SCUBA shop that will issue be an AOW card after a few days diving?

[rongoodman]

It involves getting eaten by a gator.

And swimming in a soup of toxic chemicals.

 

[greeniguana]

PADI Mermaid Diving Course

Enroll in a PADI Mermaid course and expand your understanding with additional routine, exhibition and problem-handling skills.

www.padi.com

 

[ginti]

Serious diving schools usually offer OW+AOW as a single, fast course, lasting just a few weeks, not months as it was at my time.

Once maybe, but nowadays, even CMAS clubs (in France - cannot say anything of other countries) start with a 1star card. Also, every shop I have ever heard of provides OW as a stand-alone package. In my experience, stand-alone OW is almost everywhere - and, in my opinion, it really makes sense, given that most divers are only vacation ones who will dive less than 20 times in their life...

Either my experience is completely biased (possible), or the standard of serious diving school changed over time and now is stand-alone OW (also possible).

I only know one agency with an introductory course equivalent to OW+AW - and I only partially agree with their business model, the OW one makes much more sense nowadays in my view. False: I checked, and it isn't really equivalent to AOW.

And now

 

[boulderjohn]

PADI Mermaid Diving Course

Enroll in a PADI Mermaid course and expand your understanding with additional routine, exhibition and problem-handling skills.

www.padi.com

I assume your reference to the mermaid diver course is intended as a typical attack on PADI. The course was offered by both NAUI and SSI before PADI. There are people making good money working as mermaids in aquariums.

In general, if people want to take a class to learn something, why should scuba shops refuse to teach them?

 

[Ez E]

I assume your reference to the mermaid diver course is intended as a typical attack on PADI. The course was offered by both NAUI and SSI before PADI. There are people making good money working as mermaids in aquariums.

In general, if people want to take a class to learn something, why should scuba shops refuse to teach them?

 

[smashweights]

PADI boat diver sub specialty is a complete waste. So what you can identify what the parts of the boat are. You can download a sketch and know it all in about 2 minutes.

Everything you need to know is given in the briefing.

That certification is about as useful as "Golf Ball Diver". Might as well spend the time learning something useful. Search & Recovery or Fish ID comes to mind.

That was kinda my point. OP didn't think there was anything to learn. Picking Boat just gives you dives from a boat with no water skills so basically just go diving.

I would never have chosen it if I was paying for it.

 

[Kendall Raine]

BSAC used to have Novice I and Novice II. It didn’t last too long. The new diver’s perception was they should be fully qualified after the first course, second they didn’t like the title Novice. After a review BSAC went back to a single entry level course called Ocean Diver - depth limit 20m.

We now have Advanced Ocean Diver, which comprises of:
* navigation,
* DSMB,
* depth progression to 30m.

Different dog same fleas. Novice I and II were properly descriptive.

 

[Edward3c]

Different dog same fleas. Novice I and II were properly descriptive.

We used to have 3rd Class (CMAS 2*), 2nd Class (CMAS 3*) and 1st Class (CMAS 4*); when BSAC was part of CMAS.

 

[thomschoon]

At one point I agreed with the OP, but then I lost my 1976 NASDS cert card and couldn’t get it replaced, so I took a PADI OW so I could get tanks filled. I was lucky to have a great instructor that made me actually learn the material and demonstrate the skills, I took AOW & Nitrox so I could go more places and found value in every class, due to the instructors I had.

Now days I can probably identify when you were trained by how you control your buoyancy or like to kneel on the bottom as skills have progressed. I am a better diver because of the updated training and would suggest it is worthwhile to stay current.

 

[Sevenrider860]

That certification is about as useful as "Golf Ball Diver". Might as well spend the time learning something useful. Search & Recovery or Fish ID comes to mind.

The Golf Ball Diver Specialty was one of the hardest courses I have taken. Zero Viz navigation and sticking hands in deep muck containing who knows what. The simulated alligator attack on dive 2 was most interesting and the last dive has you exiting the water while avoiding balls hit from the driving range. Not a specialty course for the weak.