Is Halls Diving Academy the way to go?

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!

Travis M

Guest
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
I'm going to be enrolling at Halls Diving Academy in Marathon, Florida Keys. I was wandering if this was a good decision and what some of you out there know about the school that i don't.
 
At least ya didn't shell out $20k for a commercial dive school & ask the same question after they had yer $$. :crafty:
Halls has been down there doing business for quite a long time. The best thing about a program like theirs is that you get the whole thing over with in one fell swoop & you're ready to start to figure out your next step, whatever that may be.
Got any idea what you want to do after you're done?
 
Halls is a great place. I live in Marathon, know them well and they are my shop by coice.
We have used their school for our specialty certifications. Good, professional, knowledfeable.

Good Luck
 
I too am strongly considering Halls.
I would love for some of the "knowledgable members" here that have knowledge of Halls, Pro Dive or FDI to pipe in with comments, good bad or indifferent. Privately if you prefer.
The $$ that Travis M and I are considering shelling out to Halls is great, and I for one would like to feel good about doing it.

I look to manage or own (soley or partnership) a specialty dive store/operation. I am not above working my way up. In fact, I look forward to teaching.

If you are knowledgable, I have several questions about the training programs that these schools offer. (example: are the "full" couse programs Like ROS, or Halls 14 week program really needed, or helpfull as they claim?)
 
Halls Diving academy. first things first, throw out any notion that it is going to be a walk in the park! I just resently graduated from halls, it was by far the most valuable experience of my life so far, i have been diving for 5 years prior to halls and i though i would be a shoe in. Dont by any means let me scare you away from halls, when you graduate you will see that it is no ordinary dive school. you will learn the ins and outs of everything there is to know about diving if you come to halls, if you have any questions about halls please dont hesitiate to ask!
 
I was just looking at their website yesterday. EXPENSIVE!!

I've toyed with going pro for a long long time. beats sitting behind a desk all day. I have my divemaster already, but havent renewed the coverage in a long time. Don't really dive under it as i use the Master Scuba card.

Is the industry in need of people given the ecomomy? Are grads making enough money to live on? For the longest time I've heard that the money sucks and that people don't get into it to make money, but c'mon...its gotta at least pay enough to cover bills and such like a normal job.
 
I was just looking at their website yesterday. EXPENSIVE!!

I've toyed with going pro for a long long time. beats sitting behind a desk all day. I have my divemaster already, but havent renewed the coverage in a long time. Don't really dive under it as i use the Master Scuba card.

Is the industry in need of people given the ecomomy? Are grads making enough money to live on? For the longest time I've heard that the money sucks and that people don't get into it to make money, but c'mon...its gotta at least pay enough to cover bills and such like a normal job.


This is my question everyone acts as thou you can't make any money. What is this compared to. I am sure not living on a doctor's salary now. And I would sure live on less to be able to dive everyday instead of behind this desk. And deal with the snow.
 
The best training in the Keys is found, IMHO, at the Community College.
 
well...for me, i'm making approx 36k and getting by well enough. I'd be hard pressed to go any lower than that.

I'm sure it depends on location and such, but I've rarely heard how much entry level instructors or even DMs can make. And by entry level, i guess i mean OW/AOW. Obviosly im sure it goes up with the more your able to teach.
 
DM's make tips if they are lucky and get air fills. DM's on boats are usually instructors. A regular Dm in a resort is not worth much since they cannot teach many courses if any. Instructors can make a living if they are willing to work their butts off day in and day out. Of course it depends on what you call a living. It would be rare for a new instructor right out of a school to get enough to really live on. There is just not enough time for the experience that many resorts would expect. And it depends on where you want to go. I have no illusions about making a living as an instructor at this point. It is simply extra cash to pay for my fun dives and a tax write off. Of course I'm not in a diving mecca. But if I was I;d be sure I had another source of income to rely on and use the diving as extra cash. Be prepared as a new instructor in a resort to be low man on the totem pole and get the jobs no one else wants.

I have seen very good instructors get to the boat at 6 am, fill tanks, load them, check the stores, check in divers, ride out with the first trip, give a briefing, lead a few divers, come back in, unload, fill more tanks, grab a sandwich, reload for the afternoon, take that trip out, come back, unload, wash down the boat, rinse and put away gear, and get done around 7 or 8 Pm for tips and min wage. And if the shop has a number of instructors they may only get 2 or 3 days a week. They may get some classes but they will usually go to the senior instructors. Also not really that familiar with Hall's though I did consider it 3 years ago. At that time it did not seem like too bad a deal until I also started to read about and see what are known as the zero to hero programs. Kinda woke me up real fast. If you have no kids, no wife, no real obligations go for it. the worst that can happen is you have to get a "real job" and teach on the side.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

Back
Top Bottom