Questions for college course

[islanddiverdude]

My name is Jake and im currently enrolled in paradise valley community college and were asking questions about our future careers from the people who have made it there. Being a dive master is a career that i have thought of persuing for some time. This isnt a primary career due to what ive heard as it not being stable income or stable as far as location but possible with a side career. I have a few questions that i would like to ask and if anyone would like to answer that would be great. A name for reference would be great.

What programs or education is necessary for this position?

What are some skills for success?

What kind of job experience is necessary?

What are the most important personal characteristics for the position?

What are some available employment prospects?

What is the typical schedual?

What are some typical demands or frustrations?

Thanks for any info, and happy diving,
Jake

 

[Dive-aholic]

Jake, I'm a local instructor in Arizona. I live in Tucson, but most of my teaching happens in the valley due to the location of the water. I've at Lake Pleasant pretty much every other weekend. Check out my schedule on my website and come out sometime. As for your questions:

What programs or education is necessary for this position?

Minimum requirements for DM are Rescue Diver, AOW, and 60 dives. Once you complete your OW cert, you'll need to get some diving experience. Go out and dive as much as you can and in as many locations as you can. In addition to the minimum requirements, I recommend you take a nitrox course, deep course, wreck course, and cavern course.

What are some skills for success?

Be a good diver. Have good control. Know your physics and physiology

What kind of job experience is necessary?

None locally, probably not abroad either.

What are the most important personal characteristics for the position?

Be friendly and knowledgeable. Leadership.

What are some available employment prospects?

Locally you can sign on with pretty much any shop. But you won't make much, if any, money as a DM in AZ. The best you can hope for is free or cheap trips. Abroad you'll have many more opportunities.

What is the typical schedual?

Long hours, not much diving, little gratification. DMs have to be there early to set up for the day. They leave last after putting stuff away. They do a lot of gofor'ing. Abroad is probably different.

What are some typical demands or frustrations?

Sometimes you work with an instructor you don't get along with or agree with. You can always sign up for classes with instructors that you have a good relationship with once you find out who they are.

DMing around here should be a transitionary thing. Even abroad, most opportunities go to instructors not DMs. Instructors can teach courses, DMs can only teach some courses, and usually not the ones that bring more money into the shop. Even as an instructor, you'll have to deal with shop politics unless you teach independently. I may have a tainted opinion because of my experiences with shops around here. But I have a different philosophy on how things should be done.

 

[muddiver]

The first thing to do is to get your SCUBA certification and dive as much as possable. Then follow the traing ladder of progression for the SCUBA cerification agency you have started with (none of the agencies is any better than the other, we just all see diving in a different manner). The typical progression is Basic SCUBA, Advenced SCUBA, Rescue and First Aid, and then after a prescribed number of dives you can start the Divemaster class.

What programs or education is necessary for this position?
See the above answer or visit www.padi.com or www.naui.com

What are some skills for success?
You need to be able to look at skill learning from different angles. We all learn in a different manner and it helps to be able to explain someting in a number of different ways.

What kind of job experience is necessary?
You need to have about 50 to 100 SUCBA dives of experience to be able to teach others haw to do it. It also is important to get some experience working with people in either a teaching role or an advising role. Like a a sales position at a local store or tutor in the library.

What are the most important personal characteristics for the position?
You have to be able to keep peoples attention with out being demanding or rude. Think about how you keep your friends attention, but also think about how some one you know presents themselves in front of a class. Always be professional.

What are some available employment prospects?
That depends on how far you want to travel.

What is the typical schedual?
6:00 am to 6:00 pm; or six to eight hours out on a boat; or if you just do occational classes like me, 2 to 4 hours per class session at the beach or in a class room.

What are some typical demands or frustrations?
People that appear to not be listening to you.

There are a few jobs out there in the university systems that you can do a lot of diving. Think about going to college and getting a degree in Marine Biology, geology or Kineseology. An example of an educational job location can be found at http://wrigley.usc.edu/

There is also law enforecment, fire and rescue divers as well as divers in the fields of engineering.

http://www.nasa.gov/missions/shuttle/neemo.html

 

[islanddiverdude]

wow thanks for all the info...more than i could have hoped for. Right now im on a trek towards psych and have diving as a hobby. Everytime i take a college class though im stuck on something fun and new.

Thanks,
jake