_john
Registered
The tldr; Nitrox, deep, drysuit, rescue.
Personally, the "must-haves" were nitrox and deep. Those 2 lift several restrictions that you have as a fresh OW diver. Ironically, they complement each other and exclude each other. Both deal with partial pressures and gas effects, and you can't go deep on nitrox.
The ones that are right up there with them and do not lift any restrictions, but have a significant impact on the flexibility and safety of diving, are drysuit and rescue. Rescue has a lot of very good material and enhances safety significantly. Drysuit makes cold water more enjoyable, and there are a lot of additional issues to consider in drysuit diving that you don't usually experience. For example, floaty feet or a flooded suit. Both are problems, and training helps you deal with both.
I got my AOW through specialties rather than a dedicated course. I bundled several, so it worked out to more of an à la carte certification.
I get the training for the kind of diving that I want to do, and I practice those skills and dive as much as I can.
Personally, the "must-haves" were nitrox and deep. Those 2 lift several restrictions that you have as a fresh OW diver. Ironically, they complement each other and exclude each other. Both deal with partial pressures and gas effects, and you can't go deep on nitrox.
The ones that are right up there with them and do not lift any restrictions, but have a significant impact on the flexibility and safety of diving, are drysuit and rescue. Rescue has a lot of very good material and enhances safety significantly. Drysuit makes cold water more enjoyable, and there are a lot of additional issues to consider in drysuit diving that you don't usually experience. For example, floaty feet or a flooded suit. Both are problems, and training helps you deal with both.
I got my AOW through specialties rather than a dedicated course. I bundled several, so it worked out to more of an à la carte certification.
I get the training for the kind of diving that I want to do, and I practice those skills and dive as much as I can.