intro dives and open water certification

[angieliu]

Hi there,

I've done a couple of intro dives at the great barrier reef and I'm keen to go and do my open water certification. Does anyone know if I can get this counted towards my certificate?

Also here in Canberra the only PADI place, on completion of the dive course only gives you the normal Certification card. Some places also offer the PADI gold certification card. Does it really matter and is there a big difference?

Last question (I promise), I have a choice to either go with SSI or PADI, which one is better and will it affect me in any way of doing dives or pursuing other special dive courses? I'm leaning towards PADI but I hear that with the curriculum, it doesn't give the instructor much leeway with their teaching methods and with SSI it does, however SSI is newer and sometimes not as well recognised. Is this right?


Thanks

Angie

 

[almitywife]

hi Angie... so are you in canberra???

can i suggest you travel a few hours (get out of canberra!) and go to either Shellharbour (Wollongong) or to Jervis Bay

when you did your intro dives.... was it a 'discover scuba' and did you get a cert card showing you completed the dives? EVEN if you did, can i suggest you do the complete open water course as it will be better (and more fun) for you to complete the entire course with your instructor and fellow students... more importantly, GBR tropical diving is nothing like what youre going to get at home so the more guidance you get in your local water the better.

padi - ssi (plus you have tdi, naui, gue ect), both have a strong following and you can travel & dive with no problems. having diff certs from diff agencies will only become a hassle if you decided to become a dive professional as you may be asked to cross-train to the one agency (does that make any sense?)

cheers

 

[redrover]

Why would you not want to have ‘a couple of’ more dives under the guidance of an instructor?

 

[Walter]

I've done a couple of intro dives at the great barrier reef and I'm keen to go and do my open water certification. Does anyone know if I can get this counted towards my certificate?

I would think you'd want to dive more. I don't know if they will count towards certification, but they shouldn't. Go ahead and make the extra dives.

Also here in Canberra the only PADI place, on completion of the dive course only gives you the normal Certification card. Some places also offer the PADI gold certification card. Does it really matter and is there a big difference?

The only difference is the color. The color doesn't impress anyone. It's a marketing ploy to encourage shops to become a 5 star facility, which is, also, merely a marketing tool. A 5 star facility is not like a 5 star hotel. A 5 star hotel has been "awarded" the 5 stars through an independent review. They could have been awarded 2 stars. A 5 star facility has not been through an independent review, they merely paid their dues. There are no 2 star facilities. Once you understand it, you realize it's a misleading ad campaign.

Last question (I promise), I have a choice to either go with SSI or PADI, which one is better and will it affect me in any way of doing dives or pursuing other special dive courses?

You've already asked which is better in another thread, read it, you have lots of replies. You can choose either (or yet a different agency) and then take future courses with other agencies.

I'm leaning towards PADI but I hear that with the curriculum, it doesn't give the instructor much leeway with their teaching methods and with SSI it does, however SSI is newer and sometimes not as well recognised. Is this right?

The first part is right, PADI's program is very structured. I don't think that's a good thing, especially since, in my opinion, the order mandated is not a very good method for learning. SSI has been around for almost as long as PADI. PADI started in 1966, SSI in 1970. It split away from NASDS which had formed in 1961. The two merged in 1999. Depending on how you look at it, SSI is either 4 years younger or 5 years older than PADI. They are both equally recognized.

 

[Patty]

Also here in Canberra the only PADI place, on completion of the dive course only gives you the normal Certification card.

Walters guide is excellent, but more briefly:

- see how you feel about the instructor, the quality of the training comes a lot more from the instructor than the certification agency.

- Don't be afraid to spend an extra 20% for better training.

- The more dives you need to get your cert the better. My wife and I were a "floppy cows" in the water (her words) for about 15 dives, finding it ok but really hard work until we got some more advice. More structured demonstration really helped us in the water. The more structured training at the start you get (from a good instructor), the less you will be a floppy cow.

- Jervis is great, and I've heard eden -> tathra is brilliant; I'm planning to get there soon. You'll have great fun, and you're not far from some excellent diving.

 

[Buoyant1]

Technically, I think that a Discover Scuba Diving session covers your first OW dive, but why would you want it to cover it since it's a warm up dive with no skills, and...you're diving again!?

Other than that...it's another dive experience!

 

[String]

Technically, I think that a Discover Scuba Diving session covers your first OW dive, but why would you want it to cover it since it's a warm up dive with no skills, and...you're diving again!?

Other than that...it's another dive experience!

Theres a few ifs/buts here...

Firstly they needed to do AAS on the DSD to get it to count. Secondly, it must be within a time period to count, i believe 12 months.
Thirdly, it may not have been a DSD as such, "try dives" come in many forms and discover scuba is just one of them.

If you move between instructors for the course the instructor will be obliged to pre-assess you as well which will take just as long as the first dive again.

All in all unless going IMMEDIATELY from a DSD to a course id say to it again. More dives is never bad.

 

[String]

having diff certs from diff agencies will only become a hassle if you decided to become a dive professional as you may be asked to cross-train to the one agency (does that make any sense?)
cheers

Disagree with that. Id encourage people to train under as many different agencies as possible - each does have its differences and pros/cons. It broadens the knowledge and experience base.

 

[angieliu]

Hello everyone,

Thanks for all your advice. I agree the more dives you do the more comfortable you are going to be.

As for the gold certification and star rating. I didn't quite realise until recently that was more of a marketing coy than anything and probably an aesthetic thing in that one card is gold in colour and other is a different card and that you end up with the same certification.

Walter thanks for the heads up in the differences between PADI and SSI.

Angie

 

[Walter]

You're welcome.