Dive Classes

Basic Open Water | Advanced Open Water | Rescue | Divemaster
Specialty | Master Diver
 

Basic Open Water Diver

If you’ve always wondered what lies beneath the surface, now’s the time to find out. Start the journey of a lifetime with the PADI Open Water Diver course. It will change you forever.

In the PADI Open Water Diver course, your PADI Instructor takes you through the basics of learning how to scuba dive. You start in a pool or pool-like conditions and progress to the open water (ocean, lake, quarry, etc.) getting the background knowledge along the way.

Earning your PADI Open Water Diver certification is just the beginning. As a certified diver, fabulous dive destinations, exciting people, unparalleled adventure and uncommon tranquility await you. And, as you continue your adventure and gain experience through higher training levels, your opportunities expand.

• Number of Dives: Five Confined Water Dives and Four Open Water Dives
• Knowledge Development: Five sessions
• Prerequisites: Must be at least 10 years old for Junior Open Water Diver and 15 years old for Open Water Diver. Good health, reasonable fitness and comfort in the water.
• Materials You’ll Need: PADI Open Water Crew-Pak, PADI Open Water Video or DVD, Log Book.
• Equipment you’ll use during the course includes: mask, fins, snorkel, tank, regulator, buoyancy compensator, submersible pressure gauge and exposure protection as required by the local environment.

Becoming a diver will open a door to a whole new world. Open yours today and step through.

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Advanced Open Water Diver

Move up and experience real adventure with the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course. As you step beyond the PADI Open Water Diver level, you make five dives and have the opportunity to try some of diving’s most rewarding and useful specialty activities, such as deep diving, digital underwater photography, wreck diving and much more. These skills make diving much more than underwater sightseeing. Plus, the Advanced Open Water Diver course takes you one step closer to Master Scuba Diver – the ultimate non professional certification in recreational diving.

With your PADI Instructor you complete the deep and underwater navigation Adventure Dives. These dives boost your confidence as you build these foundational skills. Then, you choose three additional dives from more than 15 Adventure Dives to complete your course. You can go diving at night, check out the local wrecks in the area or even fly through the ocean on a diver propulsion vehicle – all during your PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course.

• Must be a PADI Open Water Diver (or qualifying certification from another training organization) and 15 years old (12 for Junior Advanced Open Water Diver) 
• Number of dives: Five dives 
• Adventure Dive options include altitude diving, AWARE-fish identification, boat diving, deep diving, diver propulsion vehicle use, drift diving, dry suit diving, multilevel and computer diving, night diving, peak performance buoyancy, search and recovery, underwater nature study, underwater navigation, underwater photography, underwater videography and wreck diving
• Each Adventure Dive in the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course may credit toward the first dive of the corresponding PADI Specialty Diver course
• Materials: Adventures in Diving Crew-Pak, Adventures in Diving manual and video and logbook

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Rescue Diver

Challenging and rewarding best describes the PADI Rescue Diver course. This course will expand your knowledge and experience level. Rescue Divers learn to look beyond themselves and consider the safety and well being of other divers. Although this course is challenging, it is a rewarding way to build your confidence. Rescue Diver training will prepare you to prevent problems and, if necessary, manage dive emergencies. Many divers say this is the best course they’ve ever taken. You'll cover:

• Self-rescue and diver stress
• Emergency management and equipment
• Panicked diver response
• In-water rescue breathing protocols
• Egress (exits)
• Dive accident scenarios

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Divemaster

Your adventure into the professional levels of recreational diving begins with the PADI Divemaster program. Working closely with a PADI Instructor, in this program you expand your dive knowledge and hone your skills to the professional level. PADI Divemaster training develops your leadership abilities, qualifying you to supervise dive activities and assist instructors with student divers. 

During the PADI Divemaster program, you learn dive leadership skills through both classroom and independent study. You complete water skills and stamina exercises, as well as training exercises that stretch your ability to organize and solve problems. You put this knowledge into action through an internship or series of practical training exercises.

• Knowledge Development: 12 topics ranging from dive theory to assisting student divers in training
• Prerequisites: PADI Advanced Open Water Diver (or qualifying certification from another training organization), PADI Rescue Diver (or qualifying certification from another training organization), 20 logged dives, 18 years old.
• Minimum Number of Logged Dives: 60 for certification as PADI Divemaster

Materials You’ll Need:

• PADI Divemaster Manual
• Recreational Dive Planner (RDP) – all three versions (Table, Wheel and eRDP including associated Instructions for Use booklets)
• The Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving
• Diving Knowledge Workbook
• Divemaster Slates
• PADI Divemaster Video
• Instructor Guides for the programs that may be conducted by PADI Divemasters. You may purchase these guides from your PADI Dive Center/Resort or you may download PDF versions by clicking on the links below.
  1. Discover Scuba Diving
  2. Discover Snorkeling/Skin Diver Course
  3. Scuba Review/Discover Local Diving

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Specialty Courses

The instructors at Deep South Divers offer over 20 different specialty courses. Some of our more popular include Cavern Diver, Research Diver, Underwater Naturalist, Search and Recovery, Buoyancy, Photography, Night Diver and Deep Diving.

If any of these courses interest you or you wish to see receive a full list of specialty classes, please contact us. We would be delighted to answer any additional questions and give any assistance necessary. We hope to see you in the future as a student at Deep South Divers.

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Master Scuba Diver

Join the best of the best in recreational scuba diving. Live the dive lifestyle and explore the underwater world like never before. Do it by becoming a PADI Master Scuba Diver – a rating that puts you in a class of distinction. You earn it by diving it, writing your ticket to endless adventure through the experience and training that set you apart as a PADI Master Scuba Diver.

With the PADI Master Scuba Diver rating, you've reached the highest non professional level in the PADI System of diver education. It means that you have acquired significant training and experience in a variety of dive environments.

• Minimum Number of Logged Dives: 50
• Minimum qualifications: PADI Rescue Diver or Junior Rescue Diver (or qualifying certification from another training organization), 12 years old, five PADI Specialty Diver certifications.

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