PADI vs NAUI

[rgibsonc]

Hey all,

I am a current working Padi DM looking to go to instructor. I have an option to do my instructor with NAUI instead of padi and was looking for constructive advice on this..

I know with padi i can go nearly anywhere and find work fine. How does it affect your employability? I travel extensively so am looking for the best option. Do they crossover?

cheers.

R.

 

[seaducer]

Do both, then you can teach both and travel anywhere.

 

[Crush]

I have been trained by NAUI and ACUC. I used to think that if I decided to teach then I would go with NAUI. Then, I met a NAUI instructor in Hawaii who felt that he had to cross-over to PADI since all the teaching gigs were with PADI and the cross-over was going to cost him $2K. I can't believe that I am actually typing this, but if the above is accurate, and if PADI continues to dominate the dive market, I can't see any reason to go with anyone other than PADI unless you plan to stay in one area where you know that a different agency has a strong presence.

 

[Garrobo]

NAUI is still in business?

 

[scjoe]

The crossover in each direction is around $2,000. If you want to teach, some resort shops offer both NAUI and PADI, but my understanding is that 5 Star PADI stores can only offer PADI. Whether the 5 Star stores require their guides to be PADI is another question, but I think most people acting as DMs in resort locations are actually instructors.

 

[j yaeger]

youre a padi dm
personally,i'd stick it out and get my owsi with them

have fun
yaeg

 

[rgibsonc]

cheers for the replys people. So the general opinion seems to be padi.. Would love to do both but broke assed backpackers cant afford such luxuries..

PADI...the marketing machine!

 

[Kingpatzer]

Why do you want to teach? How many classes have you assisted with for either organization with varying instructors and what aspects of each agency do you admire and what aspects of each do you detest?

 

[rgibsonc]

?? I love to dive. And i love to travel. If i can do both and earn enough to keep on the rd then why not teach? And I get a kick out of seeing the love awaken in others. I've assisted on plenty of Padi courses of all levels but never had any involvment with NAUI. But my next ideal destination is the Andaman islands and it seems to be much more NAUI oriented so was looking for some feedback.

 

[Kingpatzer]

?? I love to dive. And i love to travel. If i can do both and earn enough to keep on the rd then why not teach? And I get a kick out of seeing the love awaken in others.

If you had stopped after the "why not teach?" part I'd have jumped all over that trying to explain that there is a reason the burn-out rate for instructors is high and it has nothing to do with them not loving to dive and travel. But you finally got around to the right answer, so with that said . . .

I've assisted on plenty of Padi courses of all levels but never had any involvment with NAUI.

Ok, so is there anything about PADI that you've experienced so far that makes you believe you could not teach through PADI?

But my next ideal destination is the Andaman islands and it seems to be much more NAUI oriented so was looking for some feedback.

That's fine, and I'm not trying to dissuade you.

I will say that if you are looking to do nothing but instruct, you will likely find PADI's market advantage is significant. But if you're looking to be a part-time instructor part-time something else, you might find NAUI's flexibility to be an equally significant advantage.