A few questions about Going Pro.

[Emil Neckelmann]

Hello Everyone

I am a 21 year old Danish guy who is currently working/living in Australia. In April I am ending a saving period and starting some travels in Asia. Because of the good diving and cheap courses, I am looking into the possibilities of becoming a dive-master. I have done 33 dives at my current padi open water level over the last 3 years. Diving and free-diving is a great passion of mine and it has s been my plan to develop my diving skills since I jumped in the pool. I have always envied the dive-masters and their jobs, so therefore I am asking:

If you were in my position where would you go and what would you do job-wise?
Is it easy to find dive-master jobs around Asia and else where?
Is it possible to find dive-centers that offers the courses and a job afterwards (if qualified)?

Hopefully you have some ideas that will help me pursue my little dream.

Emil

 

[rivers]

At 33 dives, just go diving. Forget about going pro until you have more experience. 33 dives over 3 years isn't a whole lot of diving. I'll do that in about 9/10 weeks.

 

[elan]

Its super easy to find a DM job here. You are not paid though

 

[NCadiver]

Emil you will need to be an Instructor to be hired on. The local usually get the Divemaster job if they have the Divemaster rating and foreigners are Instructor doing the Dive master job that day.
If you can do it have fun since you are still young it a good way to travel and have fun for a short time.

And like Rivers said you need to do a lot more diving. Just saying I done that many dives in a week.

 

[Colliam7]

I am a 21 year old Danish guy who is currently working/living in Australia. In April I am ending a saving period and starting some travels in Asia. Because of the good diving and cheap courses, I am looking into the possibilities of becoming a dive-master. I have done 33 dives at my current padi open water level over the last 3 years. . . . I have always envied the dive-masters and their jobs (possibly because you see only one side of the job ), If you were in my position where would you go and what would you do job-wise? Find a career that will pay you enough to live, then pursue being a DM as a hobby. SE Asia is a possibility, as is the Caribbean. Is it easy to find dive-master jobs around Asia and else where? Yes. If you add the word 'paying' in front of dive-master, that is another story. Is it possible to find dive-centers that offers the courses and a job afterwards (if qualified)? Yes, again with the caveat about pay.

At 33 dives, just go diving. . . . . 33 dives over 3 years isn't a whole lot of diving.

I would agree with this, not as a criticism but as an observation of fact. Now, if you do pursue DM training (and possibly stay on as a DM in one of the SE Asia or Caribbean locales), you will probably get a lot of good diving experience. It won't be financially appealing, you may decide you don't care for the work. But, that is doable. But, you have to be financially independent, or willing to exist as a near-pauper for the time you are doing it. You won't necessarily be starving, but you won't have much discretionary income

 

[Bubble Junky]

Emil you will need to be an Instructor to be hired on. The local usually get the Divemaster job if they have the Divemaster rating and foreigners are Instructor doing the Dive master job that day.

I have lived and worked in the dive industry in Asia for over ten years, and the above comment isn't strictly true - it depends on the country. The Philippines, for example, has many local DMs, but Thailand has very few. In Thailand, especially places like Koh Lanta and Koh Phi Phi, it is quite easy to find paid work as a foreign DM...

 

[Jaja]

At 33 dives, just go diving. Forget about going pro until you have more experience. 33 dives over 3 years isn't a whole lot of diving. I'll do that in about 9/10 weeks.

I would only agree with this statement in part. Correct, 33 dives isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but it's maybe not too early to START your Pro training. You will need 40 dives to start the PADI Divemaster course but if I were you I would choose a lengthy Divemaster training program with unlimited dives. I have taught plenty of Divemasters who have made over 100 dives during their DM training. Diving with a background knowledge of what is required of a DM, assisting qualified DMs and Instructors etc, can give you more experience than 1000 "fundives" where you follow a guide. I guess its all relative.

If you have a good attitude and are not afraid of hard work, and you choose your location wisely, I'm sure you will find work. However you are more likely to find work around the world if you are an Instructor. But take your time to gain knowledge and experience - it will make you a better dive Pro in the long run.