I have a few questions about different certifications as well as different certification agencies

[Addicted2H2O]

No one ever made a dime as a DM. Being a DM is a drain on the budget. Less of a drain than paying full boat, but nothing is free, and some folks expect you to work hard for whatever it is that you get.

Chances are I will never be leading dives in tropical destinations. I won't say it'll never happen, but it's not very likely. I'm certainly not quitting my day job to be a DM. It's way too late in life for me to take up diving as a money-making endeavor. But if tips come in from new students doing check dives at the lake....well.....I won't turn them down. Mainly I just want to help with new divers and get people to feel more comfortable in the water. And if one day I do decide to become an instructor.....its' a necessary rung on the ladder.

 

[boulderjohn]

No one ever made a dime as a DM.

I made a number of dimes in my one year as a DM. No, I did not get rich, and, no, I was not compensated adequately for the work I did, but I was compensated.

The DMs working the boats when I am in Florida make dimes. Even if the only pay they got was the tips I personally gave them, they got more than a few dimes.

 

[Wookie]

Chances are I will never be leading dives in tropical destinations. I won't say it'll never happen, but it's not very likely. I'm certainly not quitting my day job to be a DM. It's way too late in life for me to take up diving as a money-making endeavor. But if tips come in from new students doing check dives at the lake....well.....I won't turn them down. Mainly I just want to help with new divers and get people to feel more comfortable in the water. And if one day I do decide to become an instructor.....its' a necessary rung on the ladder.

Helping divers and making tips is a wonderful thought, as long as you don't secretly long to quit the day job. Because making tips isn't all that common either. Discounts on gear is a reality.

 

[Wookie]

The DMs working the boats when I am in Florida make dimes. Even if the only pay they got was the tips I personally gave them, they got more than a few dimes.

My bet is that they are instructors, working as DMs. And my DMs also made quite a few dimes. But the real compensation was working for me....

 

[tbone1004]

@Sh0rtBus how I hate the friggen dive industry....

Ok, here's the deal. If you want to help with classes, then with NAUI we have an underissued cert called training assistant. You are able to assist an instructor, including just about everything you have said, without having to pay membership fees, deal with liability insurance, etc etc. We use them all the time and they're brilliant. Babysittings during direct supervised dives 1/2, and "guardian angels" when they are doing the independent buddy team navigation on dives 3/4/5. Brilliant certification that is annoyingly rarely issued.
If you DM that's fine, but if you're helping classes, you're more useful as an AI. If you're just mentoring new divers outside of classes, avoid all of the professional certs entirely and just dive with them. I don't know why the industry needs to make every friggen diver out there a dive master or instructor, it's stupid.

rant over

 

[Bent Benny]

I rad it that way, too. I just can't figure out what becoming an instructor has to do with it. If it's the income, you can do better as a greeter at Walmart.

It's not about the money. I was talking to a guy yesterday who owns a dive resort. I was asking him about the industry. From talking to him and things I have read I think it would be a good fit for me.

From what I have gathered these resorts and live aboards in tropical locations will cover your room and board, plus you make a tiny little bit of money. I make plenty of money from June-December lobstering. If I could go be an instructor for the winter and only get room and board covered that would be good enough for me as long as I am somewhere warm.

I am 31, single, I live in a camper when I'm on the mainland and have spent plenty of my life living in things like campers and buoy workshops. Living in a hotel room for the winter and diving all day while helping people learn to dive sounds awesome. Then I can come back to Maine and make my money for the year.

This is the plan right now anyway. It might not be this winter, but my goal is to do it by next winter (though it would be great if I could do it by December)

 

[boulderjohn]

It's not about the money. I was talking to a guy yesterday who owns a dive resort. I was asking him about the industry. From talking to him and things I have read I think it would be a good fit for me.

From what I have gathered these resorts and live aboards in tropical locations will cover your room and board, plus you make a tiny little bit of money. I make plenty of money from June-December lobstering. If I could go be an instructor for the winter and only get room and board covered that would be good enough for me as long as I am somewhere warm.

I am 31, single, I live in a camper when I'm on the mainland and have spent plenty of my life living in things like campers and buoy workshops. Living in a hotel room for the winter and diving all day while helping people learn to dive sounds awesome. Then I can come back to Maine and make my money for the year.

This is the plan right now anyway. It might not be this winter, but my goal is to do it by next winter (though it would be great if I could do it by December)

That can work.

I know someone who just a few years ago was working a business he hated and was thinking of some sort of retirement job he might like. He took DM from me. Not long after that he went to a Caribbean instructor training center and came out as an instructor. It is now a few years later and he is working full time for a dive operation--instructing, working the retail floor, servicing regulators, etc. He likes it a lot better than the job he used to have.

 

[tbone1004]

@Bent Benny yeah that makes sense. Hell if you end up becoming a cave diver, a few shops in cave country put people up for tank monkeys and Oct/Nov-April/May is the busy season down there. In that case I'd align yourself with some local shop up there and learn to teach while you're there

 

[Bent Benny]

@Bent Benny yeah that makes sense. Hell if you end up becoming a cave diver, a few shops in cave country put people up for tank monkeys and Oct/Nov-April/May is the busy season down there. In that case I'd align yourself with some local shop up there and learn to teach while you're there

The guy who certified me owns the LDS here (a sporting goods store) and I have been talking with him daily asking questions that I think up and we have talked a little about getting me certified as an instructor. He can take me to instructor he told me and I really like and trust this guy. He said he would have plenty of work for me instructing but I can't give up the money season lobstering (summer-fall) and I'm really sick of Maine winters.

The big hurdle I will face in all of this is my record though. I have a non-violent felony crime from about 8 or 9 years ago so I don't think I'm allowed to leave the county. I am hoping there are enough U.S. territories in tropical climates that I will be able to make it work though.

 

[Wookie]

The guy who certified me owns the LDS here (a sporting goods store) and I have been talking with him daily asking questions that I think up and we have talked a little about getting me certified as an instructor. He can take me to instructor he told me and I really like and trust this guy. He said he would have plenty of work for me instructing but I can't give up the money season lobstering (summer-fall) and I'm really sick of Maine winters.

The big hurdle I will face in all of this is my record though. I have a non-violent felony crime from about 8 or 9 years ago so I don't think I'm allowed to leave the county. I am hoping there are enough U.S. territories in tropical climates that I will be able to make it work though.

You can go most anywhere but Canada. Working may be different, I’ve only worked in diving in a few other countries, but have no record.