Dual Agency

[knotical]

The Self Reliant Course is not a "Solo" course. It teaches the same principles of redundancy, etc. but still requires you to dive with a buddy. The idea here was simply to help divers (especially those without set buddies) hone their skills. At least this was my understanding.

Actually, the Self-Reliant course does not require you to dive with a buddy. For example, from the first paragraph of the PADI Standardized Distinctive Specialty Course Instructor Guide:

- To develop the skills of planning and carrying out dives without a partner when preferred or necessary.
- To sharpen skills of diving self-reliance, making the diver a stronger partner in a dive pair or team.

As has been discussed elsewhere on ScubaBoard, it is a solo course in all but name. It is very similar to the SDI solo course. See for example: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ad...di-lacking-solo-diver-course.html#post5912881

n.b. they call it a Standardized Distinctive Specialty to differentiate it from the classic instructor-authored distinctive specialties.

 

[Lake Hickory Scuba]

Lake Hickory Scuba & Marina is a full service Scuba Center that offers classes through PDIC, SEI, CMAS, and even PADI. We are currently working on becoming and SDI, TDI, and ERDI facility as well. The reason(s) we offer so many training agencies to our customers is because we believe there is not just one agency that fits every divers' needs. For instance, divers who want to push themselves harder and learn more skills that can better prepare them for emergencies can choose to take an SEI or PDIC course. For the versatility and convenience of self study (or even the convenience of time) and online capabilities, then PADI would be a great option for them. To be able to introduce the love of scuba to 10 year olds then PADI would be the route, where PDIC and SEI / CMAS require they be older to start training.

Direct competition and location is another reason we decide to teach for multiple agencies. In an area that has 5 PADI shops all within 20 miles of each other; those shops will usually all be comparably priced. Now if one of those shops were to teach for a different agency, say one that does not charge as much for training materials as say PADI does, then they can lower the price for training and potentially obtain and retain a larger customer base. The practicality and financial benefit to teach for multiple agencies is different for each shop. I would suggest sitting down with your business partner and decide if the inflow of profit is still substantial enough to pay for renewal fees each year on the Instructors and the shop fees if the shop is an affiliate. With the current trend that PADI is showing, I believe you will start to see more and more independent Instructors jumping agencies and even your smaller PADI stores jumping over simply to get cheaper fees.

Now with all that being said, sticking with one agency will sometimes be better, because having to many choices for the students will tend to confuse them, and then you are competing against yourself when attempting to sale courses. Students will want to know why you push one way or the other for different agencies. If you state well I make more money if you take this one, then they may get a bad taste in their mouth because they see it as a money maker for you.

Here are the typical classes that I try to lean students towards (based off my personal philosophies towards training).

Open Water - PDIC or SEI
Advanced Open Water - PDIC
Rescue - PADI or PDIC
Specialties - PADI or PDIC
Dive Master - PDIC or SEI
Assistant Instructor - PADI
Instructor - PDIC or SEI
PSD / UCI - PDIC

As you can see each agency has there pro's and con's. Food for thought, hopes this helps.

 

[RJP]

n.b. they call it a Standardized Distinctive Specialty to differentiate it from the classic instructor-authored distinctive specialties.

Words mean things...

distinctive - having unique qualities or characteristics such that a person or thing is different from all others; being different in a way that is easily identified or noticed

standardize - to change things so that they are similar; ensuring consistency or conformity, making one thing the same as others in every way

So, a "Standardized Distinctive Specialty" would seem to be... an impossible oxymoron. How can something having "unique qualities" that is "different from all others" be "the same as others in every way"?

Q: who is the "they" that you refer to in your post above? The PADI website makes no such differentiation between "Distinctive Specialties" and "Standardized Distinctive Specialties" but simply lists Self Reliant Diver and a few others as "some of the more popular Distinctive Specialty courses" (Professional Association of Diving Instructors)

PADI does not use the term "Standardized Distinctive Specialties" anywhere. In fact, although the internet apparently contains 4.29 billion indexed web pages, a google search using the terms "PADI" and "Standardized Distinctive Specialties" returns only two search results. TWO... in the entirety of the word wide web. Interestingly, both of these are posts on ScubaBoard... by you. http://lmgtfy.com/?q=PADI+"Standardized+Distinctive+Specialties"

So... it would seem that you are the "they" to which you refer?



PS - I am glad to see that I'm not the only person left in the world that uses "n.b." these days. Can't tell you how often someone asks me "what did you mean by n.b. in that email/letter/memo/etc"

 

[knotical]

Well, I'm not the only one to have used the phrase. For example:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/di...n-dive-computers-specialties.html#post5875941

PADI Instructors teaching for Oceanic/Aeris dealers can now use the 14 approved PADI standardized distinctive specialty courses covering Oceanic and Aeris dive computers.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ne...e-never-even-seen-dsmb-weird.html#post5756194

In the UK, most divers carry at least one DSMB and use them on nearly every dive. High seas and strong current, plus intense boat traffic, make them virtually mandatory. So much so that PADI International introduced a standardized distinctive speciality ('SMB Diver') to provide training with them.

I believe I first saw the term in an early instructor outline for the Emergency Oxygen Provider distinctive specialty (which I didn't keep).

Nevertheless I stand corrected, thank you. They do not use the term today. I doubt I made it up out of whole cloth, since I'm not usually that original. I’m pretty sure PADI used the term for a while, but that's moot since they don't use it now.

n.b. I think they (PADI) intended "standardized" to modify "guide": Standardized Specialty Course Instructor Guide.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I teach for SEI, CMAS, SDI, and TDI. Why? because my students dictate it. I need to offer training based on their needs and wants. Not on what an agency says I can or cannot teach. I crossed over to SDI TDI to offer courses that SEI does not.
Christ this sounding like a military briefing with all the acronyms.

I have also partnered with another local shop that offers PADI and NAUI training up to full cave. We have six independent instructors from five agencies that work with the shop. It's the reason the owner does not want the five star designation. That and the recent lawsuit deal.

I teach Advanced Nitrox and Deco as well as Advanced Wreck. This allows us to offer customers in our area a wide variety of options. Had I stayed with PADI I would not be able to teach the courses I do to the standards that I do. And since it's not about making a living at it for me, I like the freedom to offer higher standards and more intense courses at reasonable costs.

If dual certifying is to increase business then you have to give value for the new classes. You can't do quick dives and OW divers with AOW and other specialties on the same weekend unless you have enough instructors that the classes do not overlap. You need to put in 110% for every course.

If all a shop or instructor does is teach in the same way they have then why switch? SDI/TDI standards are higher. They also have the loved one principal which is why I went with them. If you would not let someone you cared about dive with the person you just certified, even if they knew all the material and did the skills, you don't give them a card.

I teach the SEI OW class because it's a skills and education based program with 32 hours of required instruction plus checkouts. They don't have e learning. SDI does but I don't want to reduce class time. I want to increase it.

I would accept an SDI e-learning student but it would not save them time. They'd just get more information on dive planning, air management, and rescue skills. They can do the history, basic physics, and physiology on line. Cool. I'll just go into more detail in the classroom. I feel classroom time is critical.

Dual agency certification is a double edged sword. I went in with eyes wide open to the extra costs, dues, materials, and standards. There were no surprises. But while it does bring more business the real benefit is to the students. I give them what they want. Not what puts more money in my pocket. That it does is just a bonus. In the end it is also about what kind of diver do you want to produce? I feel that my name is on their card so they are a direct reflection of me. Not the agency. But if you send out divers that can't set up their own gear, need a DM after OW to plan dives, and are dog paddling in the water- others instructors and the agency suffer.

.

 

[Joshua Woods]

I did this with my shop. I opened as a padi shop and was successful and at the time I was personally into tech diving and IMO the future of tech teaching for me was the naui program at the time they were adopting the ntec "dir" gear configuration and this was very exciting for me and I tried offering both padi and naui classes and maintaining both instructors. In the end I only used naui it was just to confusing the other way. I did host other instructors from gue and tdi with some success. Judging by today's divers every other person getting out of the water is carrying a "pony" bottle rigged under there arm as a bailout so the tech market is even more sought after than ten years ago and I don't think anyone takes padi serious in the tec arena. I may be wrong it has been a while since I was in the know.