SSI, PADI, NAUI, Oh my!!!!

[Under H2O]

I have a friend whose husband (recently married) is certified through SSI. She is starting the certification process but very few dive shops offer this. Is there any reason she should not certify with PADI? Can they not dive together in certain locations? He seems to be very prejudiced against PADI, considers them inferior to SSI in quality. However, everything I've read shows PADI as the powerhouse internationally.

PADI, SSI, NAUI, YMCA, and many more are all members of the RSTC (Recreational Scuba Training Council), therefore they all meet the same minimum training standards for recreational scuba. So, in a nutshell, there's not a huge difference in any of the major training agencies in the U.S.

If someone feels that a certain agency's content is inferior to another agency's content, then that someone is just misinformed.

--Gerry

 

[uberspeed]

In my area last year they were offering PADI for $100 (if I recall correctly). I did SSI OW last year and was planning on doing PADI this year if that offer came along again. I don't plan on teaching, but I would like to get as much training as possible just for grins and giggles and why not have cards from different agencies? Perhaps for the more advanced levels I may look at cross training since it may save me money, but doing a whole course for that little money, I'd say go for it.
Really though, I started all this mess 15 years ago looking for CMAS and have not been able to locate that. :-(
After many dives for years under no cert and/or agency issued card last year I finally decided to become "legal" as it were. The only real reason I did it was for my girl to get training and to make it easier to dive abroad since a card will do that for you. But even as recent as 2 years ago I went to Mexico and dove Cozumel with no card, the DM there just had me do a few "tests" and figured I was telling the truth about my dive experience even though I had no card to back it up.
Sometimes I think the cards, agencies, certs are just for money and not the real reasons to do SCUBA (at least to me) which should be fun but with safety built in which is where the benefits of a course come in, but at what expense!
I had a real bad impression of PADI for a very long time because I saw these overweight people that never exercised and would get winded up a flight of stairs just shell out money and they had gear and certs galore. So what!? I thought, what does their card prove? I guess it was more a local phenomenon and my observations of a few bad shops with instructors that must have cared more about making money than getting these folks to be in shape for a potentially dangerous sport. But to this day I think only DIR has physical requirements, no?
I finally gave in and got a card though...just rambling...

 

[SubMariner]

Doesn't it cost a lot more to crossover to PADI than to crossover from PADI to, say, SSI? I just saw a PADI OWSI Crossover course advertised for $1,295 . . . ..!

Sorry, but I think that's a full IDC, not a crossover. As has already been mentioned crossovers usually consist of 4 of the 7 days of an IDC. They are priced accordingly.

 

[scubagrrl]

Actually, if you check this page (as previously mentioned), I think you'll find I am correct: http://www.adventureunderwater.com/course descriptions/owsi_crossover.htm

This is a course for instructors from other organizations to "crossover" to become PADI instructors, as well. It's $1,295, and includes 55 hours of classroom instruction, plus every bloody PADI textbook in existence.

So . . . what's the truth here?

Sounds like other organizations are far more accepting of PADI instructors, and they charge them less to join the fold. PADI, in contrast, seems to want to make sure that you pay through the nose if you want to represent their organization.

Not that I'm biased. All of my training has been through PADI.

 

[flipperz]

my 2 cents having been around the major agencies-would be that from a marketing standpoint PADI is head and shoulders above the others-they simply are the best in terms of marketing themselves, their member stores and instructors. If you're in the biz for bucks, I'd say choose PADI. I think the YMCA program is hands down the best basic OW program for the student-I think it's clearly more demanding in terms of program requirements and thus produces a more confident and competent diver coming out of the OW class. The student simply has to do more and spend more time in the pool than that required by the other agencies. My only knock against SSI is that you have to be affiliated with a store and all student cards are mailed to the store. If you wish to be an independent instructor SSI would not be an option. I really think that NAUI strikes the balance between the marketing machine that is PADI and the tougher program standards that are the YMCA's. If I had to carry just one card it would be NAUI. I think all the major agencies have their pros and cons-look them all over carefully and see what suits your needs and goals. Cross overs are not that much of a problem but paying annual dues to multiple agencies is. Good Luck!

Jeff

here looking for some straight answers (as usual

I have been doing some homework about becoming an instructor. Obviously this is down the road... but I am trying to get edubicated on the subject so I can plan accordingly.
I am an SSI student from the start. Now, aftering finishing 3 different specialties and will have my AOW soon, and after reading this board for hours, I am looking for a bit of clarification about the certifying agencies. Once I begin my second career (think a couple of years down the road as an instructor, when does the agency become an issue as far as the training you have received? I am checked out job listings, and the vast majority refer to PADI, NAUI OW instructors. I will start instructing at my LDS, however this may change as the years go by.

The question is, am I going to be searching for SSI OW instructors? Are we bound by the agency that we trained. Are there limitations to these agencies?

Again, this is a few years away, but I think it is good to have good information in order to plan ahead. thx!

 

[SubMariner]

Actually, if you check this page (as previously mentioned), I think you'll find I am correct: http://www.adventureunderwater.com/course descriptions/owsi_crossover.htm

This is a course for instructors from other organizations to "crossover" to become PADI instructors, as well. It's $1,295, and includes 55 hours of classroom instruction, plus every bloody PADI textbook in existence.

So . . . what's the truth here?

Sounds like other organizations are far more accepting of PADI instructors, and they charge them less to join the fold. PADI, in contrast, seems to want to make sure that you pay through the nose if you want to represent their organization.

Not that I'm biased. All of my training has been through PADI.

The "truth" is that you cannot judge what one shop charges for a crossover as being the standard for ALL crossovers. Just like you cannot link the cost for the crossover to whether or not PADI is "less accepting" of Instructors crossing over from other agencies.

 

[wedivebc]

FWIW I was talking to an ACUC instructor last night who's shop were going to cross over 4 instructors to PADI. The quote was $2500CDN each for instructor crossovers.
Needless to say they are rethinking the move.

 

[scubagrrl]

The "truth" is that you cannot judge what one shop charges for a crossover as being the standard for ALL crossovers. Just like you cannot link the cost for the crossover to whether or not PADI is "less accepting" of Instructors crossing over from other agencies.

Well, PADI may or may not be "less accepting." That's just the impression I get. (And, of course, opinions are like a-holes; everybody has one . . . .etc.) But I do think that one can draw the conclusion that PADI is more interested in making money off of crossovers than the other organizations are. The evidence is in the number of requirements and the cost for crossover. Is there another agency that requires as much training (or as much money) from instructors who wish to crossover? If so, I haven't seen it.

 

[kidspot]

It would be nice if we could get Cancun Mark or another IDC director to say what they charge and require for crossovers to PADI. As well as some counterparts from NAUI, SSI, etc..

 

[Rick Murchison]

PADI, SSI, NAUI, YMCA, and many more are all members of the RSTC

IDEA, PADI, PDIC, SDI, SSI and YMCA are members of the RSTC. NAUI is not.
Rick