Diving as a profession

[jlcnuke]

My statement regarding the MSD certification stands, not so much in that there's nothing else an agency can teach you but more so that there really isn't another recreational level course they offer beyond that. I hold no PADI certifications so I don't really know what they require for the MSD cert, but I know other agencies actually have both written coursework and certain skills that have to be performed to complete the class. My MSD is through NASE and from what I remember the course is somewhat similar to DM coursework but without the responsibility (read as liability).

I do agree though that the MSD certification doesn't exactly qualify someone as a "master scuba diver." Just means more or less that the agency can't take you any further without getting into professional level diving and increased responsibility.

PADI doesn't have a MSD class. Just a certification. SSI is similar. Have the prerequisites to get the certification by taking other courses and you get the certification. NAUI and NASE both have actual courses as I understand it, but for PADI or SSI, there's still LOTS you can learn as a recreational diver if you only had the minimum requirements to get the MSD certification (50 dives, rescue diver, plus shark awareness diver, reef cleanup, enriched air, fish ID, etc count as far as I can see, as well as various "distinctive specialties"... not even required to have diving skills for the specialties from what the PADI site says). So guess it comes down to where you get the cert as to whether it has any value at all.

 

[eternaljonah]

Hi
Its a question of what you'd like to earn and what lifestyle you want. India has many possibilities for growth as a dive professional. Been in it myself for a while. Happy to have a phone chat about it if you are interested. the Dive industry like many others is very much who you've met and become friends with, especially if you want to travel the world. Having extra skills like Compressor/gear maintenance, website design and many more extra skills a DC needs will make you attractive as you travel.

 

[iamrushman]

master scuba diver is not a certification but an elite rating and distinction.

PADI Master Scuba Diver Rating

 

[Addicted2H2O]

master scuba diver is not a certification but an elite rating and distinction.

PADI Master Scuba Diver Rating

With PADI at least. Not so with other agencies.

 

[yle]

I have talked to divers, very briefly, and have heard stories about them working in certain countries for a year or two and then going to some other country. Is that something most professionals working at dive centres do?

What about the payscale? I'm not looking to be a dive shop owner but more of a "nomad", visiting different dive centres, working for a couple of years and moving to some other location. Do people go on to pursue being Course Directors? To the best of my knowledge, I think the highest certification for a "nomad" would be a Master Scuba Diver (?).

I would love to read everyone's input on this. Maybe I'm just thinking of a dreamy perfect world where it's all blue waters and fun times, maybe it's actually real. I'd be grateful to everyone who'd guide me through the ways.

Mauui, to answer your questions directly...

Many people do what you describe; I've met them. However, the basics you need to know:

You will need to be at least an instructor to have any shot at getting any work. That is the bare minimum qualification. Anything short of instructor and the majority of dive ops around the world will have nothing for you.

Pay is between low and nothing. At most locations you will lead divers and have a great time doing it, and you will either work for tips (which can be okay, especially if you have a lot of guests from the US) or if tipping is not customary you'll be paid a small amount by the owner of the operation.

You will have to figure out how to survive on the money you make. The people I know who have done this are very good at meeting new friends in new places very quickly and assimilating to the local culture.

In summary, consider this: if there was a lot of opportunity and money to be made by just diving all the time, wouldn't EVERYONE be doing it? There are serious compromises... as mentioned above (and by others in this thread) you have to figure out how to live very cheap. But that's after you figure out how to pay for the training courses that will take you through instructor certification.

Do your homework, figure out which part of the world you would like to try first, and contact some dive shops there. Ask them directly what kind of opportunities they have for you. Then decide whether or not it's something you want to pursue.

ps... to become a PADI instructor, you don't need to be a "master scuba diver". You need, OW, AOW (which you've already done), Rescue Diver, Divemaster, and then the IDC (i.e. instructor course.)

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

I would also add that in this day and age, anything outside of the Caribbean and you are ideally going to need to speak a couple of languages..

 

[SeaWarden]

If you want to see the world, live cheap, and not have a family, then it's workable. However, from what I've heard the only folks that really get a stable income out of it are owners of profitable dive shops (not all shops make money), Course Directors, or both.

If you want to make money underwater, go into commercial saturation diving. You get paid to face the risks.

even the profitable shop, don't make enough for it to be considered an actual business.

 

[TMHeimer]

PADI MSD-- My PADI MSD and my PADI DM wall certificates both describe these things as ratings. I have a certification card for both. So, rating vs. a certification for MSD would seem to be semantics.

I disagree that PADI can't teach you anything recreationally past MSD. Since for MSD you must complete any 5 specialties (and as pointed out, some contain no diving), an MSD could learn more from taking say the Deep, Wreck, or NAV specialty if they weren't among the 5 taken for MSD. Then there are the more advanced courses (Rebreather, etc.).

 

[Storker]

there really isn't another recreational level course they offer beyond that

If by "they" you mean PADI, that can of course be discussed.

If by "they" you mean agencies in general, you're dead wrong. Look at the courses offered by agencies like e.g. BSAC, GUE or CMAS. There's a lot there which goes far beyond Rescue plus five specialties.
Diver grade courses
Explore GUE Courses
Training Map

 

[Bob DBF]

If you're serious about recreational dive teaching/coaching/being a boat divemaster, do not pass up the opportunity to get the highest captain's license you can qualify for. It will make you a much more useful organism around the dive boat/scuba company employment world, where many of the captains are also divers.

As @nolatom points out being a licensed skipper will make you more useful, as will being a good mechanic, speaking several languages, and having excellent interpersonal skills for sales and customer service. Instructors are easy to find, it will be the other skills that make you valuable to the operation and perhaps a better paycheck.

ps... to become a PADI instructor, you don't need to be a "master scuba diver". You need, OW, AOW (which you've already done), Rescue Diver, Divemaster, and then the IDC (i.e. instructor course.)

Technically yes, but it is up to the shop who they will take as a DMC, and what experience and training that candidate must have before they are accepted.

I disagree that PADI can't teach you anything recreationally past MSD.

I agree, Technical diving is just a progression of recreational diving, in the past it was just considered advanced or deco diving. It's just like the difference between "wreck diving" and wreck diving with penetration and deco, both are recreational but one takes longer. I would look at other agencies, as PADI is a newer player in the field, although the instructor is the real key.



Bob