PADI DM finished, hints to others

[txcwgirl]

Does the new DM program require a deep dive specialty and a search and rescue specialty?

MX727, I was required to have my rescue and they did ask if I had my Deep Dive, I did so I had no requirements for that.

---------- Post added April 23rd, 2012 at 08:35 AM ----------

endurodog,

What did you think of the maping project? That is what got me at the end. It took me 12 months to finish due to instructor issues and mistakes. I was extrememly lucky in the fact I got to fire one of my instructors because of the way he was treating me. I am extrememly happy to have my DM completed.

 

[endurodog]

endurodog,

What did you think of the maping project? That is what got me at the end. It took me 12 months to finish due to instructor issues and mistakes. I was extrememly lucky in the fact I got to fire one of my instructors because of the way he was treating me. I am extrememly happy to have my DM completed

I actually really liked the mapping project. I'm kind of a geek that way and have always had a thing for maps so this really gave me a chance to really play with it. Then the measurements was a chance to kind of just dive after doing DM stuff during classes.

Good to hear that you were able to find an instructor that would work with you. I got really lucky and me and my instructor just clicked and he had me work with several other instructors from the shop. Still working with him DMing through his shop too.

Trying to remember without looking it up I think it's written you either need deep and search and rescue or they have to spend some extra time working on those areas with you. Not required but highly recommended is how I think they have it written.

 

[Karibelle]

Rescue Diver is a prerequisite for DM. There is a Deep scenario and a Search and Recovery scenario in the new DM program. If the student holds those specialties, you can omit the scenario(s) from the DM training.

 

[davetowz]

I will include those scenarios for my DMC's when I hit the instructor level, good refresher, hard to believe what we can forget.

 

[rlynch]

i am currently working my way through the DM course.
Some observations along the way:

Demoing skills
1) Demo quality skills need to be very Slowly done - if you think your going slow already, pause and slow down some more.
2) be relaxed when preforming a skill
3) do it the way the instructor wants (the one whom is going to grade your circuit) not the way you think it should be done. you can develop your own style later

Tests
1) read the question carefully
2) if you have a good understanding of the materials i would not sweat it. The pass is 75% and there are no extra points for a perfect score. If you can get it great but the Pass is the important part.
3) read the physics section carefully.
4) have a rational mindset for the rest of the questions and think in a service oriented Role. What would you want out of a DM on a trip or a shop.

Watermanship skills (only the 400 yrd swim, Float done so far)
1) swim - take it easy and focus on finishing i would not worry too much about time. you still get 1 point if you take an hour to complete it - just complete it. I recieved a 3 here but did not practice it at all and we did it in Pool session #1 right out of the gate.
2) Float - float on your back if possible if not drown proof, its easy to get a 5 here.
3) 800 yrd M/F/S - seems to be the same as the 400 yrd swim as far as diffculty goes - just focus on finishing it. If possible a long pool would be beneficial to minimize the turns -
4) Tired diver - done this in real life: Push the diver, same advice as the 800 yrd swim on pool length.5
5) Problem solving - dunno and could vary widely (i have no idea)

Basically if your reasonably fit you should have no problems with these even if you have a weak area such as swiming.

Most important observations.

1) Boyancy control: you need it to be solid, hard to demo and watch demo's if your bouncing around.
2) Weighting: weight your Scuba Rig correctly and stash a few weights at the pool edge if you or someone else needs more. (i don't carry them on me, but some shops may want you to)
3) Be comfortable with your gear, miminize it to just the required items. Be able to set it up - Demo quality, quickly.
4) mind the small stuff - neauances in the demo's and what the instructor says he is looking for, also ask them what they are looking for.

Have fun. I end up spending a lot of time hovering in the trim position in the shallow end of the pool durring a class, while watching the other DMC's do a run at the skills. and generally only on my knees for a demo (if your shop likes to do it this way, mid water is possible for many skills but talk to your instructor)

most important is have fun.

 

[fncrow]

I just finished my DM today and it was an awesome course, we had a great time.

My tips would be....

Water skills:
Really not much to say here. I think the hardest for me was actually the 800m but we did it in open water from the boat to a mooring ball and it was so easy to get lost not being able to see the ball in the distance over the waves. Float was super easy, i spent most of it on my back. 400m wasnt that hard i just side stroked the whole thing. Diver tow just go all out on. Its only 100m so speed through it and get an easy 5. Gear exchange underwater i think its best to start in the other persons gear and exchange into your own. Also make sure the have weight on you and on your BCD so you dont go floating off and go slow.

DM exam:
Part 1 was super easy. It was all questions like whats expected of you as a DM and so on. Part 2 was a little tougher and really most the questions i got wrong where instances of "well its either A or B..... im gonna go with A" and it turns out being B. I would say more emphasis was placed on medical and DCS type questions than actual physics and math behind diving.

Demos:
As said above. Go slow and exaggerate your movements and you will be fine. I cant remember but there was only two skills that i scored less than a 5 on and it was for small stuff. Basically just copy whatever your instructor does when they demo it to you and you should be fine.

Definitely the most fun and best course i've taken yet but i also had a really good group of people and teacher. We had fun.

 

[k ellis]

All really great advice here. When you become a divemaster you in a lot of ways become one with the shop. In this respect alot of things do change some what because your sort of an employee so to speak but on a volunteer basis. This really causes alot of debate in the professional world because people generally expect to be compensated for their time and are a little disappointed in the life they find versuses the life they actually find

To those seeking to be a divemaster you really should know what to expect before you ever enter the program. Divemastering is not a career goal for the majority of people and its more then anything else sort of a diver who loves diving so much they really love to share their joy with new divers. It also involves leading a tour off boats in many cases where divers pay good money to go on trips. These tend to be paid positions but the pay in most cases is so small that you really depend on the tips many other divers get. I always advise people to expect nothing more then minimum pay because their are those rare divers who dont tip up at the end of the dive. To me this is no big deal though because it really is about the diving for me.

As a diver you can recommend any instructor you want and you can do so freely. But as a divemaster people do take your word more serious as they expect you to know the best instructors and they expect you to know the best gear and they expect you to know the best shops. Hey thats what being a leader is right? So instead of telling people "John Doe is an awesome instructor" Which he may in fact be you may cause a ripple effect unintentionally where divers only want John to teach them despite the shop having a handful of other great instructors who carry their own uniqueness to the table.

As a divemaster you are expected to know the best dive sites and the only way to learn these is to do what you do best and thats get out their and dive. One poor recommendation can ripple back and people view you as a poor divemaster and word of mouth can either be rewarding or it can be damning. Divers trust you to know the gear and help them along despite the fact they wont ever tell you otherwise in many cases because of pride.

Youll find yourself in open debates with no clear answers yet you are expected to know the answers. Nitrox for example poses one of the most controversial debates in diving as the effects are felt by so many yet considered placebo by others. Their is no science to prove how the post dive effects work yet this is one of the hugest debates in diving.

Your presence alone enspires confidence in new divers and your demeaner can prove valuable if you are calm in other wise tense situations. You would be surprised how many divers trust in me just because I am there.

So in short if one is considering a life of divemastering dont expect it to be a way to get away from the bump and grind and away from the traditional 9 to 5. Expect instead to be something that rewards you with priceless memories and lots of new friends along the way. Consider it to be a hobby and not a career because it will never make you the next Donald Trump.

 

[supergaijin]

I was extrememly lucky in the fact I got to fire one of my instructors because of the way he was treating me

Octopus hands?

 

[Kitty_Kat]

There are definitely some good tips here! I finished my DM a while ago, so here's my two cents.... :cool2:

Intern, intern, intern. The DM program doesn't require anywhere near enough internship experience in my opinion. My instructor gave me the advice early on to work with as many different instructors and DMs as possible and learn as much from their different styles as I could. He told me that even if I didn't like their teaching styles, I still should work with them more than once so that I would know the sort of things I didn't want to do in the future. Your (eventual) teaching style will come from the instructors and DMs that you've worked with. Different instructors have some ingenious ways of dealing with situations that may come up unexpectedly. Even if you aren't a fan of the instructor most of the time, you aren't going to pick up on these tricks if you don't work with them. If you think you know everything there is to know about teaching after working one or two OW classes, I wouldn't want you to be my DM.

It's about the students. Obviously this only applies if you are working as a DM for classes, but it's a pretty important thing to remember. After you've gotten your mask kicked off, had a student drop a tank on your foot, and had to explain for the 50th time which way the valve on the tank faces it's sometimes hard to remember. If you want to DM, it really has to be because you have a love for diving and want to share this experience with others. If this isn't the case, the super early mornings, endless paperwork, and lingering smell of pool/wet neoprene aren't going to be worth it .

On a related note... what money? As a fairly new DM, don't expect to get paid much (if at all...). I love my shop and I would (and did) 100% DM classes for free. Who am I kidding... I'm still working for free most of the time and don't see this changing anytime soon. At the same time, I know that everyone I work with will do whatever they can to show you how much they appreciate you helping them out (and answering your phone at 4 am), even if all they can do is buy you dinner. I've gotten to work with some amazing DMs and instructors, and I'm realizing now that it's because these people absolutely love to dive and to teach diving, and are not at all there because "it's their job". Most of the instructors/DMs I know have 40+ hr/week "day jobs" that have nothing to do with diving, but will happily agree to show up at 5 am with 30 minutes notice when someone else is sick. Obviously this might be different if diving does become your sole career on some little island (which I would love to do someday!!!), but this just isn't the reality of it.

Hopefully this isn't too blunt and disheartening! My DM class was by far the best diving class/experience i've had, but go into it expecting to work hard and you'll be fine!

 

[McDiver]

Its the actual Instructor level where the PADI name really take son a whole new meaning, lol
P A D I = Put Another Dollar In!, haha.

But really, props to getting into the leadership role, take pride in what you do and treat everyone like they are a good friend and things will work out in a spectacular way, even it the diver is a "special" case. I wont go into detail there, but I am sure you know what I mean by this..
I started instructing my early 30s and I have an extreme babyface! I look at least 10 years younger (seriously). and people generally dont like taking direction from a "kid", however that "kid" knows way more that you could ever imagine, lol. Once treated with respect and you correct them a few times with a smile and things quickly change.

Also be careful on the bike, I am a local Desert racer in So Cal in the Desert series, I know what comes with racing, DANGER, but thats why we do it right? I am a pure adrenaline junky, I have an alter ego for when I dawn my Drysuit as an instructor, gotta tone it down a bit!

Good luck buddy and good post on you experience with the DM exam! Welcome to diving leadership!