Average Divemaster's Salary

[TMHeimer]

Yes, it has to be that these salaries include Commercial work. I suppose if a DM lives in a tropical location and is doing charters and courses almost every day a living could be made. Nowhere I've ever heard of in Can. or US.

 

[Octopusprime]

If you want to travel and dive your probably better off living minimalist and slinging burgers somewhere. Find locations with shore diving to keep costs down.

If you want to make instructor it can be a different story. If your willing to work hard and can sell yourself as a FT Independant instructor you can make good money. It is a longer story but you can sell premium experience. I know an Independant instructor that nets $80k it is his only income. But he gets $900 for an ow student. He will be a private DM where his clients pay him and pay his boat ride for him to be their private guide and get some great pics of them and the dive site.

 

[TMHeimer]

Octopusprime, I'm certainly no expert on making a living as an instructor. I have read on SB of some instructors doing exactly what you describe and making a fairly decent living. I would be interested in hearing from others who know of one pulling down $80K US. I've heard of one making $48K. Again, with very limited exposure working at one shop as a DM 4 years, I have not met one of these instructors--nor on my travels to parts of the U.S. Nevertheless, I'm skeptical as to how many do make that kind of money worldwide, and would like to hear from those more qualified than me. I do know a couple who make a living, but they also work in shops--retail, etc. And there is the odd one who will post on scubaboard. Just curious as to how hard the road is to $80K--I mean, there are 200+ NBA players also.

 

[KevinNM]

I have talked to a tech instructor who routinely teaches 1-2 classes a month for 4-6K per class, plus expenses. And this doesn't include private training and mentoring, just scheduled classes. However he's the head of cave and tech training for GUE.

I will point out that most of the GUE tech instructors I know of either have full-time good jobs or own dive shops, they are not full time instructors.