Career Advice for a newbie!

[Nats0911]

Hi FutureScubaMermaid!! Definitely the first place to start is to get certified. From there, discover what your passion is and combine it with your love of diving and the ocean. For instance, if you love teaching others get some experience and become an instructor - the main certifying agencies like PADI and NAUI all offer career development courses all over the world where you can get experience and qualifications at the same time. If you are content to live simply (you won't become a millionaire) but in a beautiful setting, and to share with others an awesome dive destination, being a Dive Master is a great way - try combine it with another skill such as hospitality, skippering boats, etc as the market is a bit saturated and the competition strong.
Also consider careers where you can be involved in diving but it's not necessarily all that you do - like marine conservation, retail, or (like myself) travel consulting.
Best of luck!!!

 

[deesjuh]

welcome here!!

 

[Subcooled]

I want a career that involves diving or being in water

You have a host of options. The low paid works include dive master and diving instructor. Other possibilities include underwater inspections, underwater construction work, off shore diving (oil fields), research diver (possibly oceanography or something biology related), military diver, surface rescuer, underwater rescuer (various terms dependfing on country), ...

Becoming a diving instructor will probably let you see a lot of colourfull fish, that you'll know by name.
Some of the other jobs may put you in cold muddy water doing physical work.

 

[Akimbo]

.... I have recently decided I want a career that involves diving or being in water. Is it difficult to make a living diving?...

A career that involves diving covers a lot of territory. The major categories include recreational, military, commercial, public safety, hyperbaric medicine, and science diving. Probably one of the smallest and most competitive is photography and videography. The recreational industry is spread over many facets including manufacturing, retail, education, publishing, and hospitality. Hospitality can include getting a Master’s (Captain) license and running a charter boat or liveaboard, being a dive master and guide, and working in a marine exhibit… just to name a few. I am sure I forgot quite a few others.

You might read over the posts in the Commercial Divers, Public Safety Divers, Becoming a Captain, and Marine Science and Physiology forums here on Scubaboard.

You might also find books in the Book and Media Reviews forum that will help you focus in on your specific interests. Best of luck in whatever direction you select.