How many certifications dives should be required?

[Kriterian]

I don't think there is a magic number because people learn things at different paces. I think it should a minimum of 4 but up to the instructor to decide if more are required. Let the student keep practicing, and coming back for the skill's tests until they pass it with flying colors.

 

[SDAnderson]

As many as it takes. How many is less important than you are able to learn and demonstrate the skills. However, I'm not going to second guess the training agencies: they have a pretty good record of turning out divers that are at least minimally qualified. If it were up to me, certification would be a lot harder to get than it is, but my interests don't coincide with the interests of those for whom scuba is a business and my expectations might not be reasonable.

 

[String]

Ideal world OW would be merged with AOW and around 10 dives needed.

In reality this will never happen as its all done by breaking courses into small chunks and selling each one individually.

 

[H2Andy]

Ideal world OW would be merged with AOW and around 10 dives needed.

i have heard that in the early days, getting certified meant you took one class
which encompassed the modern day OW, AOW, and Rescue

 

[StSomewhere]

i think 8, spread into at least two weekends

basic skills, lots of repetition

Huh, that's what I picked too (7+) and for the same reasons. Scary, huh?

Edit: But not nearly as scary as whoever voted for 0 or 1. :11:

 

[Hyper-limits]

IMO 5 to 7 should be good, of course some diver do fine with 5 dives minimum others should get over 10.

 

[dive_lover88]

i believe that OW certification shld be at least 7 dives...to let the new divers feel accustomed to the water and perfect their boyancy, this way they can save the corals and the divers can gain more confidence in diving.

 

[voop]

I generally "sell" packages of "course + 5 excoursion/training dives", which means that an OW or AOW diver from me has ~10 OW dives prior to certification. The excursions happen with me, typically between the second-to-last and last certification dive, but are not training dives as such.

Notice, I do not "require" 10 dives for certification, I require what the standards of my organization prescribes to the letter. I just made the business-decission to not sell a BOW or AOW course alone, when I can package it with additional dives (for everyones benefit: I've yet to see a diver, who didn't want to go diving...)

 

[miketsp]

I don't see why there should be a minimum or a maximum.
It should be enough and whatever is necessary for the instructor to be happy to sign the certificate.
When my wife qualified some years ago she did the pool training, then 1 dive in a dark claustrophobic 15m tower and then 1 OW dive at which point the instructor was more than happy to sign her off.
Of course 30 years previous free-diving & snorkelling made a tremendous difference.

 

[Buoyant1]

Chosen by someone who ISN'T certified yet! my guess....

Huh, that's what I picked too (7+) and for the same reasons. Scary, huh?

Edit: But not nearly as scary as whoever voted for 0 or 1. :11: