Dive Master
- Duration: 4-8 weeks
- Min. age: 18 years
- Certification: PADI or SSI
Why become a dive master on Koh Tao? Not only does it make you a much more complete diver but it also gives you plenty of employment opportunities within the ever growing global diving industry. If employment is not your goal, you can just enjoy the experience of diving every other day, learning about the marine environment and meeting lots of new friends along the way.
If you enjoy the tropical life, fancy resorts and luxury cruise liners or just some of the places that offer employment opportunities to dive professionals. If this does not sound like your thing this could be the first step in a career in commercial diving, marine conservation or marine biology, the possibilities are endless.
Dive master is the first logical step on your professional diver career path. The course standards are laid out by the certifying agency (PADI or SSI) and like with other courses the dive operation that conducts the course will have their own training schedule. Though it can be completed in as little as two weeks it can be very demanding, therefore most people prefer to take a bit longer with 4 – 6 weeks being the norm (some operations set a minimum of 4 weeks duration)
Many people choose to begin the dive master course to improve their skills or to share their passion for diving with others and eventually continue on to make a full time career within the diving industry either as a full time dive master or continue along the career path to become an instructor, staff instructor or even a course director.
Over the duration of the course you will join other like-minded trainees in learning all aspects of being a professional dive master including what is expected of you as a professional diver representing the certifying agency (SSI or PADI), how to supervise dive activities in a busy dive centre, how to recognize and prevent potential diving problems and how to act in emergency situations.
The training will increase your general dive knowledge, skills and experience; you will learn the physics and physiology of diving, decompression theory, as well as detailed information on the inner workings of diving equipment and the marine environment.
The in water training and stamina tests will help with your physical conditioning as well as building your overall confidence as a diver. Upon completion you will be a well-prepared, adaptable and marketable dive master ready to work on dive boats and in resorts, take people diving, lead dive trips and underwater tours for certified divers and teach various dive programmes.
As the programme is modular in design it suits most everyone’s needs and desires. For further information on any professional course please contact one of our experienced instructors.
Consists of:
- Improving in-water skills
- Assisting on courses
- In-water stamina tests
- Dive planning
- Underwater mapping and guiding
- Physics and physiology theory
- Equipment and environment theory
- Exams
Requirements:
- 18 years or older
- Rescue course or equivalent
- 40 logged dives (some of which come free with the course)
- Up to date first aid training 2 years recent
- Medically fit (click here for a medical form)
For more information on professional courses such as materials required, languages and extras click here.
Next Step – Instructor course,profesional video/photographer course
PADI or the Professional Association of Dive Instructor is the most well-known scuba diving training agency on the planet, to such an extent that people often ask to do the “PADI” course when referring to any scuba diving course. Founded in 1966 they have more than forty years’ experience serving scuba divers and have over six thousand dive shops locate around the globe.
PADI run all types of courses, from kid’s courses conducted in a swimming pool to beginner, advanced, rescue and master right through to scuba instructor level and beyond. PADI has a few instructor development centres about the Island and some dive centres are recognised PADI 5 star resorts and offer only PADI courses while others offer certification through various other agencies.
As a member of the WRSTC (World Recreational Scuba Training Council), PADI recognises certifications from other training agencies such as SSI, BSAC, CMAS and NAUI amongst others. The above agencies are represented on Koh Tao but not all agencies are so it is a good idea to check before arriving if you hold a certification from another. Certification equivalent tables are displayed on some agencies websites if you are in doubt.
All PADI materials come in a range of languages. Though paper manuals are still common most centres are going down the digital route and offering online manuals for keeping and a “library” copy of the paper manual while doing the course. PADI also offers e-learning, this allows you to complete the academic sessions of the course including exams online before coming and doing the practical “water work” when you get here. For more information about online training please contact kohtao.asia.
PADI is a patron of the “Project Aware Foundation” environmental organisation and puts a lot of time and effort into creating awareness about the harm being done to the oceans through climate change, over fishing and shark finning. They also support marine conservation projects such as reef and beach clean ups. PADI are also long term associates of the National Geographic Society and offer marine conservation courses in conjunction with both them and the Project Aware Foundation.
The PADI website offers information on all available PADI courses. It has a shop locator, an online scuba community forum, dive holiday package deals and equipment sales. If you go as far as professional level you then get further access to the site offering the ability to conduct diver certification checks and access to training materials and updates. Wherever you decide to dive in the world there is always sure to be a PADI dive centre or PADI professional close by.
SSI - Scuba Schools International holds the title for the fastest growing scuba diving training agency in the world. They have gone from strength to strength on Koh Tao over the past few years with a majority of shops now running SSI courses alongside PADI courses from beginner right through to instructor level and beyond. Furthermore many well respected dive shops on Koh Tao now offer only SSI courses.