AOW question

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CoachSteve

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Location
Atlanta GA
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if this has already been addressed I apologize I didn't find it.

I am OW, and am going to start working on my AOW early early this spring. I know that to get my AOW, through PADI, I do 5 dives and classes. If I want to get the individual specialities(ie, deep diver, navigation, etc) and get 5 specialties that all work in the AOW, do I actually have to take the AOW class, or will the specialties in themselves give me the AOW.

I feel I will learn more(which is my goal) taking the individual classes, vs just doing the 5 dives for the AOW. I know it will be more expensive, but as I said, I am interested in becoming the best diver I can. Thanks for your advice and opinions.

Steve
 
The classes that you take in AOW can be applied to the specialty classes that are the same, your AOW dive can be counted as first specialty class dive
taking individual classes you will learn more, but .. are all the specialty classes pertinent to the type of diving you will do?
is the instructor thorough?
also, you could do the AOW and then go on to rescue, a very worthwhile course that will make you a safer diver and give you confidence .. and everyone agrees that it was one of the best/hardest/fun/rewarding class they ever took
 
yes, AOW then Rescue
and a good instructor can make or break a course , here is how to find one from Walters excellent post .

Walter:
Take your time to research and find the best instructor in your area. Next, take time to complete the course. A good course will last several weeks. Don't rush this, it's something you can spend the rest of your life enjoying.

How do I find an above average course and how will I know I've found it?

Interview potential instructors. Most people never ask any questions beyond price. As the old saying goes, "You get what you pay for." Excellent instructors will usually have a higher priced class for a number of reasons. The instructor is dedicated toward providing you all the time you need to master necessary knowledge and skills. Extra pool time can be expensive. Keep in mind; the instructor is trying to make a living. His time is valuable.

Consider alternatives. While many instructors teach through dive shops, some of the best are independent instructors or affiliated with colleges, universities or YMCA's.

Questions to ask the instructors:

How long have you been teaching? Most instructors improve over time. They learn new techniques and get ideas from other instructors and through experience to improve their classes.

Do you certify all your students? Only instructors who are in a hurry and care nothing about your safety will answer yes. You want an instructor who will require you to be safe and knowledgeable before issuing a c-card. An excellent instructor might tell you that he is willing to keep working with a student until the student either qualifies or gives up.

What skin diving skills will I learn? While there is some disagreement on this point, many professionals believe a solid foundation in skin diving will not only make you a better SCUBA diver, it will make learning SCUBA easier.

Will I learn confidence-building skills? There are some skills which have no direct application to a typical dive, but which do build your confidence as well as your abilities. This, combined with an understanding of the panic cycle, will make you much less likely to panic.

Do you teach the panic cycle? Panic is the most dangerous aspect of diving. Many instructors do not understand panic and believe there is no way to combat it. In actuality, panic is understood. It is though learning the panic cycle and by increasing skill levels that panic is avoided.

Do your students swim with their hands? This will let you know if the instructor pays attention to details. Good divers do not use their hands for swimming.

Do you work on trim? Divers should usually be horizontal in the water. Good instructors will see that students are striving towards good trim. Poor instructors often neglect it.

Do you overweight your students? Many instructors overweight students. It is not a good practice.

What method do you use to correctly weight your students? Any answer that does not involve actually getting in the water means you want to avoid that instructor.

How many people will be in my class? Small classes are better. You'll have more individual attention. Unless the instructor is using certified assistants, more than four students are difficult to watch.

How many certified assistants will you be using? Unless the class is relatively large (more than 4 students) this should not be an issue. An instructor should have a certified Divemaster or Assistant Instructor for every two students over four. There are times when divers working on their Divemaster or Assistant Instructor certifications assist with a class. This is normal and not an issue, but they do not count toward the assistants an instructor should have when working with larger classes.

Will I be learning skills kneeling on the pool bottom or mid-water? This question is not critical, but will let you know if you've found an instructor who has a great deal on the ball. The over whelming majority of instructors (even good instructors) teach skills kneeling on the bottom. Don't eliminate instructors who do. Some instructors have realized your mask will flood while you are swimming, not when you are sitting on the bottom. You need to learn skills in the manner in which you'll be using them.

Questions to ask yourself:

Is the instructor patient? While talking with your potential instructor, you should be getting a feel for his personality. Patience is an important quality for an instructor. You want to avoid instructors with a drill sergeant demeanor.

Would I be happier learning from a man or a woman? Only you can answer that question, but in general it is not usually a serious consideration. There are excellent instructors and there are poor instructors. Men and women fall into both groups.
 
Think of your AOW as an intro to different types of diving in which you can get additional training with an instructor. Find out which you like the best or want to improve in the most and specialize in those areas. AOW is really designed to get you to experience different sorts of diving so that you will keep diving. No doubt you will develop skills along the way.

IMO, go for the AOW and dive as much as you can. If you like your instructor consider the Rescue Course you will be eligible to take once you finish your AOW and have few dives under your weight belt. Specializing after this works best IMO.

I hope that answered your question.

Arizona
 
If you have completed five diving specialties, all you should need for AOW is an instructor to confirm this fact and complete the AOW paperwork. And you should probably own the Adventures in Diving Manual. There will of course be a fee for the AOW card, but it should be significantly less than the cost of the AOW course.
 
Thank you for the responses. Yes, I plan on doing the rescue diver course after I get AOW. Just trying to get all my ducks in a row to be able to continue to learn and dive and get better at it.
 
We almost jumped on the specialty bandwagon. After the AOW course though we shifted our focus. We had a great instructor. He encouraged us to get specialties in the areas that gave purpose to our diving. As he put it, "at some point you'll get tired of sightseeing and begin diving for a purpose."

The only way to determine what dive purposes interest you is to dive. To enjoy diving you have to be comfortable with the basics. Navigation and buoyancy control are basics that are taught in AOW. Even though we did the five intros at Lake Tahoe (Deep, Navigation, Altitude, Search and Recovery, and Peak Buoyancy), our AOW was basically a five dive Peak Buoyancy class because the instructor emphasized buoyancy control. You can learn all you need to know about the other basics from the Adventures in Diving book. Pair that with the Encyclopedia of Diving plus time in the water and you've definitely expanded your knowledge.

We've only taken one specialty course, Equipment specialist, and we only took that one because the instructor said we'd be completely tearing down our own gear. It was a great course for that reason. Others we've talked to who took the course in different locations had a less than satisfactory experience.

Based upon our short diving experience we know now we want our diving purpose to focus on photography and conservation. We'll get specialties if necessary.

Rescue diver is a must do course.
 
I was right where you're sitting, a little over three years ago. I wanted to learn to be the best diver I could. I did AOW, and still felt like there was a lot of work to do, and began chewing my way through the specialties . . . And halfway through the nav class, I began to realize that I wasn't learning very much, and the basic issues I had weren't being addressed and weren't improving. Just about that time, I went diving with NW Grateful Diver, and took one look at him and said, "Okay, THIS is how I want to be able to dive." He was quiet and stable in the water, could stop and look at anything for as long as he wanted, communicated clearly and unambiguously, and ALWAYS stayed where I could see him. He was also gracious enough to take me under his wing and work with me on improving my skills, and at that point, I really began to improve.

My strongest recommendation would be to do your AOW and Nitrox classes, and to PM DIR-Atlanta about getting out to do a few dives. This is not because I think you should adopt DIR diving, but because people with cave training are very strong in the basic skills -- buoyancy, trim, appropriate propulsion, communication and teamwork -- and can set an example, and mentor you toward acquiring those skills. And with those skills, diving becomes SO much more fun!

After you've gotten some dives in working on basic skills, you can go back to any specialties that particularly interest you and focus on the specific information offered in the class, rather than on the basic diving skills required to be there.

Rescue is a must for everybody who dives, in my opinion, and it was the one mainstream class past OW that I thought had meat to it.
 
If I want to get the individual specialities(ie, deep diver, navigation, etc) and get 5 specialties that all work in the AOW, do I actually have to take the AOW class, or will the specialties in themselves give me the AOW.

This question has come up for discussion at our shop, to the point of actually contacting PADI and getting their position on it. The short answer is no, you do not have to take the AOW course to get AOW if you do it as you are suggesting...take 5 specialties then be awarded AOW...but there is a trick to it:

You can take 4 specialties, choose three and Nav is mandatory. Once completed, you have to do Deep Diver, as Deep and Nav are the 2 required dives for AOW...and here's where the trick comes in. To enroll in Deep, you have to be at least Adventure Diver. Once you complete the first dive of any three of your chosen specialties, you can be certified as an Adventure Diver, which will then allow you to enroll in Deep Diver. Complete Deep Diver, then it's simply a paperwork to bump up to AOW. Sort of a pain though as you're paying for 2 certifications: Adventure Diver and AOW, but you might work out a deal with the shop, since you're already paying for 5 specialties.

So, yes, you can do it as you suggest, by taking the 5 specialties but it has to be done a certain way due the the Deep Diver enrollment requirements.

Comment - Technically you don't have to "complete" each specialty, just do the first dive of each one to count towards AOW.
 
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