Need Advice Plz!!!

[LOG-SPLITTER]

Well finally did it.My open water test.And let me tell you its was far from a fun experience

First off not the biggest boat I have ever been on and to top it off there was 25 plus ppl on the boat.far to many It was like get them on and them them off faster.$$$

All the instructors had attitudes didn'tgive a @#$% if you knew how to put your bcd together on your own.
When some where confused about how to assemble the bcd hosess etc; they just pushed them asidee and told them to hurry up! and the instructor put it together And told them to hurry up and get into the water. They then said we have 40 more ppl yet to go today!! and have to hurry up and get back.

Some women could NOT do the tired diver pull along with ALLOTof the other open water tests and refused to do it and the instructors just said don't worry about it.~quote jus get back in the boat we have to pick up the second bunch of students.

After this experience i really don'tknow what to think...I trained very hard for all my open water tests and only got to do 1/4 of them

Is this a common thing among different companies
Is PADI that much of a joke?
did i just pick a bad time to do my tests?

Last question when i was down on my deep dive i was following my dive computer and we where 27 feet.When the instructor filled it out he put 40 feet?I did not bother asking him why he put the wrong actual feet that we where down

I just wanted to get out of there as fast as i could. After going through this experience i`m totally turned off this once exciting hobby and don't think i have it in me any more to ever go again.And have mixed emotions about this padi?

 

[rsdancey]

That's not PADI: That's just a bad dive instruction operation. This is warm-water vacation diving somehwere I guess?

Find a local dive shop. Ask them how many students per class they teach - look for a good ratio of students to instructors; I'd be leary of much more than a 6:1 ratio. Ask where they do checkout dives. Ask how many students and instructors typically go on the dives. Ask if they do checkout dives from a boat or from the shore - as you learned, it makes a big difference.

If you've completed the PADI paperwork (tests, etc.), but you don't feel like you've gotten the in-water experience you need, explain that to your dive store & their in-house instructors and see what kind of deal can be struck - I suspect you'll find a receptive audience. If you don't go back in the water, none of them make any money.

It probably would not hurt to write up a summary of your experience, and then send it to your instructor, cc'd to PADI. The only way the organization can improve is when people identify problems in the field and bring them to their attention. On some level, you owe it to the divers who will use that instructor & that process after you.

 

[Diver0001]

Is this a common thing among different companies
Is PADI that much of a joke?
did i just pick a bad time to do my tests?

PADI sets the standards. There are very specific things you need to do both in the pool and in OW before you are certified. It's all clearly described and the instructors are all trained to understand and follow these standards.

It sounds like what you got was an instructor who didn't follow standards and/or had taken on too many students to finish in the time available. Both of these things are the instructor's responsibility, not the agency.

If I were you, I would give PADI a call and tell them about your experience and see what they say. They'll send you and probably everyone else who was there that day a QA form to fill in and depending on what people tell them, they'll investigate it and deal with the instructor.

Contact information for PADI Canada is 1-800-729-7234. Ask for the Quality Assurance department. I really would recommend calling. PADI is too big to police every instructor all of the time so they really rely on reports like yours to help them.

Last question when i was down on my deep dive i was following my dive computer and we where 27 feet.When the instructor filled it out he put 40 feet?I did not bother asking him why he put the wrong actual feet that we where down

40 feet is the depth limit for the OW course. He might have filled it in like that to indicate that the maximum depth was within standards. It's a little odd to do that but there might have been some logic to it.

I just wanted to get out of there as fast as i could. After going through this experience i`m totally turned off this once exciting hobby and don't think i have it in me any more to ever go again.And have mixed emotions about this padi?

Clearly you need another instuctor. I wouldn't give up on diving because of this. Be careful to choose a good instructor. Get informed, ask them lots of questions (there are some good lists of questions on this board) and get recommendations from other divers in your area. Especially experienced divers will know who is good and who isn't.

R..

 

[diverdenise]

Wow, that is very sad cause it could cause someone to give up something that maybe the most rewarding experience of their life. I had a horrible time learning to dive due to fear, phobia, anxiety, if I would have been in your shoes I would not be diving today, 4 years later and a divemaster. I had the best instructors I have encountered yet and they ensure that you learn what you are supposed to learn and get your moneys worth plus some. My instructor did extra classes with me to catch me up. The instructors should be reported to PADI because that is definately not the PADI way and they are jeopardizing themselves for future lawsuits which PADI doesn't appreciate. You should also receive a survey in which you can express your opinions. I had an experience not quite so bad with my AOW in Mexico, just a exchange of money for the certification without learning much. I have tried to compensate my attending as many AOW classes as I can to get the real teaching. Another idea in addition to what rsdancey advices which is good advice to talk to the dive shop and instructors, is to find a good class and take it as an audit, just observe the class and learn without necessarily doing the tests, etc. I did this on a couple OW with family members prior to getting my divemaster. That also lets you see ways in which different instructors instruct. Please don't get discouraged and give up, the majority of instructors are wonderful and supportive and hey females might be more so, mine was female but her husband is just as wonderful. Diving is fabulous.

 

[Warren_L]

What region did you do your open water in? You're from Canada, but it's too cold around here to do open water. Possibly in British Columbia, but temperatures there are in the 5C range, and personally I wouldn't take open water students out in those temperatures.

It sounds like you just had bad instructors, to tell you the truth. I would certainly contact PADI and voice your concerns of your experience. It really shouldn't be like that.

 

[Lonefox]

A friend and I took our O/W course with Emporer in the red sea, and were very impressed with the professionalism of the Instructors. They were thorough, and assertive, we felt shattered when we got home in the evenings. One of them was ex armed forces, so there was a lot of emphasis on getting things right, and a lot of friendly banter when we got it wrong.
It certainly wasn't easy, I ended up quite red faced when I nearly took a giant stride off the boat without my regulator in, and got a good ribbing for it.
It was tough going, I threw a numerous strops, my buddy (small framed teenager) pondered over not returning after the first day, after being embarrassed, tired, cold and wet, still packing his gear while everyone else was dressed, had problems putting his weights on the weightbelt the right way round, and was getting a dressing down from instructor at the same time, while all eyes were on him, and his build worked against him with the weight of all the gear, he was far from happy.
But we did go back the next day, we had paid for the course and were determined to make a better job of things, the next day was not much better as we got different things wrong and still ached from the day before, plus had been up all night reading the PADI manual and testing each other.
Both of us were very pleased with ourselves when we finally got our certs, we felt that we had earned them, I have nothing but respect for our instructors for putting the effort into teaching us to get it right for ourselves.
My buddy's outlook on life also changed as a result of the course, and he has lost the defeatist attitude he had before we took the course, and is very proud of his certification, which was most definately earned, and not bought.
Lets face it, if things are done for you, and you get your cert with no effort, have you really earned it, and how safe a diver will you be to yourself and your buddy, there's no margin for complacency and shoddy training when your life is on the line.
So despite the enduring week we spent training, we have both agreed to return to do the Advanced O/W with the same dive school and hopefully the same instructors.

 

[Bottom Scratcher]

Don't give up! I have to agree with with Rotuner call PADI and if possible talk to Glen Apron in quality. Although a bad experience, finish up move on and find another instructor to do the AOW with. Diving is a very enjoyable and rewarding sport.

 

[ghostdiver1957]

Well finally did it.My open water test.And let me tell you its was far from a fun experience

First off not the biggest boat I have ever been on and to top it off there was 25 plus ppl on the boat.far to many It was like get them on and them them off faster.$$$

All the instructors had attitudes didn'tgive a @#$% if you knew how to put your bcd together on your own.
When some where confused about how to assemble the bcd hosess etc; they just pushed them asidee and told them to hurry up! and the instructor put it together And told them to hurry up and get into the water. They then said we have 40 more ppl yet to go today!! and have to hurry up and get back.

Some women could NOT do the tired diver pull along with ALLOTof the other open water tests and refused to do it and the instructors just said don't worry about it.~quote jus get back in the boat we have to pick up the second bunch of students.

After this experience i really don'tknow what to think...I trained very hard for all my open water tests and only got to do 1/4 of them

Is this a common thing among different companies
Is PADI that much of a joke?
did i just pick a bad time to do my tests?

Last question when i was down on my deep dive i was following my dive computer and we where 27 feet.When the instructor filled it out he put 40 feet?I did not bother asking him why he put the wrong actual feet that we where down

I just wanted to get out of there as fast as i could. After going through this experience i`m totally turned off this once exciting hobby and don't think i have it in me any more to ever go again.And have mixed emotions about this padi?

I hate to be the bearer of bad news... but this is absolutely PADI. While I agree that the individual operator is at fault - for being an absolutely horrendous facility (according to your story,) PADI is ultimately to blame. PADI, SSI and the other agencies all receive complaints about bad operations, yet they continually fail to take action to shut down the facilities because the facilities are sending them the almighty dollar. PADI makes it's money from operations that herd you in and out... don't think they are not aware of this and are turnign a blind eye.

While in this case the operation was PADI, I can tell you that SSI and others are doing and allowing the same types of things to go on. Now not all PADI and SSI shops are bad, and some actually take pride in what they do and treat you right and make you earn the c-card. At the basic level, the individual shop/operator is responsible, but just like being the boss at work, if your employees fail... you fail... and PADI simply doesn't mind failing... because in this industry, failing (herding large numbers through) makes them a lot of money.

To all of you who say I'm agency bashing, give me an example of the last time PADI or SSI pulled a dealerships license for providing this type of service. As an SSI instructor, I can tell you that I have written direct complaints about similar practices at facilities which I worked in. The answer was always, "the owner has the right to run their operation as they see fit." Nevermind if it is dangerous, provides a horrible experience or is even outside the standards. The corporate PADI and SSI people do not care. And I'll stand in their corporate headquarters and shout it at them. I've already been on the phone with corporate SSI... and quite frankly - they're a joke.

 

[MarineVet32935]

What Rsdancey and Bottom Scratcher both said.

What you experienced isn't the norm, though it does happen. An Instructor takes on too many students, sometimes with the knowledge that many don't complete even the class sessions, but in your case, maybe they did and they ended up with more than they could handle on the boat.

My suggestion is, do what RSD and BS said, but also take the AOW course as soon as possible. Look for a school that has more Instructors per student and check out the information on the boats that you will be diving off of. The AOW course is more diving than anything else. You will enjoy this class 200% more, I guarantee. But, first do some research on the school.

What you experienced was the typical "cattle boat" problem. Get as many on the boat, in the water and back on the boat, as fast as possible, so you can do it again in the afternoon, then get to the local watering hole early in the evening.

When I dive recreationally, I show only my AOW certification for two reasons. First, on more than a few occasions, I was on a boat like you described and the Instructor saw my DM cert on the roster and asked, "Hey, can you kind of keep an eye on this or that, for me?" The kind of guy I am, I usually got roped into helping out in a lot more than just keeping an eye on someone. Second, should something bad happen, any competant attorney would get a copy of the roster and anyone listed on it as a dive professional, would be added to the list of those sued, whether they were attached to the school or not. That happened to me once, when a girl got bit on a shark encounter dive. She chose a spot to hunker down on to watch thhe sharks, but didn't know there was a Green Moray in the crevice under her. She got a pretty nasty bite on her thigh.

 

[Coldblue]

Sorry to hear about your sour experience. Although the first perceptions leave a big mark, don't let that get in the way of your desire of diving.

Every single activity, industry, profession, etc has its own group of bad apples. Bad luck put you with one of them, good news is that you have options.
I second the idea of letting PADI know about your experience. It's a huge agency and they do use your feedback to adjust policies, standards, business guidelines, etc.
I agree there's a lot of room for improvement, and in certain cases their action is not as expedite as one would like it to be; but they're working on that and your feedback will help them prioritize their course of action.

You'll find similar stories happenning to every single certifying agency out there. This is not happening to PADI only.

Diving has a lot of personal interaction to it, and the instructor plays a big role in making your transition towards the new underwater world. Go by the instructor, the certifying agency is not that important. A good rapport with your instructor will make a world of difference to your learning experience and your perception about diving.

At the end of the day, all certyfying agencies want to introduce you to the underwater world in a safe manner, and provide training so you can safely continue doing it on your own. Each agency just has their own interpretation of safety and practice their own policies regarding instruction/requirements/etc.

Looks like you've had enough of this dive center (and rightly so). Perhaps it's wise to find another shop, and based on your previous experience you already know what to ask for. Second time will be a charm...

Good luck and let us know about your progress

CB