How Many Hours of class/instructor time should a well-run DM class take?

[sheeper]

sadly, I see too many DM courses being taught quickly to get 'da money. I take a lot of time and dives with my DM students. the academics and skills are one thing. Some DM candidates need to work on that more than others. More time is spent developing the DM mindset. Diving as a DM is very different than diving for oneself. My course generally takes several months (not constant of course). The DM candidate generally has about 20 dives to do with me (and with my OW students) plus they need to go dive and practice on their own. Yes it takes time and costs a lot but you become a kick-ass DM that I would trust my life to.

 

[ScubabunnyCR]

On average for the skill circuit portion of the divemaster program, students would complete 3+ skill circuit practice sessions to get their skills to a good demonstration level, some more , some less. Each student is an individual with different personal levels of learning and for me, a divemaster program should be treated as such.Just my personal opinion ; )

 

[whitefang21]

Dm skills should also include leadership level skills not just working on skills in the pool. As post earlier mentioned building the DM mindsets, which is recognizing hazards, Hazard preparation , dive briefs and working with students. DM is a class earned through internship.

 

[DownbelowDiver]

Hi LottaBeachNoOcean

If you are feeling rushed, you should speak up!
I don’t mean to say that the dive operations who are conducting your PADI Divemaster course are ‘in the wrong’, because they could very well be keeping to the PADI Standards. If you check in your PADI Instructor Manual, the recreational hours to complete the course is 50 hours…have you had MUCH less than this? In 10 days, 50 hours will easily fit into a full-time schedule!
Not many candidates are prepared for the PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) due to this, and yet even the IDC can be completed in 11 days! You could start teaching in as little as 3 weeks! That’s intense…and not many professional divers would agree to this, but rather give candidates extended time to develop their professional abilities in a comprehensive internship - very popular in the professional scuba diving industry!
For those who have ‘been there, done that’, they wouldn’t recommend such an intense cramming of study for anyone to experience!
Go PRO internships, such as those at Downbelow Marine and Wildlife Adventures, are advised for candidates to undertake for a duration of 1-3 months to really absorb the real scuba diving experience. Interns get to observe the smooth running of a dive operations like our premier PADI 5 Star IDC Dive Centre. Other benefits include: involvement in marine conservation programs, special discount on our Sabah Travel Centre tours packages and all equipment at our Kota Kinabalu Dive Shop too.
Once you contact one of our experienced Go PRO advisors, they will give you a detailed itinerary with a quotation suited to your current qualification and future goals – within 24 hours! Really!

 

[Oldbear]

I'm taking my DM class and it's feeling rushed. We're being told that it is an "instructor development class" but it's feeling more like "Watch this. Now you do it. Pass/fail." with little or no opportunity to practice and get instructive feedback before having to perform the skill to "demonstration quality". Is that typical?

How long/ how many hours of in-class/ in-water time should be scheduled for a well-organized, well-run, comprehensive, complete DM class?

Have you expressed your concerns with your instructor(s)? Their goal should be to get you from your current level of proficiency to that of a Divemaster. Perhaps they are raising the bar a little higher with the hopes you decide to undertake an IDC in the near future. They might see things in you that you don't see in yourself. But if they feel you are competent yet you don't feel comfortable in your skill set tell them this. If they are willing to work with you then I would say you have a descent DM course; if they are not willing to work with you I am sorry but you might have been hosed.