PADI Scuba Diver

[oly5050user]

Just 2 weeks ago I taught a ow course with 5 students attending. Went over all 5 academic and
Confined water modules. Entire course took me 5 hours longer than usual due to one woman that could not get it. She actually did required swim assessment no issues. She barely made it through module 1 and 2 and complained to me asking why I would not issue referral for rest of course. Told her she did not pay for a referral, she has to earn it. She actually had to take the final exam twice as she failed the first time. Thinking back I am pretty sure she cheated the second time. Explained she can do dive 1 and 2 and get a scuba diver certification on her trip to Hawaii and on returning we can work with her on a private basis ( will be a private instructor additional fee or we can put her in a group class at no charge) As far as I know that after all the grief she caused me on not issuing her a full referral she never did the 2 dives on her trip.

 

[Erich S]

Back in 1976 when I was first certified, my certification was PADI "Basic Scuba Diver" which allowed me to get air and dive unsupervised. In fact, the course took 8 weeks to complete along with having to be CPR certified. Could this guy have one of these older certs?

 

[scubadada]

PADI Scuba Divers are strictly limited:
Dive under the direct supervision of a PADI Professional to a maximum depth of 12 metres/40 feet.
This does not sound like diving Ghost Mountain, in fact, it does not sound much like most of Grand Cayman

 

[DerekR]

There is a HUGE difference between a PADI SCUBA Diver and a PADI Basic SCUBA Diver. PADI messed up the classifications when, in 1999, they created a very confusing class of half trained divers called "PADI SCUBA Divers". I guess they figured since they had abandoned the classification of "PADI SCUBA Diver", which is a totally qualified diver, in favor of everyone in this class being called Open Water Divers, it wouldn't be a big deal. After all, wouldn't everyone want to spend more money for another classification??? Since then, it has caused no end of confusion. Someday, all of us old farts will be gone, and so will the confusion that PADI has caused.

 

[Bob DBF]

Back in the olden days SCUBA diver was the name of the basic diver training, now that basic training is called OW, I don't know if any agency still uses the old terminology. It would depend on when he was trained, and confusing for one agency for using the same name for two different certification levels.


Bob

 

[Erich S]

Yes, OW was step two back in the 70s and from there AOW to MSD or DM.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

There is a HUGE difference between a PADI SCUBA Diver and a PADI Basic SCUBA Diver. PADI messed up the classifications when, in 1999, they created a very confusing class of half trained divers called "PADI SCUBA Divers". I guess they figured since they had abandoned the classification of "PADI SCUBA Diver", which is a totally qualified diver, in favor of everyone in this class being called Open Water Divers, it wouldn't be a big deal. After all, wouldn't everyone want to spend more money for another classification??? Since then, it has caused no end of confusion. Someday, all of us old farts will be gone, and so will the confusion that PADI has caused.

I know marketing dictates names that we don’t like (and not just from PADI, most are guilty of the same),

But just imagine if the name “guided diver” was used. Then there would be no more argument (at least I hope there would not be),

 

[Dogbowl]

I’m a simpleton. I don’t like descriptive names, which causes confusion. I like numbers like grades. Grade 1, 2, 3...university year 1, 2, 3, 4...CMAS 1 star, 2 star, 3 star, 4 star.

 

[Blasto]

But just imagine if the name “guided diver” was used. Then there would be no more argument (at least I hope there would not be),

Confusion is not necessarily a bad thing when you're selling a bad product.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Confusion is not necessarily a bad thing when you're selling a bad product.

True, very true. But some people shouldn’t dive without a dive pro, and this includes many open water certified divers. There is a segment of the market that only wants to float along in the water and follow a guide looking at pretty fish. Not for me, but nothing wrong with that. As long as they are taught decent buoyancy skills and stay off the coral, I don’t see any issues.