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Scuba Diving Certification
- By Mike Dire
- Published 07/30/2009
- Scuba Diving
- Unrated
Mike Dire
Mike Dire is an avid cyclist and sports enthusiast. He is also a partner in an online bike rack store.
View all articles by Mike Dire
Scuba diving is becoming an increasingly popular sport. And no wonder, no other sport allows you to explore the depths of the ocean. A beautiful underwater world awaits you with this exciting and challenging sport. Many however are not aware of the danger that scuba diving with proper training and certification presents. If you have never gone scuba diving before and just want to try it out, then you may benefit from a resort course. If however, you would like to become a certified scuba diver, then you must complete an approved course and pass certification.
Resort courses are one or two day long classes that can be found at vacation destinations. They will teach you the basics and will allow you to try out scuba diving (get your feet wet, if you will). You should then be able to do a very short dive with your instructor. There is a very low student to teacher ratio so that they can keep a close eye on you and protect you from any dangers that may occur.
If you have already done a resort course and loved the feeling of being underwater, or if you want to just jump right in to scuba diving, a certification course is a must. There are two things to keep in mind when going for certification. The first is to get clearance from your doctor. You will want to make sure that your body is in excellent condition before taking up this strenuous sport. You don’t want to find out while you are hundreds of feet under water that there is a problem with your heart or lungs. The other thing to keep in mind is that you must know how to swim. It is not a requirement to know many strokes, however you should be able to swim about 200 yards and float or tread water for approximately 10 minutes.
There are over 1900 scuba diving centers across North America, so you should be able to find one fairly close to your home. Make sure that the diver center is reputable, you can find lists of these centers on the internet. Two of the certification agencies, PADI and NAUI have listings on their websites which can help direct you properly. Once you have chosen a dive center, make sure that their instructors are certified with one of the major scuba diving training agencies. You will be receiving a great deal of technical as well as practical knowledge from them, make sure they are certified to teach it!
Once you have found your instructor, there are a few things that you can expect during the certification process. There will be a great deal of time spent in the classroom, learning technical skills and being tested to ensure that you have the necessary knowledge. You will then move on to a pool where they will teach you practical skills for scuba diving. Finally, you will go on approximately four open water dives, this can be in a lake or ocean depending on where you study. This can all be done in an intensive weekend (though you will have to do some reading before hand) or over a few weeks, depending on your schedule. The open water dives are generally another two days.
A lot of work goes into earning your scuba diving certification. However, it can be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life.
Resort courses are one or two day long classes that can be found at vacation destinations. They will teach you the basics and will allow you to try out scuba diving (get your feet wet, if you will). You should then be able to do a very short dive with your instructor. There is a very low student to teacher ratio so that they can keep a close eye on you and protect you from any dangers that may occur.
If you have already done a resort course and loved the feeling of being underwater, or if you want to just jump right in to scuba diving, a certification course is a must. There are two things to keep in mind when going for certification. The first is to get clearance from your doctor. You will want to make sure that your body is in excellent condition before taking up this strenuous sport. You don’t want to find out while you are hundreds of feet under water that there is a problem with your heart or lungs. The other thing to keep in mind is that you must know how to swim. It is not a requirement to know many strokes, however you should be able to swim about 200 yards and float or tread water for approximately 10 minutes.
There are over 1900 scuba diving centers across North America, so you should be able to find one fairly close to your home. Make sure that the diver center is reputable, you can find lists of these centers on the internet. Two of the certification agencies, PADI and NAUI have listings on their websites which can help direct you properly. Once you have chosen a dive center, make sure that their instructors are certified with one of the major scuba diving training agencies. You will be receiving a great deal of technical as well as practical knowledge from them, make sure they are certified to teach it!
Once you have found your instructor, there are a few things that you can expect during the certification process. There will be a great deal of time spent in the classroom, learning technical skills and being tested to ensure that you have the necessary knowledge. You will then move on to a pool where they will teach you practical skills for scuba diving. Finally, you will go on approximately four open water dives, this can be in a lake or ocean depending on where you study. This can all be done in an intensive weekend (though you will have to do some reading before hand) or over a few weeks, depending on your schedule. The open water dives are generally another two days.
A lot of work goes into earning your scuba diving certification. However, it can be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life.