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DM qualification is lame. i doubt half the DM could handle their own problems, if the **** hit the fan, let alone someone else!!

So did you come to this realization as a PADI AOW diver? Or because you took DIR-F? I'd like to throw some **** in your fan and see how you handle it.
 
I thought this was going to be a joke like, how many DMs does it take to screw in a light bulb or deploy an SMB :rofl3:

I thought about taking it but I would rather just dive :D
 
Well I guess I will subject myself to this thread now, just signed up for DM yesterday so you can add one more to the list of DM/yr.
Just a thought but for those who don't think DM is worthwhile, did your instructors not have to do DM in order to teach you? what path to instructor is there without doing DM-none that I know of.
 
Well I guess I will subject myself to this thread now, just signed up for DM yesterday so you can add one more to the list of DM/yr.
Just a thought but for those who don't think DM is worthwhile, did your instructors not have to do DM in order to teach you? what path to instructor is there without doing DM-none that I know of.

Divergirl, I just finished mine up. I would say it is definitely worth while. You aren't going to learn a lot of skils, per se, but you will perfect the skills you have, learn what it takes to teach the skills you have, you will probably become more comfortable in the water and (maybe most importantly) will become more aware of the people you are diving with and the onset of stressors that can lead to panic. Even if you don't go pro, I thought it was very worthwhile. Oh, and you get a cool patch (jk :) ).
 
battles2a5:
I would say it is definitely worth while. You aren't going to learn a lot of skils, per se, but you will perfect the skills you have, learn what it takes to teach the skills you have, you will probably become more comfortable in the water and (maybe most importantly) will become more aware of the people you are diving with and the onset of stressors that can lead to panic. Even if you don't go pro, I thought it was very worthwhile.
Well said!!! With a couple of notable exceptions, many of the negative comments in this thread, and other threads addressing the DM topic, seem to come from those who haven't actually been through the training. If someone has evaluated the curriculum, and concluded it is useless, shallow, whatever, they will probably be critical in their comments, irrespective of the absence of actual first hand experience. DM training is subject to the same variability as any other level, including variability in the student's degree of active participation, variability in the instructor's commitment, etc. Some DMs are '90 day wonders', and their youth and general life inexperience compromises their effectiveness as a DM. Others go through the program, and meet the objective requirements, but have an underlying personality disorder that compromises their effectiveness (in scientific terms, it is often referred to as uninhibited expression of the AH gene). But, many others are highly effective as DMs, and later as instructors. They love what they do - helping others learn and enjoy diving - and they continually work to improve their effectiveness in that role. Whether you 'go pro' or not, the training and experience can be very useful, and rewarding. For those posters who said they are just beginning, enjoy the process and get the most out of it that you can. A good instructor will always rise to the opportunity of an active, enthusiastic, interested and engaged DMC.
 
battles2a5
"So did you come to this realization as a PADI AOW diver? Or because you took DIR-F? I'd like to throw some **** in your fan and see how you handle it."

Why is my diving proficiency even brought up? I have made no attempt so showcase my skills at all, nor do i believe they are anything special. The only way you can know if you can handle "the sht hitting the fan" is through dealing with it when it happens, and i seriously doubt most (60 dive) novices could get themselves out of the situation, let alone someone else, whom has even less dives. Therefore DM qualification is lame, since it is the only actual course PADI offers after Rescue diver that can actually improve ones skills, they should really have a BSAC type diving hierachy, which requires certain amount of dives in certain environments, and other things, leading to an reachable, yet very rarely achieved status (first class diver in Bsac). Ofcourse for the people who do DM who want to actually teach divers, i see no problems, but they really should be the ones who've been there, done that.
 
battles2a5
"So did you come to this realization as a PADI AOW diver? Or because you took DIR-F? I'd like to throw some **** in your fan and see how you handle it."

Why is my diving proficiency even brought up? I have made no attempt so showcase my skills at all, nor do i believe they are anything special. The only way you can know if you can handle "the sht hitting the fan" is through dealing with it when it happens, and i seriously doubt most (60 dive) novices could get themselves out of the situation, let alone someone else, whom has even less dives. Therefore DM qualification is lame, since it is the only actual course PADI offers after Rescue diver that can actually improve ones skills, they should really have a BSAC type diving hierachy, which requires certain amount of dives in certain environments, and other things, leading to an reachable, yet very rarely achieved status (first class diver in Bsac). Ofcourse for the people who do DM who want to actually teach divers, i see no problems, but they really should be the ones who've been there, done that.

Whatever. Your first post was "DM qualification is lame. i doubt half the DM could handle their own problems, if the **** hit the fan, let alone someone else!!". So you are inferring that you know exactly what it takes to make DM (which you obviously do not), have a handle on what they learn (again, not so much), and have the knowledge and experience to deem this experience useless (obviously not the case). If you weren't making this claim, then you are just spouting uninformed, ignorant nonsense. In either case, you are not contributing to the discussion.
 
hmm, i've read the DM book, so i know exactly what it involves, unfortuantly, i'm also a really good swimmer and would get full marks on all the tests. But, i am putting nails into the coffin of your illustrious, experienced diving career. Pay your money, get your qualification, then pay more money every year to keep doing it ;]. DM is a lame qualification, again i repeat, it is a good introduction to people who want to eventually become instructors, which really should know what they are doing before taking this route. Unfortuantly people regularly do DM, because they see it as the next step from rescue diver, which unfortuantly PADI have deemed it to be (i know they dont claim this, they just don't offer anything else)
 

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