Best Time to go AOW

[ChameleonAmy]

I was just OW certified in December and have a total of 7 dives so far. I'm planning a trip to the Keys next month, and am considering doing my AOW while there. ....I'm debating with myself a bit, because I can't decide whether it would be most advantageous to do my AOW now or wait a few more dives to get some added skills and comfort in the water. I like the idea of doing AOW now, because I think it would help me develop some navigation skills and it would give me a chance to learn more from "the pro's" before setting out on my own. ....But, I don't want to waste my $$ if I'd benefit more from AOW by taking it later. Suggestions?

Also, what should I expect from an AOW class? Some AOW students went on my cert trip, and the AOW cert seemed to be only a formality....The AOW students had little to no instruction, and were simply told to do a navigation dive and a deep dive (70ft, which us OW students did also). If that's all there is to most AOW certs, I'm not even sure it's worth it!

 

[HowardE]

Amy... You can get what YOU want from AOW... If you press for instruction, you SHOULD get it... However, it depends on the instructor... I would call the shop where you intend on doing the AOW, and talk to the instructor, to see what you're in for. If it doesn't sound like enough learning, then call someone else. If you seek nothing, then you can get nothing but a card. If you want instruction, and support, then ask for it up front, and see what they're offering you.

I think you should probably have a few more dives under your belt, before you go for the AOW, but that's just my opinion.

If you're doing it with PADI, then the only REQUIRED dives are deep and navigation... The rest is up to you. I would pick up the book first, and browse the sections, and pick what you want.

Good luck.

 

[oly5050user]

I was just OW certified in December and have a total of 7 dives so far. I'm planning a trip to the Keys next month, and am considering doing my AOW while there. ....I'm debating with myself a bit, because I can't decide whether it would be most advantageous to do my AOW now or wait a few more dives to get some added skills and comfort in the water. I like the idea of doing AOW now, because I think it would help me develop some navigation skills and it would give me a chance to learn more from "the pro's" before setting out on my own. ....But, I don't want to waste my $$ if I'd benefit more from AOW by taking it later. Suggestions?

Also, what should I expect from an AOW class? Some AOW students went on my cert trip, and the AOW cert seemed to be only a formality....The AOW students had little to no instruction, and were simply told to do a navigation dive and a deep dive (70ft, which us OW students did also). If that's all there is to most AOW certs, I'm not even sure it's worth it!

Take the aow now..there is no reason not to.If you completed ow cert by HONESTLY meeting the required objectives you will have no problem with aow and will even benefit greatly from it..
do the core dives-deep and navigation..pick your electives with consideration as to your interests and geographic area..you get out of it as much as you put in,so if you want to learn from it take it seriously and make the needed effort to learn and perform the various skills,not just be in the water making bubbles..the added benefits of taking aow at this time is additional dives under supervision..Open your eyes to how things are done..Not just in the water but on the boat/beach..How the staff prepares for the dive,where their equipment is situated on their bodies,what equipment they use or do not use.Do buoyancy checks on surface..If you really pay attention to what is going on, and make use of it,even the small details,you can get a valuable experience in a short period of time..

 

[siebharinn]

There are some boats that won't let you on a dive without an AOW card (or a divemaster holding your hand), if the bottom is deeper than 60', for instance.

AOW is a good thing, I think. The point isn't to make you an expert diver, you need a lot of time in the water for that. But it does give you the opportunity to do some new things, to dive in some different conditions, and open the door to additional diving opportunities.

Whether or not it's a waste depends on how much diving you plan on doing. And, like any course, it depends a lot on who teaches it.

 

[vkalia]

What AOW isnt:
- something that provides more in the way of radically new dive skills
- make you an "advanced" diver

What AOW is:
- a way to continue building your confidence and dive skills
- a way to get introduced to different dive conditions.
- a way to speed up your learning curve early on

To me, the AOW course is a perfect extension of the OW course. I think it becomes a bit of a waste if done after you have 30-40 dives.

I find that people who do 9 dives on the trot with an instructor end up significantly better in the water than people who leave after just 4 dives... after 4 dives, the skills are only starting to become somewhat familiar; after 9 dives, the skills become a lot more firmly entrenched. Even those who are less natural in the water end up looking a lot better in the water.

And you learn more about gas planning, decompression theory, planning and leading dives, etc. So you do end up having a deeper knowledge of some of the theory taught in OW.

So yes, by all means go do the AOW course. It is a lot of fun.

If you are keen on diving, or for more experienced divers, the SSI Advanced Open Water course may be a better idea (despite the name, it isnt comparable to the PADI AOW) - it consists of 4 full specialties, and you get a lot more in-depth dive skills.

Cheers,
Vandit

 

[utnapistim]

From a point of view it is only a formality:
The AOW (i'm w/ PADI so I can't speak about others) is composed of five dives with a special focus for each one (navigation/buoyancy/deep etc.).

If you do some more dives before AOW you might discover it is not offering you much - I mean, for example, there might be little point in doing the deep dive of the AOW course when you allready have more than 3-4 done on your own.

In that case you might only do it for showing the C-card to some operators that require it - or not do it at all and present a logbook.

On the other hand, you could get a lot out of the course;

I chose to do the AOW dirrectly after OWD for more 'supervised' diving before going on my own.

I also needed some of the exercises (needed badly more buoyancy control for example)

It also helped build my confidence and I learned a lot (like how to use the rotating bezel on a compass and uw. search patterns) - I'm not sure I'd have learned these things in doing dives on my own.


Besides it's fun

 

[chip104]

wasup Amy,

AOW is what you make of it - I am drilling my instructor with questions while a lot of my friends just got it for the plastic. I agree with Howarde on the instructor.

Everyone learns at a different pace, but if you're comfortable in the water at this point, then sure, go ahead and do it right now. I have 73 dives and still haven't completed my training (doing my second set of dives this weekend, finally!). But if I had a choice, I would have done it right after BOW since I didn't find the BOW skills to be challenging and I felt confident enough to move on. On the other hand, I don't feel as if I'm losing anything from taking the AOW now rather than earlier (it was a money issue for me - I decided to spend on some equipment first).

All the best!



btw, I'm a fellow MNP researcher. I did the dumbest thing tonight by forgetting to turn the speed vac off before I went home so I had to rush back to the lab! (had the vac going since early morning and totally forgot about it. One of those days... )

 

[Joanne Hughes]

I am doing PADI OW at the moment, and would be interested in going on to AOW. Does it involve any classroom/self study work as does the OW course? I intent to do it almost straight after the OW. And roughly how much time would it take,I presume it is not as involved as the OW, just building on the skills I am learning now. Would I need any additional dives after the OW or could I go staight on to the AOW. Where I live in the UK we dont have the amount of regular diving opportunities as say those in the USA and I would prefer to dive in warmer waters, hence I shall look to dive on holidays abroad, say 3 trips or so a year.

 

[DandyDon]

This is often discussed pro & con on SB, but I'm with the majority here. Go ahead for the additional training, and the Keys would be a great place to do the 5 dives. Also ask about including Nitrox training with it at a discount since you'll be doing the dives anyway. Do the book work for all before you leave for the Keys.

I am doing PADI OW at the moment, and would be interested in going on to AOW. Does it involve any classroom/self study work as does the OW course? I intent to do it almost straight after the OW. And roughly how much time would it take,I presume it is not as involved as the OW, just building on the skills I am learning now. Would I need any additional dives after the OW or could I go staight on to the AOW. Where I live in the UK we dont have the amount of regular diving opportunities as say those in the USA and I would prefer to dive in warmer waters, hence I shall look to dive on holidays abroad, say 3 trips or so a year.

Yep, book study and 5 dives as mentioned in posts above - Deep & Navigation required, the others to be decided.

Go for it, both of y'all.

 

[Irene]

While I agree with all of the previous posts that AOW is a great second step (I wish they called it OW2 instead of "advanced"!), please think twice about doing training dives while in the keys. You'll find most shops charge about 3 times what you might pay at home, and though you'll get a lot out of it, it’s doubtful you'll get 3 times as much

My recommendation is to have FUN and do fun dives while you're on your trip! Don't worry too much about navigation---most of the reefs you'll go to are less than 25'. Often, the visibility is so good, you can see the boat for most of your dive. If you're not sure where you are, do a quick "boat check" halfway into the dive.