The longer I can spend there the better! I like hands on learning. I have read that it can be tough to make it in the diving world but I would love to try and make it happen. Right now I am just looking for somewhere to start. I would love for that to be in a tropical place where I could spend months learning. I would like to eventually learn specialty dives and boat handling as well. I know it sounds crazy coming from someone who has only been diving once, in a pool, but that is just how I am. I am determined & passionately curious. :blinking:
PS- Thank you for the referrals!
Kalin,
Please don't take this as offensive..it is something you should consider due to the statistics of new divers and skills.
Most people can learn to be a mediocre diver...think of this as a negative look at average in skills.
There are also many people who will never be good divers, no matter what....they may NEVER gain the peripheral awareness or situational awareness that some people are just not wired for.
And there are people who will never be even poor divers....people that may love the ocean and marine life, but that could be called, "Never-Evers"...much like the people on Ski slopes that cant progress beyond the bunny slope.
Until you get certified, you have no real idea if you will be good, average, or terrible. It is NOT true that any diver can be trained to become a great diver....
And if you end up with a poor or average instructor, it is a crap shoot to imagine what kind of a diver you would become from this.
So my suggestion is to use Scubaboard, to find THE BEST dive instructor you can possibly find, to get your OW cert. And this instructor will hopefully be able to give you a much better idea about whether you should pursue a career in diving.
I will say this again...there are many people on the planet that love marine life, but that tried to become a diver, and failed badly at it.
Your best hope again, is to find a great instructor....someone in the top 5% of instructor skills. Off the chart good....Expect a "normal" instructor at just any shop, or at most tourist destinations, to be a serious threat to your future, if you really care about making it yourself as a dive professional.