Commercial diving

[theart]

Good day everyone i am a recently certified Dive master (PADI) 26 years old and im looking to gain experience in commercial diving!

I am looking to join a school in capetown Seadog commercial diving school (IMCA) or one of the other schools in south africa, but before i take so much money out on these courses i want to know if i need a certain set of work experience to get more favor in the industry?
Ive done scuba diving since 2019 and golf ball diving freelance at a few golf courses but i realized i like working with my hands more and i dont mind the unfavorable diving conditions.

In your experience what makes a commercial diving school stand out in your resume
Whats the best way to get into the industry?
Should i get any additional qualifications for commercial diving?

 

[sea_ledford]

This will vary a lot by country, but clarifying what you mean by commercial diving will help. In the US, commercial diving is basically underwater construction and inspection. In the UK it's pretty much anything you are getting paid to do underwater.

If you are thinking the construction aspect, welding and inspection certifications are probably better than anything you can get from a recreational diving standpoint. I'm not a commercial diver, but I've done some surface supply, full face and hardhat diving. Aside from comfort in the water, there wasn't much that translated from recreational diving.

More importantly, what is the commercial diving job market looking like in the area you want to work? It is very much a boom and bust type market, in the US it is very closely tied to the oil and gas industry. The dive schools are going to tell you it's great, they make their money by having students. They probably aren't too concerned whether you can get a job afterward or not.