PADI vs SSI certification

[angieliu]

Hi there,

I'm looking in to get my open water diving certification and noticed that lot of places are either certify with PADI or SSI.

Can someone tell me the real differences between the two organisations? and if there are any noticeable limitations with either certification?

I've only just got into diving so I'm really just needing something which I can let me do recreational dives.

Many thanks

Angie

 

[Dash_Riprock]

Angie,

At the basic level there is really not much of a difference between the two agencies. Talk to both shops, and if you can the actual instructors and try to get a feel for the one you'd be more comfortable with. Read the sticky "What to Consider as a New Student to Diving". As far as limitations go, both agencies are recognized world-wide.
Good luck,

Al

 

[dl348]

At the OW level, there's not much difference at all. Both PADI and SSI are members of the RSTC. As others have said before, find the instuctor you're most comfortable with and go with him/her. That's what I did. Good luck with your decision.

 

[talonraid]

Definitely try to get as much information about the instructors as possible. The instructors make the difference, not necessarily the certifying agency. See if you can find some people who were certified by the various dive shops/agencies and ask them about their experience.

Finally, everyone knows SSI is the best because that's the agency I used. One of my friends thinks PADI is best because that's who certified him. Another friend knows NAUI is best because he got his c-card from them....popcorn anyone?

 

[jpcpat]

All the agencies use the same standards. Real differences are minimal. The instructor makes a huge difference. This is recreational diving, so find someone fun.

Thye student makes the biggest difference. If you read the materials and ask any questions you have, you'll generally spend less time on academics and more in the pool!

 

[Walter]

Can someone tell me the real differences between the two organisations?

The most obvious difference is SSI requires all instructors to teach through a dive shop, while PADI does not.

If you are trying to find the best instruction in your area, follow these guidelines.

and if there are any noticeable limitations with either certification?

The limits with either will be identical.

All the agencies use the same standards.

That is not true. Perhaps you should actually read their very different standards before making such ridiculous statements.

 

[frankc420]

 

[barebones]

SSI-PADI-SDI-NAUI-YMCA-TDI

Looks like the alphabet soup of SCUBA diving. By the way, SCUBA stands for “Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus”.

The well-known, internationally accepted scuba certification agencies:

SSI = Scuba Schools International
PADI = Professional Association of Dive Instructors
SDI = Scuba Diving International
NAUI = National Association of Underwater Instructors
YMCA = Young Men's Christian Association

Schools will feature one of the above because they like their training materials, and teaching philosophy. Many programs only offer recreational scuba training through organizations belonging to and adhering to the teaching standards of the RSTC.

The Recreational Scuba Training Council (RSTC) was incorporated in the United States in 1986. RSTC’s mission is to establish minimum training standards at all levels of recreational scuba diving in order to promote public safety. The RSTC is also the Secretariat for ANSI Committee. (American National Standards Institute).

Of the above list of agencies, only NAUI is not a member of RSTC. NAUI is a fine organization and one of the pioneers of SCUBA certification. I would not hesitate to recommend NAUI to a friend if I knew the instructor.

The main mission of certification agencies is the Marketing of Scuba Diving. Some do a better job than others. The organizations you have heard of have done a better job of selling their brand.

The dive course you take is going to be no better than the instructor who teaches it. So how do you choose?

Go to a reputable Dive Shop or University. Meet the people who represent the shop or school. How long has the scuba instructional program been in existence? Does the store or school monitor their instructors? It is possible to get a great course from an independent instructor but I don’t recommend it unless he or she is recommended by a close personal friend that was certified by that independent instructor.

The Good News:
Finding an experienced, highly qualified instructor is not that hard.

The Bad News:
The course will probably be a little more expensive. Good people don’t have to work cheap.

The sweetness of cheapness is not long remembered.

Have fun. Go diving

Barebones

 

[MikeFerrara]

The agency that I have to recommend a new diver look at is GUE. I understand that they have finally rolled out their entry level course.

I'll bet money that the minimum skill level achieved in an GUE entry level course will be FAR superior...a giant head and shoulders above the "average" put out from any of the main stream agencies. Individual instructors of any agency may do a great job but most of the agencies will accept some real junk.

As I read the standards (on their web site at www.GUE.com) the entry level course meets the requirements of the DIRF course. To me, the significance of this is that I have, with my own eyes, seen recreational diving instructors who didn't come close to passing the course due strictly to actual dive skills...buoyancy control, trim, propulsion techniques and buddy awareness...the nuts and bolts diving stuff that the other agencies and your typical dive shop do a lousy job of teaching. That's all just to say that I think there is a VERY real and obvious difference in the water. It's simple. GUE instructors can dive well while lots of other can't. GUE students can dive well and lots of others can't.

There are some things about GUE that I'm not to crazy about but I'll leave it to you to sift through that stuff. If you really want to learn to dive though, this is where I'd look first.

The RSTC...some of the big agencies got together to write standards for themselves. As far as I'm concerned it's the dive training equivilant to price fixing and I hold the organization in absolutely NO regard at all.

 

[Saltair]

It is more important to get a good instructor that you are comfortable with than the certification agency. I am NAUI my wife is working on PADI I am planning PADI AOW in the spring. They are interchangable. Quality of instruction is the key. Being brand new you may not be in a position to judge who is best so ask around.