Beyond PADI's AOW class?

[DevonDiver]

IMHO, wreck should always have been held to the same standard as Cavern. The standards on penetration are the same for both courses; so...standards of instructor qualification should have been the same also.

Either that or the wreck course should have been divided into two distinct courses; appreciation and penetration (with appropriate instructor qualifications for penetration).

The idea that any instructor can self-certify to teach wreck diving, based on a measly 25 dives experience diving on (not 'in') a wreck (which could just be a submerged canoe, or even a shopping cart) is laughable. Some of the so-called wreck instructors I've met couldn't tie their shoe-laces, let alone a guideline. Customer beware!

 

[Jaydubya]

Nitrox, and rescue are almost always worth doing. PPB is worth doing if you cannot hover yet or still have questions about weighting. The wreck specialty can be good if the instructor is an avid wreck diver or it can be a total waste otherwise. Needless to say, the class should be taught on real wrecks.

I think it best to avoid padi cavern (and tec). Although you will learn a lot even in a padi class, you really need a good instructor at these levels. Since Padi's requirements for instructors can be very lame one way to screen an instructor is to make sure the instructor is certified to teach with a cave or tec diving agency. And in that case, why not just get the card from the other agency?

 

[DivemasterDennis]

I want to join in with the several responders who have said "go diving." As you encounter areas of interest you can pick up a class here and there. That includes rescue diver, which is no so much about diving as other things, and it i a good class for everyone who is an active and independent diver to take. I have lots of certs, but learned the most by diving with a buddy or a small group. If you want a new experience (night dive) that you are not totally comfortable with, go on a dive led by a professional once or twice or more, until you are competent and confident to do it with a buddy and no escort. Diving is something we lear by doing, not on line. You can pay to do it with an instructor, or you can join a dive club and go on lots of dives with experienced people and learn on everyone of them for the cot of a tank of air. Let's face it- there are people with advanced cards out there who have never been diving except in their open water and advanced open water classes, They are NOT yet advanced divers in my book. Dive, take classes, dive, be an active diver. Then, when you get the techie bug, take a lot of classes.
DivemasterDennis scubasnobs.com

 

[herbdb]

++on Rescue and nitrox. I just completed Rescue and have to say that while it was not fun, I really appreciated the new skills plus the intensive review of essential self rescue skills during the course. It is your best next step in your diving education.

If you do dive travel, Nitrox will allow you to get lots of dives in places like Bonaire and Roatan. Otherwise, not that useful for quarry diving.