Why is becoming a DM considered not worth it?

[JCG_HeliCam]

By "Advance" course, I trust you're not referring to the elementary level PADI "Advanced Open Water"? That is in no way an advanced course by any measure.

I was talking in general terms and did not want to point towards or away from any agency. I took the original NAUI Advanced openwater 30 years ago. I think today's advanced courses offers much less training by NAUI as well as other agencies.
We spent a summer diving off New Jersey and attending class every week to go over the previous weekend's dives. Each dive trip covered a different topic we covered all aspects of wreck diving, Navigation, search patterns, compass, and a lot I probably can't remember. One highlight was learning teamwork using lift-bags to recover a ship's anchor....I also came home with some very delicious lobsters from those dives.

 

[stretchthepenn]

Of course. Just saying that one shouldn't need the DM course to become a better diver. You should already be a better diver before taking the course.

Not the first time you have said this, Tom, and in a perfect world I agree everyone would enter the DM course with top-notch dive skills, ready to learn how to lead dives and otherwise begin the journey down the "dive professional" path. But we know it doesn't work that way in the real world. <snip>

Agreed. The first time I realized that DM candidates aren't necessarily good divers came from a trip to Vortex Springs. I saw one fellow vertical in the water, finning madly and churning up the bottom.

 

[TMHeimer]

Agreed. The first time I realized that DM candidates aren't necessarily good divers came from a trip to Vortex Springs. I saw one fellow vertical in the water, finning madly and churning up the bottom.

Right. I took several courses there. Not exactly a difficult venue.....

 

[Isa.nerwen]

Of course. Just saying that one shouldn't need the DM course to become a better diver. You should already be a better diver before taking the course.

Yes, I understand and partially agree to that.
BUT to become a better dives you have to get more dives. Diving costs money, and overall you would spend probably a bit more just doing fun dives. If I have the time, to me it makes sense choosing the DMT so that I can get the dives in AND learn something more, getting an actual life experience, for the same or less money.

 

[Still Kicking]

nm

 

[TMHeimer]

Not the first time you have said this, Tom, and in a perfect world I agree everyone would enter the DM course with top-notch dive skills, ready to learn how to lead dives and otherwise begin the journey down the "dive professional" path. But we know it doesn't work that way in the real world. People take the DM course because it's shown on the training agency's chart as the next real rung on the ladder, dive ops happily sign people up for it and, when done using the internship/trainee option, it's seen as a way to have fun for a month or more in tropical paradise with a bunch of like-minded people while diving a lot. It's just the way it is.

Yes, unfortunately that is the way it is.

 

[TMHeimer]

Yes, I understand and partially agree to that.
BUT to become a better dives you have to get more dives. Diving costs money, and overall you would spend probably a bit more just doing fun dives. If I have the time, to me it makes sense choosing the DMT so that I can get the dives in AND learn something more, getting an actual life experience, for the same or less money.

Yes, but ideally those dives to become a better diver should take place before signing up for a DM course. My experience during the course didn't include the instructor doing anything in particular to help me improve my actual diving, but we concentrated on demonstrating skills, supervising students, teaching skills, etc.-- the teaching aspect. As far as diving costing so much money, it doesn't if you do a lot of shore diving. Costs air and some gas for the car, depending on how far you drive to the sites.

 

[brsnow]

Yes, I understand and partially agree to that.
BUT to become a better dives you have to get more dives. Diving costs money, and overall you would spend probably a bit more just doing fun dives. If I have the time, to me it makes sense choosing the DMT so that I can get the dives in AND learn something more, getting an actual life experience, for the same or less money.

Diving needing liability insurance is pretty expensive.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Yes, I understand and partially agree to that.
BUT to become a better dives you have to get more dives. Diving costs money, and overall you would spend probably a bit more just doing fun dives. If I have the time, to me it makes sense choosing the DMT so that I can get the dives in AND learn something more, getting an actual life experience, for the same or less money.

In your case, you also got a social life, which is easier when taking a DM course than solo traveling to dive.

That said, to become a really good diver, you also need to dive in many different conditions. By that I mean, at some point move on. Catch some wild currents, rough surface conditions, schooling sharks, etc.

 

[TMHeimer]

Diving needing liability insurance is pretty expensive.

I'm also not sure what you mean. If you're talking about the cost of insurance for a working DM, mine was something like $150 Canadian a year (a little more than a full tank of gas here....). If you're talking about insurance as a diver you either get it or you don't.