Divemaster Course

Looking for the first step in working with scuba as a career? Your adventure into the professional levels of recreational scuba diving begins with the Divemaster program, allowing you to supervise dive activities and assist instructors with student divers. Get the opportunity to take your skills nearly anywhere in the world and make money doing what you love, where you love. Working closely with an Instructor, this program will expand your knowledge and sharpen your skills to the professional level. Looking to go further? Divemaster is the prerequisite certification for both the Assistant Instructor and Instructor certifications.

What You Learn

During the Divemaster program, you learn dive leadership skills through classroom and independent study. You will complete water skills and stamina exercises, as well as training exercises that expand your ability to organize and solve problems as well as help others improve their scuba. You will put this knowledge into action through a structured internship or series of practical training exercises on the road to becoming a professional!

As you progress through your Divemaster course, you will expand your diving knowledge, hone your skills, and increase your confidence. Then, as a Divemaster, you’ll use these attributes to lead, mentor, and motivate other divers and experience the joy of seeing them fall in love with the underwater world.

What You Can Teach

After becoming certified as a Divemaster you will be authorized to:

• Supervise both training and non-training-related activities by planning, organizing, and directing dives
• Assist an Instructor during the training sessions for any Diver course
• Conduct the Skin Diver course and Discover Snorkeling program
• Conduct the Discover Local Diving experience
• Conduct the Scuba Review program
• If qualified as a Discover Scuba Diving Leader, independently conduct the Discover Scuba Diving program
• Earn the Digital Underwater Photographer Specialty Instructor rating to teach the Digital Underwater Photographer specialty
• Independently guide Open Water Diver course students on the tour portion of Open Water Diver course Training Dives 2, 3, and 4 at a ratio of two student divers per certified divemaster.
• Accompany Open Water Diver students under the indirect supervision of a Instructor during:
  • Surface swims to and from the entry/exit point and during navigational exercises
  • When the instructor conducts a skill, such as an ascent or descent, a Divemaster can remain with other student divers (with an individual student or buddy team)
• Accompany student divers during Adventure Dives or Specialty training dives under the indirect supervision of an Instructor.
• Conduct the Seal Team Skin Diver Specialist AquaMission
• Conduct subsequent dives under an instructor’s indirect supervision for Discover Scuba Diving participants after participants have satisfactorily completed the first dive with an Instructor
• Teach Emergency First Response courses after successfully completing an Emergency First Response Instructor course

At a glance, compare what you can teach when you continue your professional diver education.

The Scuba Gear You Use

You use all the basic scuba equipment and some additional accessories such as a dive slate, dive knife, compass, dive watch, etc.
It is highly recommended that you own all of your own scuba equipment, as familiarity with personal gear improves general scuba diving skills.

The Learning Materials You Need

The Divemaster crewpack includes:

• Divemaster Manual
• Divemaster slates
• PADI Instructor Manual
• The Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving - a comprehensive overview of diving physics, physiology, and equipment
• Scuba Tune-up Guidebook
• Professional Log
• DSD Cue Cards
• Pro Bag
• Divemaster Application package

There are other required materials that a Divemaster Candidate will need but may have received them during other programs so they have not been included in the Divemaster Crew-Pak. Please ask your Instructor for the full list of required materials that you will need for the program.

You also have the option to take Divemaster Online through eLearning programs.

For all your learning materials and equipment, contact Waterdogs Scuba & Safety. Otherwise, you can sign up today online!

Prerequisites

To take this course, you must:

• Be 18 years old
• Be an Advanced Open Water Diver
• Be a Rescue Diver 
• Have completed an Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care (or qualifying first aid and CPR training from another organization) within the past 24 months.
• Have at least 40 dives to begin the course and 60 for certification
• Be fit for diving and submit a Medical Statement (PDF) signed by a physician within the last 12 months.

Other Courses That Will Prepare You for Success as a Divemaster

Here are some suggestions for other courses that will help make you more successful as a Divemaster:

• Search and Recovery (Highly recommended)
• Deep Diver (Highly recommended)
• Dive Theory Online
• Boat Diver
• Coral Reef Conservation
• Digital Underwater Photographer
• Emergency First Response Instructor
• Emergency Oxygen Provider
• Enriched Air Diver
• Equipment Specialist
• Night Diver
• Peak Performance Buoyancy
• Underwater Naturalist
• Underwater Navigation

For more information about this or other courses have a chat with one of the Waterdogs Scuba & Safety team members.