Question for those who are seasoned instructors and DMs

[45yrold_newbie]

I realilze I am probably just in the honeymoon phase having just gained OW and little experience, however......

I am very unsatisified with my current career and have always felt most comfortable in or near water. Now that I have gotten a taste of what is available I want more. I have been looking around for a way to move forward. I could move along with my LDS to DM and probably make it sometime next year as we are bound by crappy weather most of the year here in Chicago. But I found the Hall's Pro school and was wondering what your opinions of them are.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

IMO ... there's no substitute for practical experience. Dive for a year or two, then if you want to become an instructor you'll have a context around which to base your decision.

I've met, and worked with, a few Hall's "wonder grads" ... they're useless. While I believe they received good training, they have little to no practical knowledge. I wouldn't trust them to teach anyone I cared about how to dive.

Diving isn't something you can learn in a book ... or a swimming pool.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I have to agree with Bob. The few ow to instructor in 16 weeks wonders I have encountered are pretty much useless. Because even though they are doing dives in the ocean and getting pretty intense training all of it is closely supervised and there is really very little practical experience diving as a nonsupervised diver. I have postponed instructor till probably next year even though my tech instructor told me last night that he felt I was ready now and would have no problem doing the owsi thing with whatever agency I decided to go with. He is NAUI and a YMCA instructor trainer and my ow instructor who is PADI told me the same thing although he wants me to go with them. My personal feeling is I want just a few more dives before I start instructor like at 200. Right now I have about 20 shy of that. I also want my adv nitox and deco first. I have intro to tech and heliotrox through NAUI tech now. I also believe you should have experience in as many environments and conditions as possible. I have lake, quarry, florida ocean, Pacific ocean, low vis, cold, warm, drift, current, shore and boat. I personally think it's wrong that one of these wonders could get an instructor cert in Florida and then come up and take an ow class into Lake Erie with no practical experience in those conditions. With all this experience would I consider Hall's or Prodive or EASE for my instructor course? Absolutely. I see nothing wrong with that. And I would be comfortable teaching at this point and believe I would be qualified. I thought about doing what you are thinking until I really started getting into diving and found out just how valuable real experience is in this sport. Bob is right, you don't learn this in a classroom or poool with somebody constantly having your back if the crap hits the fan. You need to learn for yourself where you are also doing the covering. When I do go it looks like now it will be NAUI as they are more flexible, support independent instructors better, and don't require as much BS marketing crap as PADI. Or YMCA is the other choice even though it is not as well known around here.

 

[musicalmike]

I do not have any experience with Hall’s as an Instructional facility, but I am familiar with their store. Is there a particular reason you like that dive store? Or is it the location?
There are many dive stores like Pro Dive in Ft Lauderdale, Ocean Divers in Key Largo, Hall’s, ect, ect. They all offer similar types of excelled instructional programs. As you said, what they offer, that some of your local stores don’t is the convenience and water clarity. There is also a store here in So Cal that has a dive boat outside his backdoor.
I also agree with the above responses in this area;
I attended one of those "cookie cutter" instructional schools when I got into diving over 20 years ago. I was a gung ho youngster who got his intructor rating at age 21 with maybe 100 dives under my belt. Like you, I have always felt comfortable around water and had little trouble adjusting to teaching SCUBA with the minimal diving experience I had. The bottom line.....I wasn't 100% sure of myself when they turned me loose 3 monthes after I enterd as an openwater student. I wish I would have had more experience watching other instructors and divemasters in a classroom setting.

 

[Thalassamania]

I concur with what Bob and Jim said. It doesn't matter of its Pro Dive, Ocean Divers, Hall’s, etc., They're "wonder programs" all offer similar BS that turns out simiarly inexperience instructors.

 

[chickdiver]

All of the above is well said- I couldn't agree more!

 

[cdreamer]

I agree also with the other posts and think that you should probably spend at least a
year as an active divemaster before going on to instructor. Also worth a mention is
that there is not a lot of money in teaching. You would have to teach an awful lot
to make a living at it. Most of the instructors I know don't teach full time and they don't do it solely for the money. Don't quit your day job.
Terri

 

[daniel f aleman]

Hall's and the other instructor programs are no different than any other educational system that one may enter - you get out of it what you put into it. A six week instructor course will offer you the basics but obviously you don't gain any real practical experience. Hall's, for one, has a 12-14 week program available that is much more than the sum of it's parts and is a well defined and a well done curriculum.

Good instructors are where you find them - they come from everywhere and from all types of programs.

The best advice that I can offer is that wherever, and from whomever, you get your initial instructor rating, you should work with a shop or with seasoned instructors in your area for a couple of years to guide you through the learning curve. Getting your instructor certification is like getting your degree, you're just starting out...

Good luck.

 

[Bob]

Good instructors are where you find them - they come from everywhere and from all types of programs.

The best advice that I can offer is that wherever, and from whomever, you get your initial instructor rating, you should work with a shop or with seasoned instructors in your area for a couple of years to guide you through the learning curve. Getting your instructor certification is like getting your degree, you're just starting out...

Good luck.

Agreed with all the above. I DM'd for three years assisting everyone from course directors to ow instructors. The experience was invaluable to me. I took the good, threw out the bad, and adapted it for my use as an instructor. That, plus plus years of diving experience to draw on, helped to prepare me to become an instructor. In my mind, there is no subsitute for experience. almtree: Bob

 

[webjr]

you should probably spend at least a
year as an active divemaster before going on to instructor.

Great advise. I learned FAR more in the time I spent DMing for some great instructors than could ever be learned in any IDC.

Also worth a mention is that there is not a lot of money in teaching.

Money?
We can get paid for this?