Getting advanced certifications...

[av8er23]

I am just simply an open water recreational diver. I have interests in continuing my training and getting nitrox, cave, wreck, and technical certifications. I have a simple question. Can any dive master train me in these areas? An aquatintance of mine is about to get his dive master certification. Will he be able to say give me a nitrox course if he is nitrox certified?

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

Cave and Wreck are two courses you'll definately want to get instruction from someone with a bit more experience and credentials than DM I would think. I believe DMs are allowed to teach some courses, not positive though. Nitrox would be pretty easily taught by anyone.

 

[StSomewhere]

For instruction find an instructor.

 

[av8er23]

Please explain this a little better. An instructor is more qualified that a Dive master? Exactly what are the ranks and in what order do they come?

 

[tkrock]

Please explain this a little better. An instructor is more qualified that a Dive master? Exactly what are the ranks and in what order do they come?[/QUOTE

Their is the Instructors who instruct intructors... Then the instructors, then dive master, then master diver, then advanced diver, then you. Now you can mix in some other special courses between advanced and master or even after. But you should be instructed by an instructor. Dive masters are more likely the one's running the show on the boat and other dive trips. Now as you get diving you will learn to pickup things quickly. For instance, when you look at dry suit diving, that you can almost self teach, and many have done such that. But you don't get a card or any special tag saying you know how to dry suit dive. My point is.... You are far better off going by an instructor then anyone else. They are trained to give you quality, safety, and fun!

 

[fpsndiver]

An instructor has more training capabilities than a DM.

In PADI
Open Water
Advanced Open Water
Rescue
Master Diver or Dive Master
Instructor
IDC Staff

I guess that is the rank order of things......kind of.. Then you could have a Dive Master from PADI that went and got all sorts of technical training, cave, tri-mix, advanced nitrox, accelerated decompression from agencies other than PADI, but some other guy got his divemaster in a year or two, and then went to instructor's school for $3,000.00 and the one who is allowed to teach and certify???? Welcome to the world of diving.

I have seen some great divemasters, and great instructors. Like the guy above said, if you want instruction, find a GOOD Instructor with experience. Ask them how many divers they have certified, and then ask how many divers they have declined to certify, ask them where they have been diving, and what kind of experience they have.

 

[Damselfish]

this page show the levels within PADI - http://www.padi.com/english/common/courses/pro/

click on them to see what the various levels can teach

 

[O'Malley]

PADI: Open-Water [required to certify Dry-Suit & Enriched Air among 13 other specialties] > Adventure Diver [ required for Deep and Wreck specialty certifications] > Advanced Open-Water [required to certify Cavern, Ice, Search & Recovery and Semiclosed Rebreather] > Rescue Diver > (Master Scuba Diver > :icosm10: ) or Divemaster > Assistant Instructor/Open-Water Scuba Instructor > Specialty Instructor > Master Scuba Diver Trainer > IDC Staff Instructor > Master Instructor > Course Director

...rough blueprint of PADI ladder; I'm rather low on the ladder, so please, feel free to correct me if wrong.

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

...and just for refference, a Dive Con is just SSI's version of a Dive Master if you ever hear the term brought up.

 

[matt_unique]

Their is the Instructors who instruct intructors... Then the instructors, then dive master, then master diver, then advanced diver, then you. ....

The concept of ranks in scuba diving certifications is pretty much nonsense as we all know at this point unless we're talking Course Director or some of the other instructor certifications like CCR Trimix, Adv. Cave, etc. Even then it is scary to learn the minimum requirements.

The Dive Master certification is certainly not a higher "rank" than a Master Diver and in fact has fewer requirements to begin. A certification is only as good as the instructor who trained it and the student who invested the effort. As you will see throughout this website certifications often have little to do with skill and almost nothing to do with experience. Experience is where the rubber meets the road in Scuba Diving.

--Matt