Master Diver - worth getting?

[TrimixToo]

BTW, I once had a student who definitely benefited from it. He was a scientist who wanted to do some research in very cold lakes in a national park. He asked about it, and he was told he could not so it unless he had the master Scuba Diver rating. He also needed more training, since he had previously only been a typical warm water resort diver before that.

We mapped out a plan for a worthwhile MSD experience. He certainly needed dry suit. The dives would be at high altitude, so we added altitude. He would be dong some challenging navigation, so that was a must. Deep Diver seemed like a good choice. We did two distinctive specialties I teach. One was Advanced Dive Planning, a distinctive specialty that covers more than the DM program in terms of planning and executing dives without supervision. The second was a course very similar to GUE Fundamentals, focusing on buoyancy, trim, and propulsion techniques. He got the specialties and the MSD certification, and the parks service allowed him to do his research.

The experience did more than that for him, though. He is now a certified cave diver, and we did a cave diving trip together in Mexico a couple years ago. He just enrolled in my technical diving instructional program and will be learning about decompression so he can do deeper caves. As a result of his MSD experience, he is a completely different diver than he was before.

I think that's the first actual useful, practical aspect of getting that card I have ever heard of.

 

[OMyMyOHellYes]

Given the snarky tone sometimes running through the thread regarding master divers, I think there are some master baiters on here just hoping somebody bites.

 

[stuartv]

So I can get one with PADI OW/AOW/Drysuit/Rescue, SDI Nitrox, and SSI Science of Diving (hey it was free during the pandemic)?

No. AOW is not a specialty. Drysuit and Nitrox are two. I'm not sure sure if SSI Science of Diving translates as an equivalent to any SDI specialty, so I'm not sure it would count. You need 4 specialties plus Rescue. You have 2, possibly 3, and Rescue.

No Master Scuba Diver for you! LOL!

 

[stuartv]

I think that's the first actual useful, practical aspect of getting that card I have ever heard of.

I didn't do it to get the MSD card. But, after I finished OW, I knew there were more things I wanted to learn.

I took Advanced Buoyancy Control to get better at buoyancy.

I took Nitrox to be able to stay down longer.

I took Drysuit because I bought a drysuit so I could dive longer and deeper at the local quarry - which was around 40F at 90 feet all year round.

I took Deep and Wreck so I could go dive the North Carolina wrecks (hopefully) more safely.

Once I had 4 full specialties under my belt and 25 dives, SDI has an Advanced Scuba Diver recognition (card), which my shop gave me, gratis.

Eventually I took Rescue, to be better able to handle emergencies.

After I finished Rescue, my shop gave me the MSD card gratis, without me even asking.

I never got an "AOW" card (which SDI calls Advanced Adventure Diver).

If any of the cards are what gets someone to dive more, learn more about diving, and improve their diving skills, then I'd say it's a good card. Of course, a bad instructor can always render an otherwise good card totally useless.

 

[billgraham]

I think I have four PADI specialty cards from 30 years ago, am I good? Wait, no. PDIC!

 

[TrimixToo]

I didn't do it to get the MSD card. But, after I finished OW, I knew there were more things I wanted to learn.

I took Advanced Buoyancy Control to get better at buoyancy.

I took Nitrox to be able to stay down longer.

I took Drysuit because I bought a drysuit so I could dive longer and deeper at the local quarry - which was around 40F at 90 feet all year round.

I took Deep and Wreck so I could go dive the North Carolina wrecks (hopefully) more safely.

Once I had 4 full specialties under my belt and 25 dives, SDI has an Advanced Scuba Diver recognition (card), which my shop gave me, gratis.

Eventually I took Rescue, to be better able to handle emergencies.

After I finished Rescue, my shop gave me the MSD card gratis, without me even asking.

I never got an "AOW" card (which SDI calls Advanced Adventure Diver).

If any of the cards are what gets someone to dive more, learn more about diving, and improve their diving skills, then I'd say it's a good card. Of course, a bad instructor can always render an otherwise good card totally useless.

Cool. That's a good deal from your shop.

From a perspective of getting PADI cards, though, I simply think there are better uses for the money. That's an opinion, worth what you paid for it; in other words, I'm not trying to bait anyone as someone else suggested some might be doing. Deco Procedures costs more, for instance, but for the cost of PADI MD you can get a good start on it.