Help needed from any experienced SCUBA divers (particularly British) please?

Question

At the moment I am a lowly PADI Open Water diver. Roughly how much would it cost for me to reach the required standard of a PADI SCUBA Instructor, and roughly how long would the process take if I could dive say once a fortnight?

Thanks!

Answer 1

I'm not British so I'm not sure on cost. I know here in the US it would be about $1500 on the low end. You have a goodly ways to go for instructor though. I don't have my manual with me, but from what I can recall you must complete Advanced, Rescue, Divemaster, and possibly Assistant Instructor as well as First Aid Instructor. You will also need 100 recorded dives and a certified diver for at least one year to take the OW Instructor Examination (IE). You may be able to find an all for one course that would take you from your current level through OWSI in as little as 3 months. These type of courses are few and can cost a lot.

My recommendation would be to take your advanced course and just continue to enjoy diving and taking courses along the way. You will eventually get to the instructor level. You could also get chummy with your local dive shop and see if one of their instructors will take you on as a Divemaster Candidate after you have completed the Rescue course.

Good Luck to you