PADI vs NAUI

[MXGratefulDiver]

As for the time requirements no one can say 2 days is too short or any of that crap. It all depends on the student. I took 3 days to do my OW(I realise that most people are going to harp on my experience here and all that) but I thought it was all remedial and common sense and very easy. I am a very safe diver and have not had any issues, my point is the time required is different for all people. In my case I had 3 resort courses and 10 dives under my belt before I started the OW, as a headstart over some people, but the padi program was all basic science, that was logical and easy for me. I take this very seriously, I challenge anyone to say I do not exhibit the required skills and knowledge to be OW certified because I did it in 3 days.

Gordo

Well, first off ... some of us who responded did say that there are exceptions ... but they are a very small minority. As you noted, you had the advantage of prior training and experience before you took your class. It's entirely possible, though not a given, that you are one of those small minority. However, divers as a rule tend to view themselves as more skilled than they actually are.

Secondly ... please revisit this thread after you've logged 100 dives or so, when you have the advantage of having learned what you don't currently know, and tell us if you still feel that way.

Most experienced divers will look back on their first several dives after having developed an idea of what wasn't taught to them in OW and tell you that they took chances ... out of ignorance ... that they'd never take now that they have the advantage of having learned a bit more.

What a "mini-course" doesn't typically provide is adequate time for the average person to ask questions (because you can't question a CD), develop adequate in-water skills to avoid reef-bouncing and accidental ascents, and ... most importantly ... a contextual reference for how slow a 30-fpm ascent REALLY is.

The VAST majority of new divers I've dived with couldn't take 30 seconds to ascend from their safety stop directly to the surface if their life depended on it ... fortunately, it usually doesn't.

That one example alone is something that you can only develop with adequate pool time and practice ... and it's one of the most fundamental tenets of safe diving practices.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[DiveGolfSki]

I am looking at taking a class I see that some shops are offering PADI certification and others are offering NAUI cerification. What is the difference?

My goal is to be able to go on vacation and dive without having to follow an instructor. Understand decrompression, safety and diving technics to have an enjoyable and safe dive. What should I get? OW PADI? NAUI?

Thanks!

By now you should have gotten very good advice (e.g., the agency doesn't matter but the instructor does). Here's a humorous explanation of the agencies:

Four instructors and their students are on board a dive boat in the middle
of the ocean. There is a NAUI instructor, a PADI instructor, a GUE DIR-F instructor and an SSI instructor. Everything is going fine until the boat springs a leak and starts
to sink.

The NAUI instructor says to his students, "Okay, we might as well do our
navigation dive, so let's get our compasses out and swim towards shore."

The SSI instructor says to his students, "Okay, we're in the middle of the
ocean, so we might as well do our deep dive."

The GUE DIR-F says to his students, "See, even the BOAT can be a point of failure. Therefore all DIR dives henceforth will be shore dives . . ."

The PADI instructor says to his students, "Okay, for $25 extra you guys get
to do a wreck dive!"

 

[lmorin]

Trinigordo,

No offense intended but:

I have had a 3 day OW course. I had good instructors too and after the three days I thought I was a diver.

I wasn't.

3 day-courses don't produce a diver (at least not by my standards and, as I suspect, not by the standards of a large majority of the members of this board) - they produce somebody who (at the very best) is sufficiently skilled to get into the water on his own and LEARN to dive.
If you believe that in 3 days you have been taught all you need to know to be a good diver - think again. You have not nearly dived enough to know what you don't know (and neither have I).
If you think you are a "very safe diver" and when you say that you "have not had any issues" I sincerely hope that you will still be around to say that after you have had a serious encounter with Murphy.

I think Blox has said it all. Unless you go to "scuba camp" or some such thing that allows you to have daily instruction over a long period before receiving a C-card, all that you get from any of the agencies is permission to go on to the next step which is truly learning how to dive properly. Speaking for myself, I am much different now and my skills much better than when I completed the PADI OW. C-card plus experience yields increased competence. I did AOW after 25 dives and it seemed a reasonable next step toward diving maturity. Eventually, 50-500 dives from now, I might actually be a "good" diver.

 

[drew52]

As with most of the other posts; Choose an instructor not an agency; I did all my courses through NAUI except for DM & Instructor which I did through PADI. There is not really much difference between the courses I was taught and the ones I was taught to teach.

PADI does however have really good teaching materials compared to those I experienced with the NAUI course

 

[veggiedog]

However, divers as a rule tend to view themselves as more skilled than they actually are.

I read an interesting article about a study done about perceived knowledge. I continue to see consistency between the data in the study and my observations about people.

In short:
Knowledgeable people tend to be more knowledgeable than they think they are compared to people that lack knowledge (i.e. people that lack knowledge tend to be less knowledgeable than they think they are).

Keep in mind they were comparing perceived knowledge to actual knowledge in both cases.

 

[Blox]

I read an interesting article about a study done about perceived knowledge. I continue to see consistency between the data in the study and my observations about people.

In short:
Knowledgeable people tend to be more knowledgeable than they think they are compared to people that lack knowledge (i.e. people that lack knowledge tend to be less knowledgeable than they think they are).

Keep in mind they were comparing perceived knowledge to actual knowledge in both cases.

That rings very true to me. I think that knowlegable people are typically the more inquiring minds - knowledge has to be actively gained/earned, rather than passively received - and would by nature be more analytical and rather question nearly everything, including their own capabilities/knowledge. Less knowledgable people would probably be people less inclined to seek additional knowledge and look beyond their current horizon, and may tend to believing that they know all there is to know.

 

[jeckyll]

I'd like to add one thing above and beyond 'it's the instructor'. If you find an instructor that you feel comfortable with and who will make sure that you get good instruction vs. a quick 'check' on a list of skills, the number of dives that instructor has had may not be as important as people lead you to believe. I would say this holds especially true of OW.

I'm sure this will rub alot of people the wrong way, but just because someone has 1000 or 2000 or 3000 dives, does not mean that you will learn more about diving, though they sure should have some more interesting stories.

To qualify this statement, I've been an IT instructor since '98 and I have mentored new instructors as well as evaluated instructors who had many years of training experience and found that often times for basic concepts, the newer instructors often did better than the more experienced instructors. They frequently showed more enthusiasm and were able to engage classes better.

So, if you find an instructor you like who is passionate about what they are teaching that is worth a tremendous amount in my experience.

Bjorn

P.S.: And yes, I realize this is an old thread, but hopefully some new folks will read it still

 

[jeckyll]

I read an interesting article about a study done about perceived knowledge. I continue to see consistency between the data in the study and my observations about people.

In short:
Knowledgeable people tend to be more knowledgeable than they think they are compared to people that lack knowledge (i.e. people that lack knowledge tend to be less knowledgeable than they think they are).

Keep in mind they were comparing perceived knowledge to actual knowledge in both cases.

I think that makes alot of sense. Basic learning stages:
1: Unconscious unawareness (don't know what you don't know)
2: Conscious unawareness (realize there is alot you don't know)
3: Conscious awareness (with effort can produce desired results)
4: Unconscious awareness (produce desired result without though)

Once you are unconsciously aware, you don't know what you know. Or more adequately, you know so much that many things are simple 'instinct' or 'muscle memory'. Whatever you call it

 

[unclewas]

Personally I don't have any use for PADI (the organisation) HOWEVER,,,learning to dive is not about the organisation or its repressive and profit motivated ideals it is about the instructor. The instructor is everything. The instructor is the only thing.

And when it comes to diving,,,you really really want a teacher who can help you feel and be comfortable confident and competent in the water.

It never ceases to amaze me just how many non confident uncomfortable and plain incompetent "certified" divers there are fumbling around underwater running low on air, having endless bouyancy problems not watching where they're going and just not having fun.

The diving experience should be one of beautiy and art. It should be a peaceful relaxing and wonderous experience not something filled with stress.

backinthewombwas

 

[ProfessorAronnax]

From what I've seen, if your a SBer your probably one of the "more knowledgeable". I've been certified over 25 years and have already learned some new things here.

As far as certifying agency, it's the Instructor not the course.