Master Scuba Diver Certification

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I'm going to go against the flow and say DON'T do divemaster, unless you have a specific ambition to work in the dive industry, or to help someone teach.

Id agree entirely with that. A DM course is all about learning how to supervise others, very little is about your own diving skills. If you want to improve your OWN skills an entry level tech course like AN/Deco Proc etc is a far better idea.

 

[fnfalman]

I'm going to go against the flow and say DON'T do divemaster, unless you have a specific ambition to work in the dive industry, or to help someone teach. Although there is a lot of academic material in the DM class that you might not have seen before, it is not a class that will improve your own personal diving skills, except perhaps to hone your situational awareness.

Yep.

There are plenty of technical diving classes that one can learn if one were to want to improve diving skills and efficiencies.

DM is a professional certification. If you're not making money off it then there's no reason to be a dive master.

 

[Simon-]

I would disagree with comments made that unless you are going to go pro, DM isn't an avenue to go down. I think the DM course is a great avenue to go down, even if you don't maintain your active status................the knowledge learnt can only improve you as a diver.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

It does of course depend on the DM course. One that spends a majority of the time with marketing and selling more courses is a total waste if you don't plan on leading divers or teaching. In fact that should be a seperate thing for those who want to take it. Leadership courses should focus on diving skills and education and passing that on. You can get a marketing lesson at any community college campus and it would probably be better. What sells training is training in itself that is good. Good useful gear also sells itself through word of mouth. Flashy ads for anything now tell me that the goods are most likely crap. Simple and honest are what I look for. Anything else is ignored.

 

[Anti-Hero]

...but if you want to stay on the recreational side of diving, and still "be all you can be" as a diver, you might consider doing the NAUI Master Diver, which is a totally different animal...

I disagree - No "master diver" program is worth it's title. NAUI's master diver program has such lofty goals as:

" during a navigation dive the student will swim a reciprocal course to within 10 feet (3 m) of its origin" - So if we distill that down, students are required to swim in a straight line.

 

[TMHeimer]

I'm not totally familiar with the NAUI MSD class diving requirements (I've heard the academics is akin to PADI DM ones, no?). What do you guys think of the NAUI dive requirements vs. 5 of the "useful" PADI specialties such as Deep, Nav, Wreck, etc.? Which course would be more beneficial to your actual diving, leaving academics out of the equation (or assuming you have done PADI DM as well)?

 

[jagfish]

I disagree - No "master diver" program is worth it's title. NAUI's master diver program has such lofty goals as:

" during a navigation dive the student will swim a reciprocal course to within 10 feet (3 m) of its origin" - So if we distill that down, students are required to swim in a straight line.

The great thing about any NAUI course is that only the minimum standards are listed. Instructors are encouraged to exceed standards...which the majority do. You might ask around with some NAUI instructors to find out what the actually do/require in this course before making the above judgment...

In addition, the lion's share of diving-related knowledge development for the NAUI system happens at the MD level. The master diver text is a significant academic undertaking. In the PADI system, the Encyclopedia of Diving knowledge comes at the DM level.

So one significant difference is that in the PADI system, to "be all you can be" so to speak, you have to go to the DM level, whereas in the NAUI system, you can take on the skills and knowledge while remaining at the recreational level.

 

[Laurie S.]

I'm working toward the SSI Master Diver card, mainly because I like setting goals and reaching them. I'm a new diver with only 18 dives so far, but I've already passed Stress and Rescue, along with other specialities: enriched air nitrox, underwater digital photography, night and limited visibility, equipment techniques and maintenance, and boat diving (that one essentially was a freebie during OW certification). Over the next few months, I'll be taking wreck diving; computer diving; navigation; waves, tides, and currents, and several others. I'm also diving about every two months and am trying to get my 50 dives in by the end of the year.

I'm not a card collector and I don't pay for the card if it's extra. And, when I have to show my cert card, I just show the highest level one I have, which right now is Specialty Diver. I like taking the classes and I enjoy learning, which is why I am doing this. Will I be a "master diver" by the time I reach the dives to get the card? I don't know, but I certainly should be feeling pretty comfortable with most things by then.

Oh yeah, I also don't do this to impress the ladies since I am one.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I disagree - No "master diver" program is worth it's title. NAUI's master diver program has such lofty goals as:

" during a navigation dive the student will swim a reciprocal course to within 10 feet (3 m) of its origin" - So if we distill that down, students are required to swim in a straight line.

But what happens when the instructor decides that the reciprocal course is 100 feet in 4-6 foot vis with a mild current. You also need to look at the other requirements. I happen to have the NAUI Master Diver student manual and instructor guide. I wonder if you have read both of them.

 

[EzeeDiver]

Biggest thing to remember, in my opinion, is not to flash the DM card on vacation, unless you are teaching. Once dive operators know you are a DM or Instructor, of whatever agency, they may ask you to "watch" inexperienced divers, which puts liability on you (I've seen it happen). Better to show them the card you need for the dive, ie you are diving nitrox and show your nitrox card, and have fun!

PS I have the MSD card, which I got just for me...