Howdy!

[Donna&Scott]

We're new here, and just wanted to say Hi! We're not divers yet, but we're headed that way. We just got back from our honeymoon in Aruba where we tried snuba. We fell in love with it and have decided to take diving lessons. Our questions, I'm sure, will follow ;-)

 

[gozumutti]

Welcome, Donna and Scott,

your lives will never be the same again, scuba is instantly addictive!

 

[Mario S Caner]

Hello Donna & Scott, welcome to the family here at Scuba Source. We're all very eager to help you with any questions you may have. May I suggest you register under one additional name: "Scott & Donna" so we may be able to tell the difference between you guys in the future.

 

[Donna&Scott]

Otay! First question...Is there any advantage/disadvantage to taking lessons from a dive shop vs. the local community college? The CC is a little cheaper, but we're not sure what we compromise by not going to a professional dive shop. Any thoughts?

 

[DennisW]

It's nice to see you've jumped in with both feet. Welcome!

 

[zman]

Community Collage or Dive Shop?
I think you need to address which agency you would like to be certified under. Do some research, Naui, Padi, Nasds or GUE just to name a few. I have Naui and Nasds but have been very interested in DIR " doing it right" through GUE.

 

[kyleterry]

Hi and welcome. You will love it.

My only thought on the dive shop is talk to the DM and go with who you are comfortable with.

 

[DiverInAk]

Welcome to the board, and to diving!

Since you're new, you may not know what DM is. If you have trouble keeping up with the acronyms, you can get a mouthful here.

As for the CC or the LDS (Local Dive Shop - it's not on the list), talk to both instructors. Find out their background and get a feel for how they approach diving. Oh, and diving should be a continuing education, for as long as you're diving.

I prefer to travel with the place I feel safest. Also, the more instruction, both classroom and shallow water or pool sessions the better, IMHO.

In any event, do not let money dictate your training. Diving is fun, relaxing, life changing and if not given the respect it deserves, life terminating. Say :idea: KN, I could use a grim reaper icon here.

Again, welcome to one of the best on-line diving communities on the net.

 

[turnerjd]

Donna & Scott,

Firstly welcome, and secondly, some key points in getting started.

1. When you book courses the first thing to ignore is the cost. Cost is pretty much irrelevant. there are some very good instructors that don't do it comercially. You mention a community college - the guy teaching here will probably be doing it because he enjoys it rather than for the money.

2. Avoid gimicky extras. Things like free dive computer use on OW courses is a gimick to get you to buy computers, it is probably better to learn the tables first, and get yourself happy with them before you go into computers. (we've debated this in some depth here!)

3. Some people teach more than the minimum necessary, the program I learnt with had us all helping with boats etc.. when we went out to dive, there are others that expect you to be just customers and have nearly everything done for you. I suspect you will see this kind of difference between a Community college and a dive store. Having to be involved with more has probably made me a better, more aware diver. More is good.

4. Agency is pretty much unimportant nowadays. The big US ones (PADI, NAUI, SSI, NASDS) all follow the US RSTC guidelines and their programms are almost identical. There are others (mainly in europe) with curriculums that are more in tune with local conditions.

5. Instructor is the key. Find an instructor that you get along with. Some operate on a production line basis, others are far more into treating people as individuals. There are plenty of horror stories about unsympathetic instructors. Find out how the instructor will treat people that have a problem with a particular skill. - Find an instructor you feel happy with.

6. How is the course taught? Some people now teach using computers and CD rom only, others will still do the old fashioned lectures for you. make sure they are using a method you are happy with.

7. How long is the course? It is possible to do the PADI O/W in less than 15 contact hours, this is IMO a bit TOO short, probably 20+ is good.

There are probably more, and If I think of them I will addd them

Hope you enjoy your course, and let us know how things go.

Jon T