro certs. So it is only opinion to say "Wreck is higher than Deep or Nitrox, etc.".
But all is good, we managed 9 pages.
I was just thinking about this too, SDI works also, SDI Advanced Diver or equivalent and minimum 100 dives. Still have to prove nitrox certification.A few specialties take AOW and thus trump it in terms of certs. The Padi prereqs are:
Nitrox prereq: OW
Rescue prereq: Adventure diver, EFR
Deep prereq: Adventure diver
Wreck prereq: Adventure diver
Master means having taken AOW, Rescue, 5 specialties and done 50 dives
Ice prereq: AOW
Cavern prereq: AOW
Self Reliant prereq: AOW, 100 dives
Right, narrows it a bit. But does Ice, Cavarn, Self R trump MSD? Ice & Cavern would seem not to trump much unless you're doing those type of dives.A few specialties take AOW and thus trump it in terms of certs.
The Padi prereqs are:
Nitrox: OW
Rescue: Adventure diver, EFR
Wreck: Adventure diver
Deep: Adventure diver
Padi Master is a consolidation card not a class. It means you hold AOW, Rescue, and 5 specialties and have done 50 dives.
Ice: AOW
Cavern: AOW
Self Reliant: AOW, 100 dives
Solo and rescue are both about anticipation, prevention, and recovery from incidents. Rescue is with others. Solo is with no one else there to help. So, to me, Solo covers more than Rescue, for the diver themself. Thus Solo trumps Padi MSD. Not that you should not take Rescue, but for the diver themself Solo covers more.But does Ice, Cavarn, Self R trump MSD?