Padi marketing ploy???

[m.hamner]

I like how Padi "credits" any course you take to the next level, but I don't see how Padi isn't making a LOT of money when using this "credit" system.

Adventure diver course (AD)- lets say it costs $150. 3 courses of your choosing. 3 courses are credited toward your Advanced Open Water Certification, right?


Advanced Open Water Course (AOW)- Lets say it costs $150. Have to have 5 courses of your choosing. If I already took my adventure diver course, then why do I have to pay 150 for the other two courses to get my AOW??

Seems like it's a TERRIBLE deal if you're crediting your AD to your AOW.

Makes much better financial sense to pay the 150 ONE time and get all 5 dives rather than pay 300 to have only 3 combine with your other two to make you an AOW.

I'd rather pay 150 to take 5 completely different courses than the three that I had in AD.




Not sure if I made any sense, but hopefully someone can make something out of it and realize what's goin on.

Great marketing move.

 

[Divedoggie]

You get to credit a dive toward the next course.
Lets say that you have your AOW and you want to get your underwater Navigator Specialty. UW Nav requires that you do at least 3 dives. Since you did one U/W Nav dive to get AOW, you can credit that toward your specialty and only be required to do 2 dives.

Do the Instructor, the dive shop and PADI make money on this? Yes.
It is set up to encourage and expediate continued education.
Would I teach it for free? Only if you were a really good friend.

 

[Divedoggie]

You are right, it makes more sense to directly take AOW instead of first taking Adventure Diver.

Some people are restricted by time and they can do Adventure Diver in one day. AOW must be done in a minimum of 2 days. So it might make sense for some people.

 

[gnwes]

From my understanding, being an advanced diver does not neccesariliy qualify you in the specialties. The advanced diver program gives a brief overview with practicals pertaining to the specialties. The actual specialty involves goes more in depth, involves tests and a c-card.

So, whats wrong with PADI making money?

 

[The Kraken]

gnwes,

You are correct.

The AOW "specialty dives" are dives to introduce the basic diver to other aspects of diving.

There are 2 "specialties" that are required in the AOW certification, navigation and deep.

These dives can be credited to the actual certifications such as the PADI "Deep Diver" cert, but do not, in and of themselves, certify the AOW in that specialty.

Make sense ????

the K

 

[jviehe]

I like how Padi "credits" any course you take to the next level, but I don't see how Padi isn't making a LOT of money when using this "credit" system.

Adventure diver course (AD)- lets say it costs $150. 3 courses of your choosing. 3 courses are credited toward your Advanced Open Water Certification, right?


Advanced Open Water Course (AOW)- Lets say it costs $150. Have to have 5 courses of your choosing. If I already took my adventure diver course, then why do I have to pay 150 for the other two courses to get my AOW??

Seems like it's a TERRIBLE deal if you're crediting your AD to your AOW.

Makes much better financial sense to pay the 150 ONE time and get all 5 dives rather than pay 300 to have only 3 combine with your other two to make you an AOW.

I'd rather pay 150 to take 5 completely different courses than the three that I had in AD.




Not sure if I made any sense, but hopefully someone can make something out of it and realize what's goin on.

Great marketing move.

Youre confusing PADI with the business offering the course. PADI only sets the requirements to achieve a certain certification, and the guidelines for teaching it. The business figures out how to schedule and market and charge for it.

As a independant instructor I do Adventures in Diving this way. There are 14ish dives to choose from. Pick one or all of them that you want, whenever you want. I charge $25 per dive plus site fees. If you complete 3 dives you can get an Adventure Diver cert. If you complete 5 dives including Deep and Nav, you can get Advanced Cert. Each of these dives also counts as the first dive of the related speciality which are individualy priced. Divers also have to purchase the AiD book to take any of the dives.

Other shops just offer a 5 dive course, including all the dives for advanced cert, and the book, for say $250. PADI only directly makes money off selling the materials to the business, and processing fees.

 

[Don Wray]

PADI only directly makes money off selling the materials to the business, and processing fees.

Plus our Instructor fees annually and insurance renewal. Seriously, everyone believes PADI sets the course fees and makes a killing off the student. As stated above, the Instructor or the shop sets the fees for the courses offered and PADI makes money off the materials and cert fees.

If your not happy with the cost offered you, shop around for an independent that will charge a price closer to what you want to pay.

 

[TSherman]

PADI is a "rip off" if you are just trying to make it from A to B with the shortest time and least expense. I guess thats why PADI stands for Pay Another Dollar IN. Naui is much cheaper, and less silly cards.

Where PADI is great is for people that either need to go slow, or for instructors to teach with excitement. Most people like to go on a dive with a purpose. Some people want that purpose to be advancing their certification level. I am just as happy to be an AOW diver for the rest of my life and just hunt lobster...some like the structure of the "added" classes.

Neither IMHO is better or worse. I am certified through AOW in both and working in the NAUI Tec realm now. So I guess that I am truly special for paying both agencies! To add insult to injury I am doing some of the TDI classes too! The good news is I will have more cards in my wallet than you to take up some of the space my cash used to be!

Happy diving. Happy learning. Happy spending.

 

[girldiverllc]

Again, I think you're confusing PADI with shops or instructors. PADI doesn't charge ANYTHING...or really make you take any specialties to get anywhere. And I'm not sure why you would be AOW with two different agencies...?

The credit system is like any other system. Good instructors (from any agency) will use a system to the advantage of the student. Bad instructors (from any agency) will use a system for their own advantage.

There is a shop in my area that has a "star chart" on the back wall (like kindergarten) to get divers to take EVERY specialty offered. IMHO there is a lack of integrity when you say that a dive instructor who's entire dive experience is less than two years is qualified to teach almost EVERY specialty...outside of overhead environments. Really, what kind of instruction is that? This shop will use the PADI credit system to do less work and put out more certs.

There is also a shop in my area that encourages divers to continue their education. They use the PADI credit system differently. They do teach most of the specialties offered, but they make sure that each class is very developed and no short cuts are taken. That said...let's say that during the Navigation Specialty one of the students has a regulator malfunction and they only got two of the dives in. At that point, they'll utilize the system. Or...a couple returns from a tropical trip where they did the Night Dive as an Adventure dive. This allows the flexibility to be able to meet the couples time line, if the couple can't make one of the dives scheduled during the AOW class.

The Adventure dive credit program works to keep divers in the water. Divers on vacation are encouraged to dive while they are there. The credit program encourages them to continue diving...and becoming more educated when they return home.

 

[m.hamner]

Ok, thanks for everyone's input. I see now that I merged the course requirements to the LDS business side of things.

I guess I need to shop around, like I did when I wanted to get certified. I was thinking for some reason that once I was past certification, the fees to continue your education should be the same across the board. I wasn't factoring in added LDS fees.