Grand Idea or Grand Delusion???????

[7ftDiver]

I was wondering if i can make a living as a SCUBA instructor. I have been researching job postings through the NAUI website and it seems like there is quite a few opportunities for instructors. My question is however can this be somthing you can make a living of? I know im not going to make a fortune, and i dont even expect to clear an average income. I ask because i am thinking of moving to southerrn florida (keys) and persuing this as my career. Mind you i have only been certified for a year, and i know i need alot more training but i truly love diving and am very interested in the science behind it. I think it would be great to do somthing you love everyday. Am i living in a fantacy world or could i actually make this happen.

In addition i know i can get certified as an instructor, but how difficult is it to find a job as a newly certified instructor?

Any insight or advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Humuhumunukunukuapua'a]

It's a lifestyle job. You'll definitely be poor.

I used to teach skiing. It's very different doing something you love every day versus doing it for work.

As far as ease of finding a job, I would imagine just having an Instructor cert is not nearly as important as your actual experience and familiarity with the area you teach. There have been guys on this board who are "Instructors" within their first year of diving, but I know I wouldn't want them instructing me or even leading me on dives. Experience is the name of the game in diving, and, beyond training, you need a ton of experience to be a good instructor. Like any lifestyle job, you aren't the first to think of doing something fun for a living and there will always be competition for desirable positions.

I'm sure some of the many instructors here will chime in with their stories. My recommendation would be to see how much you are still interested in this path after a few hundred more dives. Diving is generally very exciting when you first get started, but you need to put in a lot of time to see if the excitement really "sticks".

Good luck!

 

[Doc]

You have to have complete vertical integration, that is...

Own the booking agency, the dive accessory shop, the tanks, the compressor, the boat. Breed your own DM's and boat attendants.

Or: Find a luxury yacht that requires a dive professional for their occasional visits to dive destinations. Marry the owners daughter/son. Whatever you're in to.

Either method will work. One is quicker than the other.

 

[billeelou]

Call RCCI they are looking for PADI instructors for the cruise industry...no Money and lonnng hours , but you'll get to dive...

 

[Rick Murchison]

In the late 60's I was a flight instructor. Poor as a church mouse but had a lot of fun flying. I was single, had a paid-for clunker of a car, lived in a room at my employer's house where his wife fed me as part of the deal... a good life for me under the circumstances. But I made more money as a ditch digger.
Now, with a family and a mortgage, I have a regular job to pay the bills so I don't have to count on making anything from teaching Scuba - indeed, when I add up expenses at the end of the year the instructing is a net negative.
But, it's strictly part-time fun for me... and therein lies the problem for the guy wanting to make a living at it - most of the instructors here in the States do it for the love of it and make their money elsewhere, so they can afford to take the time to add all those little extra minutes that ultimately reduce the wage-rate to something less than less than minimum wage per actual hour spent - leaving the fellow who wants to do it for a living with a Hobson's choice of either spending less time with each student or charging a great deal more than the part-timer.
So, bottom line, if you're single and in a position to accept a job on a cruise ship or a liveaboard or some isolated Island, yes, you can have fun and make a living at it. Otherwise it will most likely become drudgery so fast it'll make your head swim.
However...
"Of course the game is rigged... don't let that stop you... if you don't bet, you can't win!" (Heinlein)
Rick

 

[anakin]

it tends to be hard to get started. mostly cause nobody really wants to hire a brand new instructor, who probably doesnt have lots of diving experience. The best thing you can do is remain persistant, and never stop learning about diving.

I read every dive mag i can, talk my shops tech about all kinds of odd problems, and research any gear i find new and exciting. I gain more and more experience everyday. Im in love with the diving life, and soon will be looking at it as an oppurtunity to start travelling to new places to dive.

 

[K9trnr]

Enjoy diving for fun, and it'll give you more experience along the way. I got hired by a chain when I had little instructing experience, but I'd dove in several countries over 15 years so I had a variety of experiences. You'll also want to relate any previous experience to being an instructor (especially if you'll be working in the shop selling gear). So if you have excellent customer service skills from whatever (call center, fast food, retail, etc.), let them know you have excellent customer service skills that you can apply to their establishment. You'll make money, and you can become rich as long as you don't define rich in monetary terms. You won't likely become wealthy.

 

[boulderjohn]

I think Rich Murchison's post is excellent. Study it.

I am one of those part time people he mentions. I am only looking to earn enough from instructing to help defray the costs of my diving. The beauty of it is that I love the instructing process--I was a life-long teacher before getting into this situation. I get a little pay for doing something I love doing--and I am talking about teaching as well as diving.

It also depends upon where you live. I am in Colorado, and I could not possibly make a decent living as an instructor here. If I wanted to earn a lviing, I would have to go beyond instructing and become an all purpose employee (or owner) of a dive operation: retail sales, equipment repair, travel consultant, etc.

Even in a resort area, you will want to be an all-purpose employee. Instruct classes, lead dives, clean the boats, take a turn in the retail shop, and (especially) skipper the trips. If you can speak a couple of languages, it will help a lot.

 

[DementialFaith]

I have yet to meet a wealthy instructor who doesn't have a second job(including owning a boat/diveshop), but if that's what you want, then you should go for it. Life's about here and now.

 

[andydiver06]

Atleast you don't have to pay for your dive. That's a huge relief on your purse if you are hooked to diving. After I became DM I don't pay for my dive in my LDS but do necessary duties of DM.