As with all CMAS courses there is no "equivalent" PADI program.
Indeed true and also wrong. There is no equivalency at the CMAS level but some of the federations that are part of CMAS do have crossover with and from PADI.
CMAS training is more detailed and requires more experience to gain each level.
This is false. My best advice to CMAS US would be not to play that card. The ****ing French Federation has been doing so and while they are maintaining themselves they have no progress and are seen by many including myself as a bunch of dinosaurus.
The two agencies aim to train good and safe divers but I would say that PADI is very convenient for recreational diving and people that may not be able to spend a lot of time on training dives or being members of clubs whereas the CMAS structure is based on clubs with members diving often and with regular training by benevoles. For the club members scuba diving is more like a sport activity.
CMAS is nowhere above PADI and the opposite is true.
If I wanted to start any controversy, I would point out that the CMAS * seen as an OWD
can be certified without any open water dives but just pool sessions.
That is why their are only four diver levels in CMAS and we do not have scores of specialty courses.
In CMAS, the CMAS 4* is more an honorifique certification. In France, you have level 4 divers but the CMAS side of the card says CMAS ***.
I am kind of puzzled at the CMAS Americas thing. Is it a dive club organisation or is it a commercial organisation?
I am curious to know the answer.
Are the course contents / standards published anywhere
I would love having a peak.
Just been looking at the description for CMAS Americas 4 * diver. It seems almost identical to a PADI Assistant Instructor, which is totally at odds with the equivalent 4 Star everywhere else.
This is indeed a little bit more complex. In CMAS you don't have really AI. So (at least in France) the level 4 diver is a DM who is allow to enroll later in an instructor course (intership is more appropriate)
As far as I recall, the CMAS Instructor * can teach ((s)he teaches not under supervision) but only a CMAS Instructor ** can issue the certification after assesing the diver (usually very quickly as he has been trained by someone he knows and they have chat before)
This contribution is done based on my own experience.
I am a PADI OWSI and a CMAS *** diver (French FFESSM Level 3) undertaking soon the CMAS *** diver (French FFESSM Level 4) exam and the CMAS Instructor * training.