are there jobs for freshly qualified Divemasters?

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

There is no PADI compressor repair course. You would need to contact a manufacturer of high pressure compressors and see what they offer or suggest in the way of training. I would guess a trade school would do for either. And a diesel engine is a diesel engine. Some are just a lot bigger than others.

cheers Jim - do you know what the most popular types are that dive schools use? is there a main brand?

you know, the more I think about it, I cant put my finger on why people arent able to make a living doing this. I mean scuba diving is an expensive pasttime. That means that theres money being charged for diving and this money goes into the system, but cant all be used on maintainance costs etc. someone must be getting rich!

for example. Say an Open Water course costs 400 quid (I dont know if this is what it costs these days but its just a ball park figure)

then if you have 5 students a week - which is one course thats 5*400 = £2,000. 4.3 weeks in a month - so thats £8,600 pounds a month.

If you employ two instructors you can double that so thats£17,200 a month.

then say you get 10 divers a day doing regular dives besides the students. Paying £50 quid a day each. Thats £500 pounds a day. times that by 30 as we are working 7 days a week. thats another 6 grand in the pot.

So with just 2 instructors running one course a week each, and one or two dive masters and a couple of support staff to run the centre you are taking in about 23,000 a month. That's over a quater of a million pounds a year before tax.

Admittidely I havent taken any costs into account here but even if there is 50% a month in costs, then thats still over a £100,000 in profit a year..

and thats a small operation. Some of the dive centres Ive been too are doing way more than two Open Water courses a week.

either way, that seems like enough money to be able to pay staff enough to live off eh?

or am I missing something big here?
 
Once you work out the operational costs you start seeing where it goes. for a PADI course £X goes to PADI for material and registration and the rest depends on the set up i.e. if they do boat diving how much does it cost to get it in the water, transport fees, harbour fees, equipment wear and tear servicing and replacement, compressor maintenance and servicing, insurance, electricity, rates, rent, wages for each member of staff the list goes on and on

Also think about your sum being based on an ideal situation i.e. having the maximum amount of customers through the door all the time - this rarely happens, bills stall have to be paid in low/rainy season

Also you stated a ball park of £400 per course you will find the costs overseas closer to $400 which already knocks a % off your figure
 
cheers Jim - do you know what the most popular types are that dive schools use? is there a main brand?

In Asia, they are mostly Bauer or Coltrisub.

you know, the more I think about it, I cant put my finger on why people arent able to make a living doing this.

Because there's a thousand thousand people queuing up to work as DMs or Instructors, who are willing to do it for peanuts, or free.

It's an employer-centric job market. If you don't like the pay, then there's always someone waiting in your shadow to do the job for less money without complaint...

I mean scuba diving is an expensive pasttime. That means that theres money being charged for diving and this money goes into the system, but cant all be used on maintainance costs etc. someone must be getting rich!

Not at all. Here in Asia, you can get an OW course for $150-200 (dollars, not pounds).

From that amount, maybe $40 goes to the agency (certification fee). Then you have to pay staff wages (instructor, boat captain, tank filler, cleaner, receptionist etc etc). Then you have to pay the amenity bills (water, electricity). Then you have to pay for the scuba kit...it needs replacing often and servicing/spares even more often. Then you have to pay for the compressor...and oil...and filters. Then you need to pay for insurance. Then you need to pay for agency membership fees. Then you need to pay for a website. Then you need to pay for other marketing materials. Then you need to pay for a TV, DVD and other training/teaching aids. Then you need to taxes....Then you need to account for depreciation on your premises, boat, vehicles, compressor etc etc (you get the idea...I could carry on writing this list all day).

Add to that... there are plenty of times when diving gets cancelled. Monsoons and typhoons in the tropics. Winter storms in Europe. Profit and loss has to be balanced over the year.

I mean it seems crazy doesn't it! That a professional scuba instructor should earn substantially less than a driving instructor, or a piano instructor....
 
In Asia, they are mostly Bauer or Coltrisub.

superb - thanks for this info

Because there's a thousand thousand people queuing up to work as DMs or Instructors, who are willing to do it for peanuts, or free.
It's an employer-centric job market. If you don't like the pay, then there's always someone waiting in your shadow to do the job for less money without complaint...

I think this is the crux of the matter. Its simple economics. Suppy is vastly outweighing demand, so wages are very low.



Not at all. Here in Asia, you can get an OW course for $150-200 (dollars, not pounds).


well I must have been robbed blind in the Dominican Republic! and that was some years ago too. Maybe diving has got a lot cheaper or maybe my memory isn't correct.

From that amount, maybe $40 goes to the agency (certification fee). Then you have to pay staff wages (instructor, boat captain, tank filler, cleaner, receptionist etc etc). Then you have to pay the amenity bills (water, electricity). Then you have to pay for the scuba kit...it needs replacing often and servicing/spares even more often. Then you have to pay for the compressor...and oil...and filters. Then you need to pay for insurance. Then you need to pay for agency membership fees. Then you need to pay for a website. Then you need to pay for other marketing materials. Then you need to pay for a TV, DVD and other training/teaching aids. Then you need to taxes....Then you need to account for depreciation on your premises, boat, vehicles, compressor etc etc (you get the idea...I could carry on writing this list all day).

Add to that... there are plenty of times when diving gets cancelled. Monsoons and typhoons in the tropics. Winter storms in Europe. Profit and loss has to be balanced over the year.

yep, I take your point! there are a lot of expenses. It seems though that the expenses are a bit problem for profitablitiy its not the sole issue here - if shops are only charging $150-200 dollars for an OW course then the lack of income is really an equally big issue....

Competition must be fierce to be charging so little....

I mean it seems crazy doesn't it! That a professional scuba instructor should earn substantially less than a driving instructor, or a piano instructor....

I guess that being a scuba instructor is a bit more desirable than being a driving instructor!
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

Back
Top Bottom