junior Scuba diver?

[Frosty]

hey folks am I missing something with Padi certification.
As an adult you can do DSD dives Scuba Diver certification then/or Open water certification.
I noticed that doesn't seem to be an option for kids.
What am I missing?

 

[freewillie]

There is an actual PADI Scuba Diver certification which is a subset of OW Certification. Those divers will have specific limits including a 40 ft. limit and must dive with another DM or other professional level diver. They are essentially unable to dive independently. They are only required to complete 3 of the 5 academic book sessions and will complete only 2 of the 4 open water check out dives.

If the child (or adult) participates in a Discover Scuba then the dive shop can credit the participant with having completed the first open water check out dive they would have done as part of either the shorter Scuba Diver course or the full OW course. That is usually done if the participant decides they want to continue learning about scuba and enroll with the same shop that provided them with the DSC.

If the diver comes home and tries to enroll at a different LDS then that diver may not get credit for the DSC dive.

 

[tursiops]

There is an actual PADI Scuba Diver certification which is a subset of OW Certification. Those divers will have specific limits including a 40 ft. limit and must dive with another DM or other professional level diver. They are essentially unable to dive independently. They are only required to complete 3 of the 5 academic book sessions and will complete only 2 of the 4 open water check out dives.

If the child (or adult) participates in a Discover Scuba then the dive shop can credit the participant with having completed the first open water check out dive they would have done as part of either the shorter Scuba Diver course or the full OW course. That is usually done if the participant decides they want to continue learning about scuba and enroll with the same shop that provided them with the DSC.

If the diver comes home and tries to enroll at a different LDS then that diver may not get credit for the DSC dive.

This info about Discover Scuba possibly being credited toward OW or Scuba Diver is only true if the Discover Scuba is done in open water (not a pool) and contains the skills now part of OW Dive #1.

 

[Frosty]

freewillie--I must be blind-- I cannot find a JUNIOR scuba dive certification. Scuba diver yes (for adults) but not for kids.

 

[SteveInMD]

The Junior OW Diver cert is described here. 10 - 11 year olds are limited to 40 ft. and must dive with a Padi professional or certified parent. 12 - 14 are limited to 70 ft. and must dive with a certified adult.

Kids Junior Scuba Diving Open Water, Rescue and Master Diver Courses - PADI Scuba Diving Training Organization

 

[freewillie]

freewillie--I must be blind-- I cannot find a JUNIOR scuba dive certification. Scuba diver yes (for adults) but not for kids.

If your child certifies for basic OW prior to the age 15 he/she will have a gold stripe across the top of their PADI card designating them as Jr. OW divers since they also have some depth and independent diving restrictions But for Scuba Diver they must meet the minimum age requirement of 10 years of age and no separate junior designation. I suspect in large part because of the restrictions even for adults is the same as the kid.

---------- Post added August 14th, 2015 at 10:03 AM ----------

freewillie--I must be blind-- I cannot find a JUNIOR scuba dive certification. Scuba diver yes (for adults) but not for kids.

If your child certifies for basic OW prior to the age 15 he/she will have a gold stripe across the top of their PADI card designating them as Jr. OW divers since they also have some depth and independent diving restrictions But for Scuba Diver they must meet the minimum age requirement of 10 years of age and no separate junior designation. I suspect in large part because of the restrictions even for adults is the same as the kid.

 

[maj2]

If your child certifies for basic OW prior to the age 15 he/she will have a gold stripe across the top of their PADI card designating them as Jr. OW divers since they also have some depth and independent diving restrictions

It is worth noting is that ANY cards (eg specialties) earned by a Jr OW diver will also be identified with "JR" preceeding the name of the specialty and will be accompanied by the same Junior Open Water depth and independent diving restrictions printed on the face of the card. My daughter's Underwater Naturalist specialty did anyway. Hers says "Jr Underwater Naturalist".

The PADI website does mention Jr Scuba Diver program on its Scuba Diver Page at Scuba Diver | PADI. Based on my daughter's specialty course experience, I suspect that if the student meets eligibility requirements for the course (and successfully completes the course itself), their card will simply carry the "JR" prefix when it is issued if they are over the minimum age for the course but are under 15 years of age.

Kids and adults take the same course, but may be issued different cards depending on the age of the child at the time of course completion.