Unrestricted Surface Supply Schools?

[Kquim]

I'm a commercial SCUBA diver who's looking at getting his unrestricted surface supply ticket. Ultimately I'd like to do saturation diving but for now I'm just focusing on offshore work. So far I've heard of 4 schools that teach offshore: Seneca in Ontario, Canada; DIT in Seattle, Washington; and The Underwater Centre's in Fort William, Scotland and Beauty Point, Tasmania. I'm still gathering information but this is what I have so far.

Seneca: ------- $17,500 - 48 weeks - Graduate Employment Rate 82%
DIT: ----------- $18,500 - 28 weeks - Graduate Employment Rate 85%
TUC Tasmania: - $15,000 - 12 weeks - Graduate Employment Rate 99% (or so they told me)
TUC Scotland: - No information found at this point.

I know this is rough information, but it's a start for someone who knows nothing about these schools and is looking for the best deal. I try to compare in terms of time and practicality. While the 48 week course at Seneca may sound like I'd learn a lot, is everything I learn during this time truly practical for the field of work I want to pursue? Are their teaching methods practical; for example, do they teach at in indoor facility or in the ocean? On the other hand a 12 week program and a 99% employment rate sounds great, but unrealistic. Last school that told me there was plenty of work around practically lied to me. Also, I keep hearing about students who graduate from these courses and just end up doing SCUBA work at fish farms. This is what I want to get away from. I can do this already with my unrestricted SCUBA certificate. I don't want to spend another $20k to find myself in the same position.

At the moment I'm drifting towards DIT but I'm hoping some of you more experienced commercial divers here could help me out. Have you attended any of these diving schools? Did you feel the school met your needs or do you wish you attended a different school? Would you recommend a different school I haven't pointed out? Any words of wisdom would be appreciated!

Thanks for the help, Kyle

 

[DGordon]

Wish I could be of more help, but I'm an American and have only ADC card. I went to Santa Barbara City College Marine Technology. It was cheap for me, about 2,000 per semester for two semesters(I was a California resident at the time) its ACDE making it imca recognized, but you'd have to spend about $5000 getting your DCBC stuff added on afterwards(there are at least two places in the US that do this, DIT and I believe The Ocean Corporation in Houston as well) and the rent in Santa Barbara is outrageous, think north of 1,000 a month for a tiny studio...but...your living in a vacation destination. You might have trouble leaving. I've been living up here in Seattle for a while and working with a lot of DIT hands, they're usually pretty damn hard working, good folks.

 

[DCBC]

I can speak a bit to the training at Seneca College in King City, as I assisted a bit in designing the program. I was an instructor there in the 70's while I was with the Navy and chief of diving operations at DCIEM in Toronto. I believe Seneca offers one of the best programs available anywhere.

I retired as a Commercial Diving Consultant last January. What I've seen in the past few years is that the caliber of students in the industry has gone down. There are too many students with tickets that are not really capable of doing the work that's required. This isn't directed at Seneca, because I'm convinced that they continue to offer an excellent training program.

Many students becoming commercial divers to-day don't have a background in the construction industry. That's the problem. When it comes to being hired, the best qualified are chosen and it gives the impression that the industry has stalled (although it has somewhat in recent years). Diving is just a way to get to and from the job site. If I have a choice of taking a good welder or rigger and making him a commercial diver, or a good diver and making him a good construction worker, I'll choose the former every time. If you really want to succeed in commercial diving, get a related construction trade before enrolling in the program.

 

[muddiver]

The problem with the (American) commercial diver training program is that the old salts have been pushed out and replaced with profit oriented educational non-construction administrators. The focus has been to haul in as many students that can afford to pay the steep new tuition or those that can be harvested for U.S. Federal student aid money. The construction skills required for the job have been ignored and any swining (insert your favorite dorogitory) can sign up for a commercial diving school and "pay" for a certificate. The slump in offshore oil production and the world economy has also not helped any because the old hands that are need to train up the new kids are all at home collecting unemployment checks.

Personally I think the industry needs to go back to the apprentice and journyman/mentor dive team system of training that will feed the industry at a reasonable rate instead of cranking out hundreds of usless in debt want-to-be's.

 

[Uncle Sandwich]

Anyone heard any negative things about Canadian Working Divers Institute out of Chapleau Ontario?
$18,500 + room and board - 12 week program.
Canadian Working Divers Institute - Commercial Diving School