OW Referral - any problems?

[hmb]

Hi,

I did PADI Open Water Diver course and failed in the OW dives.
I'd like to repeat the certification dives somewhere south and to ask my instructor for a Referral.

Are there any problems with this plan?
What should I definitely have written in this referral paper?

I'm going to go to Cuba or Mexico (ACUC or PADI). I'm ready to pay extra 200-250$ for the referral dives and I do not have any problems with repeating the course knowledge test.

TIA
for any suggestions and information

 

[SouthFLdiver]

how did you fail the open water dives?

 

[hmb]

how did you fail the open water dives?

How exactly?
Weight belt replacement, insufficient buoyancy control.
I took extra swimming pool classes after the dives to improve these skills.

 

[DI_Guy]

Tia...

I believe a PADI instructor will give you a referal if you achieved a passing grade on the written exam and if you completed all the required skills in the confined water sessions. I am wondering if this is a wise decision since you did not pass the open water session. What happened exactly ?

In my humble opinion, if I were you, I'd approach your instructor and ask to be retested. Maybe get some more pool time first.

You don't want to become a certified diver if there is something still missing in your basic skills. Try again... You'll get it.

 

[voop]

You should have no problems asking for a referral from your instructor, stating which parts of the course you have already completed and which you've still got to complete. Just ensure that you go to a good instructor in Cuba or Mexico for the OW-dives.

If your previous training was PADI, it would probably make sense that the receiving instructor is PADI too, I think.

 

[voop]

Tia...

I believe a PADI instructor will give you a referal if you achieved a passing grade on the written exam and if you completed all the required skills in the confined water sessions. I am wondering if this is a wise decision since you did not pass the open water session. What happened exactly ?

In my humble opinion, if I were you, I'd approach your instructor and ask to be retested. Maybe get some more pool time first.

You don't want to become a certified diver if there is something still missing in your basic skills. Try again... You'll get it.

I'd be inclined to agree, but I've been sitting on my hands not to write this...anyways, here goes: were these skills "mastered" in the pool prior to going into OW? The operative word here is "mastered", according to the original posters own feeling. If yes, then I am curious as to what exactly happened in OW.

If not, i.e. if the original poster did not master the skills, then I'd say that it's the instructor who "failed" in that (s)he did not ensure that the student had completed confined-water training prior to going OW.

This is all second-guessing, btw., but I second the recommendation to approach the instructor.

The answer to the original question is, that referrals are possible and, usually, quite unproblematic -- it's done all the time.

 

[Michael Schlink]

You didn't fail anything, you just haven't passed yet. You also only have to repeat the dive that you didn't complete. The PADI OW dive # 1 doesn't "bear" repeating, if you did weightbelt remove replace on dive #2 then you need to do 2,3 and 4 over, sort of. Since weightbelt R/R can be inserted into dives 2, 3 or 4. The instructor should/could have had you repeat the skill in a subsequent dive but that's the inst.'s call. If you performed all of the other required skills for each dive then you could simply repeat dive number 4 and demonstrate the weightbelt R/R and you should be "certify-able" JMHO
A quick call to PADI's training dept. will clear up any questions but I'm pretty sure you're good to go. Your instructor should have signed dive number one before you ever did dive number two and so that leaves at the most 3 more dives to do. Of course it never hurts to do more than is required versus "just enough"-M

 

[hmb]

You didn't fail anything, you just haven't passed yet. You also only have to repeat the dive that you didn't complete. The PADI OW dive # 1 doesn't "bear" repeating, if you did weightbelt remove replace on dive #2 then you need to do 2,3 and 4 over, sort of.

That's interesting! Are there any regulations on the matter of passing/failing skill tests?
I could not find on the NET any info regarding this for the OWD course.
I thought too, that my instructor will allow me to retest the wight belt skill in the next dive. But he did not.

Just to clarify, I, and my instructor, perhaps, considered me as ready for OW. But. The OW in my case meant a 7 mm wetsuit, double weight belt, hood, thick gloves. And at the end of my first ever scuba dive, after finishing BCD surface replacement exercise, I felt VERY tired. My BCD was loose, I could hardly keep the weight belt in my glove, and failed to put the belt thru its 2 buckles. Still recall this as a nightmare. :-(

Anyway, I'd like to repeat - after the OW I did two extra swimming pool classes.

 

[hmb]

Just forgot to mention.
I can do the retest, but it will be 4 OW dives again in the cold water. I do not want this.

 

[voop]

That's interesting! Are there any regulations on the matter of passing/failing skill tests?
I could not find on the NET any info regarding this for the OWD course.

Well....I assume PADI training again: training is performance-driven, not time-driven. Which means, that once a student has "demonstrated mastery" in a skill, (s)he moves on to subsequent skills. Eventually, once mastery has been demonstrated in all skills, a student is to be certified.

Some can do all this in 5 confined water dives and 4 OW dives. Some take much more dives to demonstrate mastery in all skills -- for a variety of reasons. So it's not really a matter of "failing" -- it's a matter of not having completed just yet.

As for "regulations", the training agency has standards, which you may either purchase -- or may perhaps ask a friendly instructor to see. Or you can call the agency's training dept. and ask.

I thought too, that my instructor will allow me to retest the wight belt skill in the next dive. But he did not.

I'd suggest that you politely ask him about the reason for that. Perhaps he thought that you needed more pratice in general, and did not want to task-load your subsequent dives? Perhaps he didn't know?

Just to clarify, I, and my instructor, perhaps, considered me as ready for OW. But. The OW in my case meant a 7 mm wetsuit, double weight belt, hood, thick gloves. And at the end of my first ever scuba dive, after finishing BCD surface replacement exercise, I felt VERY tired. My BCD was loose, I could hardly keep the weight belt in my glove, and failed to put the belt thru its 2 buckles. Still recall this as a nightmare. :-(

Anyway, I'd like to repeat - after the OW I did two extra swimming pool classes.

Hmm.....If I was your instructor, I'd probably have had you pratice in the pool in the same gear as you'd be using OW prior to taking you OW. I recognize that with thick gloves and a thick suit, mobility is somewhat restricted, and you should have tried that in the pool first.

Btw., what's a "double weight belt" ??