How to Become a Scuba Diving Instructor
Becoming a scuba diving instructor takes five stages: an entry-level certification, Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver with Emergency First Response, the Divemaster rating, and the Instructor Development Course with the Instructor Examination that follows it. From no certification at all the pathway runs 10 to 12 weeks of training. A certified Divemaster needs 14 days.
Find your starting point
Do you hold an entry-level scuba certification?
PADI Open Water, PADI Scuba Diver, or an equivalent from any recognised organisation.
Was that certification issued more than six months ago?
PADI requires at least six months between a first certification and the start of an IDC. It cannot be waived.
Do you hold an Advanced Open Water certification, or equivalent?
PADI Advanced Open Water, SSI Advanced Adventurer, or similar from any recognised organisation.
Do you hold a Rescue Diver certification, or equivalent?
Plus a current CPR and first aid qualification issued within the previous 24 months.
Have you logged at least 40 dives?
PADI requires 40 logged dives to begin Divemaster training.
Are you a certified Divemaster, or equivalent professional?
PADI, SSI or NAUI Divemaster, or a leadership rating from any recognised organisation.
Have you logged at least 100 dives?
The Instructor Examination requires 100 logged dives, including documented night, deep and navigation experience.
The complete pathway, from a first dive to instructor.
No experience is needed to start. The full route runs 10 to 12 weeks of training and is the most common one for career changers. One constraint shapes the planning: an entry-level certification must be held for six months before an IDC begins, so getting certified early is the single most useful thing to do now.
The six-month rule applies — but the wait is usable.
No IDC can start until six months after an entry-level certification. Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver and the Divemaster course can all be completed while that clock runs, so the waiting period costs nothing if it is planned around.
Next: Advanced Open Water, then three more stages.
The hardest constraint is already behind you. From here it is four courses, which most candidates complete in a single stay of 8 to 10 weeks.
Next: Rescue Diver, then Divemaster and the IDC.
Rescue Diver, Divemaster and the IDC with its examination take 7 to 9 weeks from here. A current CPR and first aid qualification within the previous 24 months is also required, and can be completed on arrival if it has lapsed.
Next: Divemaster, the last course before the IDC.
Divemaster training involves assisting real student courses, which is also how the dive count builds toward the Instructor Examination. From here it is 6 to 10 weeks to instructor.
Next: Divemaster — and the dives to reach 40 are included.
PADI requires 40 logged dives to begin Divemaster training. Unlike many centres, Go Pro Caribbean does not charge for the dives needed to reach that minimum: every dive required to get to 40 is included in the price.
From there Divemaster training runs through to certification, followed by the IDC and its examination.
Everything is in place except the dive count.
Every other requirement is met. The Instructor Examination requires 100 logged dives, and that is the only outstanding item.
Pre-IDC Skills Preparation costs $150 a week and closes the gap: candidates log between 10 and 14 dives a week while practising demonstration-quality skills, assisting on courses and guiding fun dives. Two weeks typically adds 20 dives, and it is the most effective IDC preparation available.
Every prerequisite is met — enrolment is open.
The certifications are in place, the six-month rule is satisfied and the dive count is there. The IDC runs 12 days from 09:00 to 16:00, followed by the two-day PADI Instructor Examination held in Roatan. Courses run every month.
The five stages, and what each one requires
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1
Entry-level certification
The pathway starts with an Open Water Diver certification, or an equivalent entry-level qualification from any recognised training organisation. The date on that card matters more than most people realise: PADI requires at least six months between it and the start of an Instructor Development Course, and no amount of diving in between shortens the wait.
Anyone certain about a professional career should get certified as early as possible, because the clock cannot be started retrospectively.
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2
Advanced Open Water
Advanced Open Water extends the depth limit to 30 metres and introduces the range of diving a professional draws on later. Completing it in Roatan means moving straight into Rescue Diver with the same instructors in the same water, without a gap. Continuity matters in dive training: skills built in one place with one team produce a more rounded diver than the same courses assembled across different locations over a longer period.
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3
Rescue Diver and Emergency First Response
Rescue Diver is the course most divers describe as the one that changed how they think underwater, moving attention from self to everyone else in the water. That shift is exactly what Divemaster and instructor training build on, which is why taking it immediately before Divemaster produces noticeably stronger candidates.
A current Emergency First Response primary and secondary care certification, issued within the previous 24 months, is required alongside it.
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4
Divemaster
Divemaster is the first professional rating and a required prerequisite for the IDC. PADI sets 40 logged dives to begin Divemaster training and 60 to certify, but the number of weeks spent is the candidate's choice. Many take eight to ten weeks rather than the minimum, because more time means more dives, more teaching situations observed and a stronger foundation for the IDC. Go Pro Caribbean accommodates that; many centres run a fixed programme that ends when it ends.
Where the Divemaster course is taken matters more than most candidates expect. A dive centre built around producing instructors trains its Divemasters differently from one that does not run an IDC at all.
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5
Instructor Development Course and Instructor Examination
The IDC runs 12 days and covers dive theory across six subjects, confined and open water teaching, PADI standards and presentation skills. It is followed immediately by the two-day PADI Instructor Examination, conducted in Roatan by an independent PADI Examiner who is not the course director. Pass the examination and the rating is PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor.
How long it takes, by starting point
The answer depends entirely on the certification already held, because what changes is the number of courses left to complete rather than the pace of any of them. The figures below are training time in Roatan for candidates working through the pathway without a break.
| Starting from | Courses remaining | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| No certification yet | Open Water, Advanced, Rescue, Divemaster, IDC and IE | 10 to 12 weeks |
| Open Water Diver | Advanced, Rescue, Divemaster, IDC and IE | 8 to 10 weeks |
| Advanced Open Water | Rescue, Divemaster, IDC and IE | 7 to 9 weeks |
| Rescue Diver | Divemaster, IDC and IE | 6 to 10 weeks |
| Certified Divemaster | IDC and IE | 14 days |
Full pricing for each starting point is set out on the IDC cost page.
What you need before the Instructor Development Course
Seven requirements. Certifications from SSI, NAUI, BSAC and other recognised organisations are accepted throughout.
- Leadership ratingA PADI Divemaster rating, or a leadership-level certification from another recognised diver training organisation. Candidates arriving with a non-PADI leadership rating also complete the PADI Divemaster course dive rescue assessment.
- Six months certifiedAn entry-level certification issued at least six months before the course start date.
- 100 logged divesThe Instructor Examination requires 100 logged dives, and it begins the day after the course ends.
- Documented experienceNight diving, deep diving and underwater navigation, evidenced in the logbook.
- Emergency First ResponsePrimary and secondary care completed within the previous 24 months, or an equivalent qualification from another emergency care organisation.
- Medical clearanceSigned by a physician within the previous 12 months.
- Minimum age 18At the point of certification, without exception.
Pre-IDC Skills Preparation costs $150 a week and typically adds 20 logged dives over two weeks, alongside demonstration-quality skill practice and course assisting. Candidates log between 10 and 14 dives a week. Each requirement is covered in full here.
What you are qualified to teach after the examination
The Instructor Examination changes what a diver is permitted to do, not simply what they are called. On the Divemaster rating alone there is exactly one certification that can be issued independently: Advanced Snorkeler. Everything else a Divemaster does in the water is supervision, assistance or an experience programme run under an instructor's authority.
An Open Water Scuba Instructor teaches and certifies seventeen PADI courses and programmes on their own authority.
- PADI Scuba Diver
- Open Water Diver
- Adventure Diver
- Advanced Open Water Diver
- Rescue Diver
- Divemaster
- Advanced Snorkeler (Skin Diver)
- Discover Scuba Diving
- PADI Seal Team
- Bubblemaker
- ReActivate
- Discover Local Diving
- Peak Performance Buoyancy
- PADI AWARE Specialty
- Coral Reef Conservation
- AWARE Dive Against Debris
- PADI Snorkel Guide
Two entries on that list are PADI Membership ratings rather than diver certifications: Divemaster and Snorkel Guide. An instructor does not only certify divers — they certify professionals, including the rating they hold themselves.
Specialty Instructor ratings are earned separately and add further courses on top of these. Many candidates arrive determined to leave as a Master Scuba Diver Trainer, as though the rating itself were the prize. It is the wrong way round. What makes a newly qualified instructor employable is the range of specialties they can teach, because a dive centre hires the person who can run the courses it sells. Five Specialty Instructor ratings deliver that. Master Scuba Diver Trainer is the recognition that follows once those ratings are held and 25 certifications have been issued, which happens in the ordinary course of teaching. Earn the specialties and the rating arrives on its own.
Source: PADI Instructor Manual 2026, Open Water Scuba Instructor duties. Thirteen printed entries, five of which name two courses.
Choosing the right IDC, and the right course director
At the end of the instructor development course there is an examination, and it is human nature to focus on passing it. That is not the real test. The real test is the first class taught as a certified instructor.
Dive centres actively seek candidates from course directors whose instructors arrive able to work. A new instructor with limited experience is not held back by that inexperience if the training was thorough, because employers already trust the standard. In Roatan's busy season from January to August, Will Welbourn is regularly asked by dive centres whether any recent candidates are looking for work.
The course director to look for is one who teaches candidates to be good instructors, not one who teaches them to pass the examination. Directors who optimise for examination scores often do so at the cost of preparing candidates for the situations that actually arise in a working week. Experience is what separates the two approaches. Will Welbourn is candid that he fell into the first trap as a new course director, more concerned that candidates passed than that they were ready, and changed the programme as his confidence grew — assigning the problems he knew they would meet in their first months of teaching. Passing the examination is one thing; making a mess of the first few courses taught is how a new instructor loses the job.
The IDC is hard enough without adding cold water and poor visibility to the task load. There is an argument for training in the conditions you intend to work in, and it is a reasonable one — but it applies better to MSDT training than to the IDC. Qualify in warm, clear water where the teaching is the difficulty, then take further training somewhere colder if that is where the work will be.
How the Go Pro Caribbean IDC is run · What happens at the Instructor Examination
Finding work
Go Pro Caribbean helps every candidate into a job placement, and it is usually immediate, because local dive centres actively seek newly trained instructors from the programme.
On the curriculum vitae, most candidates undersell the experience they had before diving. Accountancy, plumbing, mechanics, medicine, hospitality, writing, design — all of it is relevant, and all of it should be on the page. Dive experience needs only a brief listing: number of dives, specialties held, where the diving was done. There is nothing to gain from making limited experience look like more than it is.
Frame the non-diving work so its relevance is obvious. Hotel or restaurant work is customer service, and dive centres hire for it. Anything involving computers, and particularly web or graphic design, is immediately useful because dive centres need their websites maintained. Mechanical knowledge matters — there is a great deal of equipment to keep running. Writing skills are valued, because centres need to reach customers online. Include a photograph that looks presentable.
Research every centre applied to and write a different covering message for each one. Their website and social accounts will say what they believe makes them distinctive; the message should demonstrate that it has been read and understood.
Start building an audience now
This sounds like odd advice for someone who is not yet a professional, which is exactly why almost nobody gives it.
Plenty of other people are considering the same career at this moment. Start a blog — one post a week is enough. Describe the decisions being weighed, which online resources proved useful, who was contacted and whether they were helpful. As the courses begin, describe those too: the dives that stood out, for good reasons or bad, and anything that would help someone else make a better-informed decision.
Instagram is worth building alongside it. Diving is a visual industry and a dive centre's marketing runs on imagery, so a candidate who arrives able to shoot, edit and post is solving a problem the centre already has. An audience built around diving is a professional asset in a way a general following is not.
The reason this matters is that it compounds. A blog full of genuinely useful writing about becoming an instructor will appear in search results, which means a marketing channel is being built before there is anything to market. Prospective employers see that as an asset, because it demonstrates an understanding that marketing is part of the job. For anyone intending to work independently later, an established audience with real inbound links is the foundation of everything that follows.
If you arrive with an established audience — a blog with real readership, or an Instagram following built around your diving — say so when you get in touch. Documented training reaches people that advertising does not, and that is worth something to us.
A post about the free dive theory study notes is a reasonable place to start, and it helps other candidates find them.
Making a reasonable income
Most instructor work is commission-based: paid per course taught and per dive led. Some positions are salaried, and even then tips usually form a significant part of take-home pay.
Organisation is what separates instructors who earn well from those who do not. A well-planned course accounts for weather and logistics, is more enjoyable for the students, less stressful to run, and finishes on time. A badly planned one overruns, and the overrun is time that cannot be spent attracting or teaching anyone else.
The job is not confined to the water. Most of it is diving, which is the point, but a dive centre needs customers in order to have anything to teach — and it needs its instructors' help getting them. Photographs taken and posted, customers tagged, conservation work done and documented. Tanks filled, equipment repaired, boats maintained, and a share of the cleaning and painting. The instructors who help most around the centre are the ones who get offered the better-paying work.
Where a centre sells equipment there is usually commission available. Wear what the centre sells while teaching, because students buy what they see being used, and learn the products properly — including their weaknesses. Sell customers the equipment that suits them rather than the equipment that pays best; the ones who are happy with what they bought come back for advice next time.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to become a scuba diving instructor?
It depends entirely on the certification you already hold. From no certification at all the pathway runs 10 to 12 weeks. From Open Water it is 8 to 10 weeks, from Advanced Open Water 7 to 9 weeks, and from Rescue Diver 6 to 10 weeks. A certified Divemaster needs only the 14-day Instructor Development Course and Instructor Examination. One rule binds every route regardless of experience: PADI requires at least six months between your first entry-level certification and the start of your IDC, so a beginner cannot compress the pathway into a single short visit no matter how quickly the courses are completed.
What do you need to become a PADI scuba instructor?
Seven things. A PADI Divemaster rating or a leadership-level certification from another recognised organisation. An entry-level certification held for at least six months. 100 logged dives before your Instructor Examination. Documented experience in night diving, deep diving and underwater navigation. Emergency First Response primary and secondary care completed within the previous 24 months. Medical clearance signed by a physician within the previous 12 months. And you must be 18 years old. Certifications from SSI, NAUI, BSAC and other recognised agencies are accepted throughout.
What can you teach once you qualify as a PADI instructor?
Seventeen PADI courses and programmes, taught and certified on your own authority. On the Divemaster rating alone the only certification you can issue independently is Advanced Snorkeler — everything else in the water is supervision or assistance under an instructor. An Open Water Scuba Instructor teaches and certifies the full recreational range: Scuba Diver, Open Water Diver, Adventure Diver, Advanced Open Water Diver, Rescue Diver and Divemaster, together with Discover Scuba Diving, Seal Team, Bubblemaker, ReActivate, Discover Local Diving, Peak Performance Buoyancy, the PADI AWARE, Coral Reef Conservation and Dive Against Debris specialties, and Snorkel Guide. Two of those are PADI Membership ratings, so an instructor certifies professionals and not only divers.
How many logged dives do you need to become a scuba instructor?
100 logged dives. The figure that binds is the one you hold on the day of the Instructor Examination rather than the day you enrol, and because the examination begins the day after the course ends, the two are effectively the same day. The PADI course standard for starting an Instructor Development Course is 60, but arriving at the course on that figure is unwise: the IDC is intensive, and a candidate still building basic dive experience is carrying that load on top of learning to teach. Dives logged beforehand are dives you are not trying to accumulate during the course, and you go into the examination with the training fresh rather than interrupted. Candidates short of 100 close the gap through Pre-IDC Skills Preparation, which typically adds 20 dives over two weeks.
What is the PADI six-month rule?
PADI requires at least six months between the date of your first entry-level certification and the start date of your Instructor Development Course. It cannot be waived, and it applies no matter how many dives you have logged or how quickly you completed the courses in between. It is the only part of the pathway that cannot be shortened by training harder. The waiting period is not dead time: Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver and the Divemaster course can all be completed while the clock runs.
Can you become a scuba instructor without being a Divemaster first?
Not by skipping the leadership stage, but you do not have to arrive holding it. The Instructor Development Course requires a PADI Divemaster rating or a leadership-level certification from another recognised organisation, and there is no route that bypasses it. What you can do is complete it as part of a single continuous programme: most Go Pro Caribbean candidates arrive partway up the ladder and finish the remaining stages in one visit. If your leadership certification is from another agency rather than PADI, you will also complete the PADI Divemaster course dive rescue assessment.
Do your existing certifications have to be PADI?
No. Entry-level, advanced, rescue and leadership certifications from SSI, NAUI, BSAC and other recognised recreational training organisations are all accepted as qualifying prerequisites, provided you can document them. You will need to submit that documentation before the course begins. Holding PADI certifications is not required to become a PADI instructor, though familiarity with the PADI system is an advantage once you start teaching PADI courses.
How much does it cost to become a scuba diving instructor?
The total depends on your starting certification, because the number of courses between you and the Instructor Examination changes. Go Pro Caribbean publishes a price for every entry point, from complete beginner through to certified Divemaster, with the PADI fees itemised separately rather than folded into a single figure. Full pricing for each pathway is on the IDC cost page. See pricing for every starting level →
How much do scuba diving instructors earn?
Most instructor work is commission-based, paid per course taught and per dive led, with tips forming a significant part of take-home pay even where a salary is offered. Earnings therefore depend heavily on where you work and how much of the work you are given. On Roatan an instructor earns roughly $40 to $50 more per Open Water student taught than on Utila, and the island has over 50 dive centres recruiting locally against roughly 15 on Utila, so both the rate and the volume of available work tend to be higher.
Ready to start?
Will Welbourn has trained over 500 PADI instructors since 2008. Whether you hold an Open Water card or you are a Divemaster ready to enrol, he is happy to talk through the timeline and the options.
How long does it take to become a Scuba Diving Instructor?
The time it takes depends entirely on where you are starting from. The pathway below shows the stages everyone goes through — and what matters at each one.
Open Water certification
Your entry-level certification from any recognised agency (PADI, SSI, NAUI, BSAC) marks the start of the clock. PADI requires a minimum of six months between this date and the start of your IDC — so the earlier you get certified, the better. If you are not yet certified, getting your Open Water card as soon as possible is the single most important thing you can do right now.
Advanced Open Water
Advanced Open Water extends your maximum depth to 30 metres and introduces the variety of diving you will draw on throughout your professional training. If you need this course, Roatan is an exceptional place to do it. The diving here is outstanding — clear, warm water, abundant marine life, and wall diving that will develop your buoyancy and situational awareness far faster than diving in poor visibility or cold conditions. More importantly, completing it here means you move straight into Rescue Diver with the same instructors, in the same environment, without interruption. Continuity matters in dive training. Building your skills in one place, with one team, produces a more rounded and confident diver than piecing the same courses together across different locations and different instructors over a longer period.
Rescue Diver and Emergency First Response
Rescue Diver is widely regarded as the most personally transformative course in recreational diving. It changes the way you think underwater — from looking after yourself to looking after everyone around you. That shift in mindset is exactly what Divemaster and IDC training will build on, which is why doing Rescue Diver immediately before Divemaster, with the same instructors, produces noticeably better candidates. The lessons carry directly forward. You also need a current Emergency First Response (CPR and First Aid) certification within the previous 24 months. This can be completed on arrival in Roatan for $135 if yours has lapsed or you have not yet done it.
Divemaster
Divemaster is the first professional rating in recreational diving and a required IDC prerequisite. You need a minimum of 40 logged dives to begin and 60 to certify — but the number of weeks you spend is entirely up to you. Many of our candidates choose to take 8 to 10 weeks over their Divemaster training because they recognise that more time means more dives, more teaching situations observed, and a stronger foundation for the IDC. We encourage that, and we will accommodate it. Many dive centres will not — they have a fixed programme and once it is done, it is done. Our Divemaster internship has no such ceiling.
Where you do your Divemaster matters more than most people realise. A dive centre whose entire ethos is built around producing great instructors trains its Divemasters differently from one that does not offer an IDC. The things we emphasise during Divemaster — how to brief a dive, how to manage students in the water, how to think on your feet when something does not go to plan — are precisely the things that determine how well you perform in the IDC and how confidently you teach in your first job. If becoming an instructor is your goal, doing your Divemaster with a team that already has that goal in mind puts you ahead before the IDC has even started.
IDC and Instructor Examination
To enrol on the PADI Instructor Development Course you need your Divemaster rating, a minimum of 100 logged dives with specific depth and night dive requirements, a current EFR certification, and medical clearance. Candidates who complete the earlier stages of the pathway here in Roatan arrive at the IDC already familiar with the dive sites, the teaching environment, and the standards expected of them. That familiarity removes a layer of stress from what is already an intensive programme. The IDC runs 12 days, followed by a 2-day PADI Instructor Examination held independently here in Roatan. Pass the IE and you are a certified PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor.
Work as a scuba diving instructor in an office like this!
To become a scuba instructor with PADI, you need to have been certified as an entry-level diver with any agency for at least six months before you can take the instructor course. Also, you need to have an Advanced diver certification, a Rescue certification, and complete the Divemaster course, or a Dive Leader certification. They do not have to be PADI certifications, but it helps once you start teaching PADI courses! You also need to log a minimum of 100 dives, which is included in all our packages.
Not sure which package fits your certification level?
Use the Go Pro Caribbean package finder — answer three questions and see exactly what is included and what it costs for your starting point.
The IDC certainly isn’t easy; it is made much harder by cold water and low visibility. So, choosing to take the instructor course under such conditions certainly adds to the task load. However, if you are going to teach in those conditions after passing the IE, it may well be worth training in those same conditions. There is another option, though. You may decide to take the IDC in nice, warm tropical waters and get the OWSI rating under your belt, and then take MSDT training in tougher conditions, similar to those in which you plan to teach. So, should you train in conditions similar to those you plan to work in? Yes, but don’t make the IDC, the training you choose to do in challenging conditions! It is challenging enough as it is!
I personally mentor my IDC candidates on the business side of diving — how to plan courses, attract students, and build a sustainable career from day one. It's not just about passing the IE. It's about what happens the week after.
See how the Go Pro Caribbean IDC is different →Choose the right IDC.
At the end of the instructor development course, there is an exam – the feared PADI Instructor Exam! It is human nature to focus on passing this exam, but it isn’t the real test at all! The true test is the first class you will teach as a PADI instructor.
Dive centers actively seek candidates from Course Directors they know have taught their instructor candidates, so they can hit the ground running. If you choose the right course director, being a new instructor with minimal experience will not hinder you. Employers know that you did a course with a course director who fully prepared you to be a great instructor. In Roatan’s busy season (January to August), I am constantly being asked by dive centers if I have any candidates who recently finished and are looking for work.
You want to learn from a course director who teaches you to be a good instructor, NOT how to pass the IE. Course directors who focus on getting the perfect score in the IE often do so at the cost of preparing you for the real-life problems that the IDC should be preparing you to handle. The experience your course director has will play a big part in this. When I first started teaching as a new course director, I fell into this trap myself. I was more concerned about my candidates passing the IE than taking the time to focus on more real-world training. As time passed and my confidence grew, I began assigning problems I knew my instructor candidates would face in their day-to-day work after they had passed the IE. It's one thing to pass the IE, but once you land your first job, if you make a mess of the first few courses you teach, you are going to lose that job. I realized it was my job to make sure that didn’t happen.
Finding Work
We will always be there to help you get a job placement; it is usually immediate because local dive centers actively seek our newly trained instructors.
Your resume or CV. Many people forget how valuable the experience they have gained before becoming an instructor is. Highlight a non-diving experience you have. Are you an accountant, plumber, mechanic, medic, or influencer? (more on that later). Your resume should briefly list your dive experience, but as a new instructor, don’t waste time trying to make it look like you have more experience than you do. The number of dives you have, the specialties you have taken, and where you have dived is all that is needed.
Add a photo that makes you look well-groomed and presentable. Make your non-diving work experience sound applicable to work in scuba diving. If you have worked in a hotel or restaurant, emphasize the customer service aspects of that job. Good customer service is important in the dive industry. Dive shops look for people who know how to keep customers happy. If you have any experience with computers, particularly in web or graphic design, highlight it. Dive shops need people to keep their websites up to date! It's important to highlight any mechanical knowledge you have – there is a lot of equipment to fix around a dive shop! Writing skills are highly valued; dive shops need to engage potential customers online through blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and similar channels. Think about the jobs you have done, and describe them appropriately on your resume.
When you send your Resume to potential employers, research them! You need to write a covering email along with your resume. You need to write a different email for EACH application. Make sure you explain in this email why you want to work at their particular dive shop. What makes them stand out from the crowd? Their website and a Facebook page should tell you what THEY think makes them stand out. In this covering email, demonstrate that you understand their message and want to be a part of their culture.
Start Blogging – Right Now!
This may sound strange, but as you read through this article, it will make sense.
There are plenty of other people thinking about doing the same thing as you at this moment.
If you start a blog, maybe just one post a week. Describe the decisions you are facing, the online resources you found useful, the people you contacted, and whether they were helpful. Then, as you start taking the courses necessary to become a PADI Pro, describe them. Share your experiences, good and bad. It may be describing dives that stand out to you. These dives may be memorable for good or bad reasons; all of it is interesting information. Anything you can share that may help other people make a more informed decision themselves about how to go about it.
Create a post about my amazing divetheory section that will help you ace the exams, so others find it.
Why will this help you build a more successful career in scuba? If you have a blog full of useful, quality information on a particular subject (becoming a scuba instructor), it will appear in search engine results. That means that you are building a marketing channel that you can use in the future, once you are an instructor, to attract potential students. When you start applying for jobs, potential employers will see this virtual real estate you own as something that makes you a very attractive prospective employee. You can demonstrate that you understand the business of diving, that marketing is part of the job, and you are good at it. You may intend to work as a self-employed instructor, a quality blog which has many external links to it is valuable. Having an established blog will serve as the foundation of a successful marketing campaign for your dive business.
Making a reasonable income
Once you are an instructor, it's time to make sure it pays. Many jobs are commission-based; you get paid for the courses you teach and the dives you lead. Some are salaried, but even then, tips will likely make up a significant part of your income.
You need to be well organized. This means planning your courses and taking into account the weather and other logistical issues. A well-planned course will be more enjoyable for your students, less stressful for you, and will finish on time! A poorly planned course ends up taking extra time, time that you are now unable to use to either attract or teach new students. Our IDC prepares you well for this with bespoke industry-leading tools that are unique to our programme that you can use after the course to make you the most organised instructor out there.
Understand that your job is not just in the water. The good thing is that you will be spending a lot of time doing what you love – diving, but there are other aspects to the job. I have touched on these in the resume section above. The dive center you work at needs to attract customers so you can teach and guide them; they need your help doing that. You will need to take photos and post them on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media platforms. Tag the customers in those photos. Keep blogging and maintaining your personal website as well.
You need to do conservation work!
You will also need to help fill tanks, fix equipment, and maintain the boat. Probably do some cleaning, painting, and various other jobs. The instructors who help the most around the shop get noticed. They start getting the better-paying work.
If you find yourself working at a dive shop that sells equipment, there will probably be extra commission opportunities to sell that equipment. Make sure you wear the equipment that your shop sells when teaching courses. Students are likely to buy equipment they see you wearing! Learn about the equipment your shop sells, including its pros and cons. You need to be knowledgeable about the products to sell them successfully. Make sure you sell the right equipment for your customer, not the equipment that makes you the highest income. If your customers are happy with what they bought from you, they will seek your purchasing advice in the future.
Ready to start your journey?
I've helped over 500 divers become successful PADI instructors since 2008. Whether you have your Open Water card or you're a Divemaster ready to enrol, I'm happy to talk through your timeline and options — no pressure.