Interveiwing an instructor

[ShakaZulu]

Isn't there also a way to get the resume of the intructor from the certifying agency???

 

[AADiveRex]

1. Ask to see their logbook. If they haven't done 30 dives in the past year to or above the level of instruction you are looking for, best bet is there are more qualified instructors available. If they can't produce a logbook, run, don't walk.

2. Ask for 3 references; students who have taken their course who you can speak to about their experiences in the class.

3. Ask about the last dive they have done to the level or above the level of instruction you are looking for. Ask about their equipment configuration for the dive, gasses used, planned profile and how it was planned, gas management plan including reserve allocation, dive plan, and how the dive actually played out. If any of this is sketchy, or seems like they are having a hard time with the answers, look elsewhere.

It has been my experience that those who teach well usually do so for two reasons:
1. Extensive experience
2. True love of what they are doing

Good Luck,
Adam

 

[padiscubapro]

1. Ask to see their logbook. If they haven't done 30 dives in the past year to or above the level of instruction you are looking for, best bet is there are more qualified instructors available. If they can't produce a logbook, run, don't walk.

I wouldn't put too much into this one.. Many of the most experienced divers I know either don't log their dives or only log "special" dives..
You are much better off getting in a fun dive with the instructor, it will give you a feel for the instructor and he/she will get a feel for you. I know I will not accept anyone for tech training without a) doing a "fun" dive with them or b) being referred by another instructor whose jusgement I am familiar with.
BTW I havent kept a log book in over 14 years... If I need the data I d/l it from my computer..

2. Ask for 3 references; students who have taken their course who you can speak to about their experiences in the class.

not a bad idea.

3. Ask about the last dive they have done to the level or above the level of instruction you are looking for. Ask about their equipment configuration for the dive, gasses used, planned profile and how it was planned, gas management plan including reserve allocation, dive plan, and how the dive actually played out. If any of this is sketchy, or seems like they are having a hard time with the answers, look elsewhere.

It has been my experience that those who teach well usually do so for two reasons:
1. Extensive experience
2. True love of what they are doing

Good Luck,
Adam

I'll second that.

Asking what the instructor does for fun dives and overall attitude really gives you an idea the experience level the instructor has and if they have something to prove..

Recently I did Zero Gravity (again) in Grand Cayman.. For those that don't know its a get together of experienced (generally) CCR divers.. Our "limits" are basically ~300 fsw for 3 hours (not absolute).. The people who per pushing near the maxes every day were the "lesser experienced", experienced divers, the divers there for a release "took it easy" (now this point really depends on the diver's point of view). This last year I had alot of BIG dives and wanted some "easy" dives, to me that meant 200-225fsw with 60-90 minutes deco, for other that may be a BIG dive, its all relative...

 

[roni]

Isn't there also a way to get the resume of the intructor from the certifying agency???

With some agency you can get it on line, for example:
http://iantd.com/search/instructors_search.html

 

[wedivebc]

3. Ask about the last dive they have done to the level or above the level of instruction you are looking for. Ask about their equipment configuration for the dive, gasses used, planned profile and how it was planned, gas management plan including reserve allocation, dive plan, and how the dive actually played out. If any of this is sketchy, or seems like they are having a hard time with the answers, look elsewhere.

I am sure most newbie tech diver wouldn't know a good configuration,gas plan,profile etc. if they fell over one. If I said I was using a 20% propane mix many newbies would just nod their head and smile.

It has been my experience that those who teach well usually do so for two reasons:
1. Extensive experience
2. True love of what they are doing

Good Luck,
Adam

I strongly agree with the above statement.

 

[alemaozinho]

Hi everybody, publishing my thoughts is new to me , but from what I have read on other subjects here I hope you can help.

I've been scuba diving for about 20 some odd years. and over those years I have taken a number of courses. Some of those courses I feel that the instructors just didn't try to teach the skills that I thought where involved in an advanced form of diving. And in some of the courses the instructor was arrogant.

I have been reading ScubaBoard for a while, and I don't really want info on differant dive organizations.


My question to the members of ScubaBoard is this: What are some of the questions you would ask a instructor before signing up for a class. The class that I'm thinking of taking is adv. nitrox and deco. theory, so a good fit with the instructor is important to me .Thanks in advance.

get the standards and procedures outline from the internet for the particular course you intend to do and agency i .e TDI or IANTD and make yourself smart what its involved in that course so that you have a slight knowledge what you can expect to get for your money.Peace