Hello from Sweden! Diving as a career?

[vane505]

Hi! I'm a student from Sweden, and I'm seriously considering changing career-direction (I'm taking a Masters in Computer Engineering (five years in total), starting my second year this fall). I have pretty strong tendencies of getting stuck in front of the screen all to much and it pretty much sucks the life out of me. I'm really thinking of doing something that doesn't require a desk and a screen.

I've tried diving a few times, and I absolutely loved it (and this was in the Baltic Sea, not exactly the most exotic place on earth, except if your'e a fan of seaweed and alga). I'm going to take a CMAS*-certificate in a few days, and IF I would still feel the same way after taking the certificate, I'm seriously considering pursuing diving as a career instead.

I've found out that there are some PADI internships in Thailand (for example simplelifedivers.com/scubainternshipsthailand), and I was wondering if it's viable to make a living out of becoming a PADI MSDT Scuba Instructor or Diving Videographer if you complete this kind of internship.

 

[Hobbs]

Hi vane505
Greeting from sthlm.
I would say yes and no.

You can absolutely make a living, however you will most likely never be rich out of it.
as a general rule I would say that if you want to do this, it is mostly done by divebums, ie people who work for very low wages but does it for the love of the lifestyle and diving.
If you make a name for yourselve then maybe you can make some "big" bucks, but my guess is that you will most likely return with less money than you arrived with but with a lifetime of memories and plenty of nice dives and new friends.

Actually you have the best wrekdiving in the world just outside your door. The baltic sea!
The saline level is not high enough to eat away the steel in steelships for many years and there is no woodworm so the wreks made out of tree can be almost a thousen years old but most likely you will only look att a couple of hundred years old wreks.
I would go out on a limb a say that Åland is probably the best wrekdiving in the world today.

 

[vane505]

Tja Stockholm Yeah I knew that The Baltic Sea has alot of wrecks, but not that it's considered one of the better wreckdiving places on the planet, that's awesome

I don't expect fame and/or fortune from diving nor any high salaries, but just the words "VERY low income" combined sounds pretty scary, do you know what kind of salary a, for example PADI Instructor, could expect?

 

[Hobbs]

sorry I do not know, I know that the salaries are all individual.

good luck