Just finished AOW. Took me a while. It was garbage.

[hypertech]

Unless there were boat dive fees or something like that included I agree that you were took by the shop not padi.

I've never paid an instructor fee on top of a course fee.

For my AOW I went through an independent instructor and paid $250 for me and my wife - total. $500 for AOW is crazy money.

 

[scubadiver888]

Interesting. The local shop ran $250 for the book/DVD (had to buy the DVD). There was supposed to be a pool session but the instructor didn't show up. Later it was described as a maybe. There was also another night of going over the answers in the book, which was pretty rapid and something that could have been done better with CBT or something.

Then there was five dives required, which had instructor fees (which is fine by me).

Then the cost of the card. Really my beef is with the 1st part. Why charge so much for the book if all the other parts are going to have fees. But in the end, like I said, I could have learned the information from reading the book.

PADI is a business. Shops using PADI materials are running a business. Bottom line, buyer beware. I understand Andy's point about comparing the cost from different countries. Government rules, regulations, taxes, etc. can make things more expensive. But if you shop around your local area you should be able to see who is offering a competitive price and who is not.

If I go into a shop and they are vague about what they are providing me for my money, I'm out of there. If the shop is specific about things then I'm more likely to deal with them. If the shop gives me a quote, in writing, then I have legal recourse if they don't deliver.

The shop I did my AOW in charged $290. Does not cover gear or charter fees (they use a boat charter to do the Deep and Wreck portion). For my class we went to a cottage for a long weekend. Friday night was class. Saturday was in the water and out on the boat. Saturday night (and on the boat) was class. Sunday was out on the boat. After dinner we did a night dive. After night dive, some more class. Monday was out on the boat again.

I actually attempted my AOW and there were a lot of problems, instructor's drysuit failed, other students had numerous issues and took longer than anticipated, storm rolled in during a wreck dive, etc. The shop just rescheduled me for the next AOW class. I did have to pay to go out to the area they do the training twice but didn't have to pay for the course, materials or training again. I actually got a private weekend with the shop owner for the second attempt.

This is a shop that treats its customers right. If an instructor failed to show the owner would make it right. The cost of the course included instructor fees, cost of the card, class material and instruction.

You mentioned you should have done SSI. It is not the agency, it is the shop. I would find a shop you trust and/or puts things in writing. Doesn't matter which agency they use NAUI/SSI/PADI/IDEA/ACUC/SDI/whatever.

By the way, my shop is PADI.

 

[annieols]

Why do these conversations always turn into PADI bashing? PADI is not the only shop that charges money to continue on your diving path.

Padi does not set the price of the course the shop does, but I agree this course sounds like a rip off. Normally instructor fees and materials are included in the course cost (and usually the c-card fee as well). Also, If i was signed up for a course with an optional pool dive and i showed up but the instructor didnt, i would be ticked off. Sorry that you didnt get everything out of the course that you wanted- i can understand your frustration. Hopefully your next instructor will really step up and show you how great the PADI system is when taught to its fullest!

Happy diving

 

[scubadiver888]

PADI is the largest agency. The bigger you get the more bad shops. For example, if my agency has 100 shops and 2% are bad shops it equals 2 shops. If I am PADI and my agency has 7000 shops then 2% bad shops will be 140 shops. The likelihood of finding a bad PADI shop is higher than most other agencies. It is also true that the likelihood of finding an excellent shop is higher with PADI but people tend to focus on the negative.

 

[outlawaggie]

From the sound of this I would blame your shop for ripping you off, not PADI.

I agree with Damselfish. If you paid $250 for the books and DVD you were ripped off. I did a quick search and found the AOW pack for $80-$100 in several places. I can't say that I love PADI but in reality they are not any more expensive than the other agencies. In fact, I've been looking at Divemaster and PADI is cheaper than several others.

Additionally, if you learned nothing in the class then I would again blame the shop not PADI. My AOW class was very informative and I learned quite a bit.

Before you run from PADI I'd ask around for recommendations for a good PADI shop in your area.

Just my 2 cents...

 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

The old saying about quality of courses, there are 3 important things; 1) The instructor, 2) the instructor and 3) the instructor.

The PADI requirements in reality are like the pirates code, simply guide lines that can be followed or ignored in the field, built on or marginalized. If you are going to invest in continued education, you need to take the time to find a good instructor and not rely on PADI or any other money making, profit motivated organization. The instructors are too spread out to be effectively controlled by a profit oriented organization.

 

[oly5050user]

Interesting. The local shop ran $250 for the book/DVD (had to buy the DVD). There was supposed to be a pool session but the instructor didn't show up. Later it was described as a maybe. There was also another night of going over the answers in the book, which was pretty rapid and something that could have been done better with CBT or something.

Then there was five dives required, which had instructor fees (which is fine by me).

Then the cost of the card. Really my beef is with the 1st part. Why charge so much for the book if all the other parts are going to have fees. But in the end, like I said, I could have learned the information from reading the book.

Sounds like this LDS is charging too much.Of course we do not know what their costs are to offer this program.Here in Westchester NY our operating costs are most likely much higher than a store in VA.
We charge $189. for the PADI Adv course.Book is around $40.more..We do not charge "instructor fees" and the dvd is NOT required at all.We do not charge for the cost of the card..Were there any boat dives included in the $250. they charged you?
I offer the AOW course at a local quarry when done locally and I offer it at NO charge if you are on a store sponsored trip with us.In the navagtion dive we go over patterns,distance measuring methods,air consumption rate.Deep we cover dive planning using rdp and computer/air consumed for the dive,along with buoyancy control on the dive.The electives are usually peak performance buoyancy,wreck,night.There is no requirement for pool work during an advance course.If you have not dove with us before ,we may ask you to jump into pool for an evaluation,but it is done at no charge .

 

[Walter]

PADI is not the only agency that charges for certifications - true, they all do. PADI does not set prices for classes - true, no agency sets those prices, shops and or instructors do. AOW is pretty much a waste of time with regard to education with just about all of the agencies (including SEI). It does give you access to some dives off some charters.

Some agencies give you an option when looking for an advanced certification. SEI offers Advanced Plus (which you can take instead of AOW) that has academics and includes twice as many dives.

 

[DennisS]

It's too bad AOW is a prerequisite for Rescue. I took AOW and Rescue from the same instructor. AOW was a pretty much a waste of time, Rescue was challenging and I learned a lot.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Not all agencies require AOW before Rescue. And have to agree with Walter on the standard AOW course. But even the standard course can be turned into something by an instructor with imagination. SEI does indeed have the AOW plus that is more dives and classroom. The problem here and in other areas is that not everyone has the time to do two or three weekends of training dives. That is why I'm involved with revamping our basic AOW course to more adequately address the issue. I've been teaching my AOW course for a couple years now and it does have real classroom and a set schedule of dives that at least with me are predetermined and mandatory. It was because of my own experience, what I saw in so-called advanced divers, and what I read here that caused me to go the extra mile. As can any instructor who wishes to and many like Bob (NW Gratefuldiver) do themselves. The tour AOW class is a joke and should be gotten rid of or more aptly named. I would not even call it OW II unless it added some real new skills and education along with requiring basic skills to be down before starting the class.