Just starting a DM Course - Advice?

[macado]

Just starting a DM Course, as in haven't done any pool work, classes or finished any of the chapter reviews yet.

I purchased this year's PADI Divemaster Crew Pack from the dive shop that I am planning on doing the course with and have just begun to scratch the surface. I have watched the DVD a few times and have started reading the Enclopedia of Recreational Diving.

I've already sort of started getting in the DM mindset by assisting new diving friends with their equipment setup and offering a little constructive advice here and there.

I have no specific time frame for completion and plan on taking my time however I would like to finish by the end of the summer. How long did a lot of you take to complete your divemaster course?

I've got a little over 500 dives although to be honest I wasn't very vigilant about logging them which I aim to fix this year by logging every dive. I've already started going back to the piles of water-logged and moldy logbooks I have and entered my dives that I logged into an Excel spreadsheet. I wish I had kept them more organized. There are trips were I completely didn't log anything, or just wrote down the dates/sites.

I know this is incredibly vague but any advice?

What sort of problems did you encounter during your divemaster course? What were your biggest challenges when assisting new divers? How long did you work as a divemaster?

Keep in mind, I'm doing most of my diving in New England which won't see nearly as many students as warmer destinations.

 

[TSandM]

The biggest challenge for me was being adequately proactive with students -- students do the darnedest things, and do them FAST. I got some tips from a very good DM with whom I worked as a DMC -- he gave me pointers like hovering above the students during their mask skills, so that if they bolt, they have to go THROUGH you to get anywhere. But learning to lead dives and watch students every second has been a great challenge (and I'm convinced that a back kick is CRITICAL for a teaching DM!)

Remember you are an ASSISTANT -- it's the instructor's job to lead the class and to teach, and yours to do the little things, like help students put their gear together, and keep a weather eye on everything to make sure it's all done right. It is NOT your job to teach, and doing too much talking is one way to irritate the instructor you are working for, even if he isn't your husband

 

[macado]

It is NOT your job to teach, and doing too much talking is one way to irritate the instructor you are working for, even if he isn't your husband

This is great advice, thanks. I know that I tend to talk a lot. I definitely will need to be more conscious about this.

 

[j yaeger]

advice...
forsee what needs to be done,do it!
one of my biggest beefs with dit's is not thinking about what comes next
you're not the students mother,by any means,but helping the flow of things is important
listen to your mentor
don't be a "know it all"
enjoy working with your students-have fun/make it fun!
think about the divemaster who inspired you-emulate her/him!
good luck!
yaeg

 

[scubadiver888]

Talk to your instructor. Learn to almost read their mind. If there is something you don't understand, take the time to understand. Try to anticipate problems and be ready to help.

Case in point, yesterday I noticed a students tank seemed to be floating up. Instructor was closest to that student. Looked at instructor, pointed at student, tapped my gauge. Instructor checked student's gauge. Student was down to 500 PSI. Took the student to the shallow end, switched out his tank, brought him back to the deep end while the instructor worked with the other students.

Learn how to change an o-ring, thread a buckle on a BCD, change a hose, etc. The more you can take care of, the more the instructor can focus on instructing.

As far as logging dives, you need 40 to start the DM and I believe 60 to finish. If you can show 40 dives, that is sufficient, assuming you'll get the extra 20 dives logged by the time you are finished your DM training.

If a student requires additional help, the instructor might ask you to demonstrate the skill to the student while they continue working with the other students. You need to have demonstration quality skills. You need to do things slow and exaggerated. I can pull my mask off, replace and clear it in a couple of seconds. When demonstrating it to a student I might take 20 seconds to demonstrate the skill.

 

[TMHeimer]

macado, I just finished (except the paperwork), so from a Newbie point of view:
Yeah, slow and smooth on the demonstration skills. I had really 3 instructors (including one who gave me some time in S.C.). Each instructor had slightly different takes on exactly how to do them, so pay close attention to your instructor's ways. I hear PADI has just come out with a DM demo skills video (have heard it's not so great, but haven't seen it). Anything like that would've helped me. Also, how is your swimming--training for the 400 yard (metre) swim cost me more in gas than the DM course. Another problem that prolonged my time out to a year and a half was logistics. Your climate is similar--will there be enough time for the instructor and all in the class to do the ocean stuff before winter? I know there is a lot of warm Mass. summer water months coming up, but people have jobs and commitments and scheduling can become a problem unless you're in the South where you dive all winter and there are courses up the wazoo. For the academics, I managed to ace the 8 tests, but I studied the books a little each day for 8 months before the tests (5-6 may have been enough, but I really wanted to absorb it all, and to me it WAS a lot of material, particularly having not done any real academics since H.S.-1972). You may find it easier. A lot of test questions come from the Workbook, and most find the physics part hardest. And of course, a few test questions are "PADI poorly worded". Some people procrastinate on the mapping project--do it right away if you can. For the equipment exchange, switch gear with your buddy before starting--it's not as hard as you imagine, as there is no time limit, and you don't have to do everything perfectly, you just have to organize the buddy breathing and get it done one way or another. I did it once --piece of cake. A second time with a new buddy, not at all fluent, but got it done. We only interned one OW class, but it was enjoyable. We just followed the Instructor's instructions, ei helped gearing up, helped students by demonstrating skills, hearded cats, etc. I've read that DM courses vary quite a bit and am sure that's true. Just do the best you can to fulfill the requirements as set by your instructor, and study a lot. Kinda like high school--and then you graduate.

 

[macado]

macado, I just finished (except the paperwork), so from a Newbie point of view:
Yeah, slow and smooth on the demonstration skills. I had really 3 instructors (including one who gave me some time in S.C.). Each instructor had slightly different takes on exactly how to do them, so pay close attention to your instructor's ways. I hear PADI has just come out with a DM demo skills video (have heard it's not so great, but haven't seen it). Anything like that would've helped me. Also, how is your swimming--training for the 400 yard (metre) swim cost me more in gas than the DM course. Another problem that prolonged my time out to a year and a half was logistics. Your climate is similar--will there be enough time for the instructor and all in the class to do the ocean stuff before winter? I know there is a lot of warm Mass. summer water months coming up, but people have jobs and commitments and scheduling can become a problem unless you're in the South where you dive all winter and there are courses up the wazoo. For the academics, I managed to ace the 8 tests, but I studied the books a little each day for 8 months before the tests (5-6 may have been enough, but I really wanted to absorb it all, and to me it WAS a lot of material, particularly having not done any real academics since H.S.-1972). You may find it easier. A lot of test questions come from the Workbook, and most find the physics part hardest. And of course, a few test questions are "PADI poorly worded". Some people procrastinate on the mapping project--do it right away if you can. For the equipment exchange, switch gear with your buddy before starting--it's not as hard as you imagine, as there is no time limit, and you don't have to do everything perfectly, you just have to organize the buddy breathing and get it done one way or another. I did it once --piece of cake. A second time with a new buddy, not at all fluent, but got it done. We only interned one OW class, but it was enjoyable. We just followed the Instructor's instructions, ei helped gearing up, helped students by demonstrating skills, hearded cats, etc. I've read that DM courses vary quite a bit and am sure that's true. Just do the best you can to fulfill the requirements as set by your instructor, and study a lot. Kinda like high school--and then you graduate.

Thanks TMHeimer.

I started swimming again at the pool at my gym but I'm no where near as in shape as I should be. That will definitely be a challenge.

Good point about the weather although usually the water is still warm enough until late October around here then cools down. I hope I can get it done this year but I guess it won't be the end of the world if I cant finish this summer.

I hope to study the Divemaster manual so I know it like the back of my hand. Is it really that much harder than other PADI exams? So I remember Nitrox and Rescue were relatively easy but then again, I guess those are much different classes.

I think I'm more worried about the swimming portions at this point and practicing all my skills so that they're presentation worthy. I was reading that all skills should be done slow and precise and I know I have a tendency to rush things a bit.

 

[TSandM]

If it's possible, watch the other DMs and instructors in your shop, and identify someone who does REALLY good demonstrations, and ask them if they'll spend a little time in the pool working with you. I learned a TON from an extremely good DM in our shop (still do, every time I work with him).

I did not find any of the academic material particularly difficult, but I have no problems with math. As TMHeimer observes, there ARE questions where the "correct" answer isn't really very good, but if you only miss those, you'll pass with flying colors.

The stamina tests have several parts, and it is not necessary to ace all of them. If you have problems with the MFS swim, try playing with different sets of fins -- I cut 2 minutes off that swim by changing fins.

 

[TMHeimer]

Swimming (mostly the 400) and the skills--they were my biggest challenges. The tests mostly aren't harder than other PADI tests except for two things. There are 8 of them--20 questions each, so it's 160 questions. Thus a lot more material to know. And the physics one involves formulas and some math. If you're good in that area it's easy--if not, a lot of memorizing.

 

[DBailey]

How long did a lot of you take to complete your divemaster course?

I spread mine out over about four months. I could have completed it sooner if the scheduling of classes worked in my favor. I enojyed how spread out it was and took every oppurtunity to work with as many classes and instructors as possible.

I know this is incredibly vague but any advice?

Don't sweat the logbook. Ask your instructor if what you have is acceptable. If you have over 500 dives, more than likely, how you handle yourself in the water and around other in diving situation will speak more loudly than whatever you can re-write for a logbook.

What sort of problems did you encounter during your divemaster course?

I had problems with the swim test. I have seen others (very low body fat) have issues with the tread. I have seen a few DMC have serious issues with the tow. Develop a plan of attack to get the points you need.

Don't take the exams lightly. The equipment and RDP exams are more depth than they seem. If you have any problems ask your instructor for help. There is a ton of help on this board as well. I know for our "physics challenged" instructors, I wrote a guide to help them explain the correct way to reach the answer.

What were your biggest challenges when assisting new divers?

New divers typically aren't a huge problem if they had a quality instructor. Going back to the Rescue class and brushing up on the anxiety section and how to address people's concerns is a huge help.

Poorly trained new divers will be a pain. Anything they can do that is an idoitic move will be done. Herd them towards the sandy areas so they don't destroy stuff.

Student divers are hilarious. The mistakes they make will be like nothing you see in the DMC course or the instructor course. Spending as much time assisting with classes will teach you more about teaching scuba diving than the actual instructor course will.

How long did you work as a divemaster?

Even though I am an instructor now, I still work as a DM. Since most people will use the DM as a stepping stone to instructor, you won't find too many people that stop right at DM. For example, I think out shop has about 10 instructors and 1 DM. For open water certification dives, we typically send two instructors out with the class, and one of them will be acting as DM and the other will be the certifying instructor. No one in our shop gets the tank hauling duty. If you can't haul your own gear, you shouldn't be diving.

Other random pieces of advice:

1. Talk to your instructor about what is expected of you. The first time I work with a DM or DMC, I want them to watch only. I will work them into the class, but I want to see how everything else flows first.

2. Unless there is an immediate danger, don't question the instructor's direction in front of the students. 99.99999% of the time, there is a reason for what I do and the manner in which I do it.

3. Kind of along the same lines as #1, be careful of how "helpful" you are with the students. I am thinking more along the lines of the pool sessions. Most of the time, I will use small mistakes by the student to aid in the teaching process. A good example of this, is that a student will put the weight belt on with a left hand release. I will see it, but I want this to be caught by the student in the pre-dive safety check, and not pointed out by the DM.

4. Always have enough air. I have had plenty of DMC that tried to squeak out another dive with a partial tank. Sure, the all of the other dives went well, but all it takes is that one problem student to mess things up.

5. On open water certification dives, be in the spot that the instructor tells you. I have enough stress worrying about the students and the stupid stuff that they do, I like knowing that my DM/DMC is where I expect to find them.