All You Need to Know about The PADI Dive Master Course

If you are a seasoned diver who simply cannot get enough, you may want to look into becoming a PADI dive master and making a career (or at least an extra income on the side) doing what you love.  While the dive master program is just the beginning of a scuba career, it’s the first step in developing your knowledge and skills as a diver and progressing towards the more professional aspects of diving.

Pre-Requisites; What You Need to Know Going In

Not just anyone can suddenly decide that they want to be a PADI dive master; there is a lot of time, training, and of course, diving, that has to be done before you can even consider becoming a dive master.

The most basic requirements are that the applicant must be 18 and be physically and medically fit for diving.  You will be asked to submit a medical statement signed by your physician that states that you have no medical limitations; remember that as a dive master you will be responsible for the safety of other divers- you can’t be worrying about your own physical limitations.

Aside from the basics, there are also certain certifications that you must have completed prior to taking the dive master course.  Some of these include the Advanced Open Water Diver and the Rescue Diver certifications; these can either be through PADI or another qualifying organization.  You must also have completed an emergency first response for primary and secondary care certification, which needs to have been done within 24 months of taking the dive master course.

You must also have completed at least 40 dives to begin the course and 60 before you can become certified.

What You Will Learn

While the long list of prerequisites make it seem like you already have to know everything there is to know, there is a great deal that you will learn while taking the course. Because you are expected to be a well trained diver by the time you are preparing to become a dive master, most of what you learn is focused on helping other divers.

You will be taught leadership skills that will enable you to help others improve their diving, you complete exercises that improve your skills in the water and increase your stamina, and you are also given exercises that test your ability to think quickly and critically to help you be able to stay organized and solve problems efficiently.

What You Will be Qualified and Authorized to do

Once you have completed your certification, you are authorized to do a vast array of new things, some of which include;

• Supervising, planning, organizing, and directing dives

• Accompany student divers on recreational dives

• Conduct dives under the indirect supervision of a PADI instructor

• Conduct several different PADI courses

• Teach emergency first response

• Assist PADI instructors

Some Final Points to Consider

It is advised but not recommended that you own as much of your own scuba gear as possible since you’ll be doing a great deal of diving and it helps you as a diver to have equipment that you are comfortable and familiar with.  It’s also always a good idea to do some checking around before you decide to enroll in a course to make sure that none of the requirements have changed and that you are fully eligible to begin.

As you can probably tell, it is no easy task to become a certified PADI dive master, but if scuba is truly your passion, then it is definitely worth the time and effort required.