IDC ... But with who?

[Rainsey]

Hi all,

Getting to that time in life where I am considering moving up the ranks to get my instructor rating. I am a PADI DM with a cross cert to an SDI DM. The facility that I predomanently dive through has jumped over to SDI from PADi and hence the 2 certs.

Have been PADI from the day I got wet in my OW course 25 years ago and was planning to stay this way until the dive shop transition, if I do my IDC through them the choice is made .. SDI .. but before taking the leap would like to hear any pros & cons on either.

Probably my biggest concern is over the 'freelancing' side of things. As a PADi instructor I can instruct as an individual, I believe where as SDI one has to be affiliated with a shop. If for what ever reason i move away from my current shop I would have to find another SDI facility to continue my instruction. I have yet to find out exactly why this is the case. Having said this I do not know if PADi will change their practice of this either.

SDI is substantially cheaper and does not require one to be an EFR instructor.

It is probably easier to cross certify from PADI to another agency than the other way should the future require this need. But this would mean not instructing for my LDS.

There are substantially less SDI facilities to train at compared to SDI but I assume this will change in the future.

Do not want or intend this to be an agency baging forum (I can do that without anyones help) but would like to hear some genuine opinions on the pros & cons of each.

Kindest regards
Rainsey

 

[Bay Island Diver]

Hi Rainsey

You are correct that you can work independently as a PADI instructor, although you will be likely to get more work and importantly peer support at a shop/resort. As a new instructor the guidance you get from team members as you teach your first courses is invaluable, so I recommend trying to work with an established shop/resort for a while to start.

A little more info on why i highly recommend the PADI option is found here.

Warm Regards

Will

 

[Crowley]

It depends to some extent on the area in which you work or wish to work.

Your profile says you live in australia but not where - if you are somewhere such as Cairns then for sure PADI or SSI is probably the way to go since they have the biggest prescence there and therefore it will be easier to get a job, but if you're working for a small independent shop on a part-time basis then it doesn't really matter what agency they operate under.

"Crossing Over" to PADI as an instructor usually means you have to complete the Open Water Scuba Instructor course (second part of the IDC, 3 - 5 days) and take the Instructor Examination. From the experience of friends who started PADI and went SSI, the crossover was much cheaper than it would have been the other way around, but either way the overall expenditure works out pretty much the same.

I do not know SDI's standards - but they have very little prescence in my location compared to the other agencies here, so working in my particular environment - a busy tourist resort - means that a SDI instructor would potentially struggle to find work. I have heard nothing to suggest PADI will insist on centre affiliation at any point in the future, but if they do, there are many, many centres to choose from.

The other argument is whether or not you feel the standards under which you are required to teach meet up to your own expectations of diver training. Some people will tell you that they will only teach for XYZ agency because ABC agency training is insufficient or incompatible with their personal philosophies. That decision is entirely up to you and you should not be influenced by opinion in this regard, only information.

Hope that helps a little, and good luck!

C.