PADI SPECIALTY COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
Altitude Diver
This purpose of this course is to familiarize divers with the
skills, knowledge, planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems,
hazards and enjoyment of diving at altitudes between 1,000 feet and 10,000 feet
using the Recreational Dive Planner. Training emphasizes fun and safety.
Requires short classroom and two open water dives.
AWARE Coral Reef Conservation
This course informs divers and nondivers about the plight of the world's
reefs. It describes how coral reefs function and why they are so important. It
also reviews why many reefs are in serious trouble and what individuals can do
to prevent further decline.
Requires an evening of classroom.
AWARE Fish Identification Course
This course is designed to introduce divers to the most
common families and species of fish found in temperate and tropical waters.
Divers learn basic fish identification and scientific surveying techniques.
Through an overview of Project AWARE and other preservation and research
efforts, such as the REEF Fish Survey Project, divers also learn the importance
of personal involvement in aquatic environment conservation.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives. A wonderful addition to a group trip.
Boat Diver Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to boat diving and to help the student develop the skills, knowledge and techniques necessary for boat diving. After the completing the course, students will be able to plan and organize boat dives being aware of the proper procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of boat diving. The course covers proper boat diving etiquette - storage of personal equipment, personal conduct, considerations for care of the boat, specific boat diving entries and exits. An overview of emergency/safety equipment needed on board private diving vessels is also presented.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Computer Assisted Diving
This purpose of this specialty course is to familiarize divers with the
skill, knowledge, planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems,
hazards and enjoyment of diving with a dive computer. It serves as a safe,
supervised introduction to diving, especially multilevel profiles, with the
assistance of a dive computer. It focuses on developing the student's knowledge
of theories behind dive tables, multilevel diving and dive computers. It will
also develop the student's knowledge of dive computers including: dive computer
functions, features and performance; the types of dive computers available; and
their care and maintenance.
Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Deep Diver Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to deep diving and to help the student develop the necessary skills, knowledge and techniques to safely participate in deep diving activities. Deep diving is considered to be between 60 and 100 feet, with no dive being deeper than 130 feet. The course will include risk factors, decompression tables review, safety stops, emergency decompression procedures, special equipment, descent lines and buoyancy-control considerations. There will also be discussion of procedures for flying after diving, high-altitude diving and an orientation to recompression chambers.Requires an evening of classroom and four dives.
Digital Underwater Photographer
During this course, you learn to use the PADI SEA
(Shoot, Examine and Adjust) method, which takes full advantage of digital
technology. The result is good underwater photos faster than you may imagine.
You not only learn how to take good photos, but how to share them with your
friends via email or printing, optimizing your work with your computer, storage
and more.
Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Diver Propulsion Vehicle
This course is designed to familiarize
divers with the skills, knowledge, planning, organization, procedures,
techniques, problems, hazards and excitement of using DPVs. Upon completing the
course the diver should be able to demonstrate practical knowledge and planning
procedures that make diving with a DPV fun. They should also be able to
identify hazards of DPV diving and demonstrate the techniques and procedures
required to minimize those hazards.
Requires an evening of classroom and two
dives.
Drift Diver Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to drift diving and to help the student develop the skills, knowledge and techniques necessary for drift diving. The PADI Drift Diver course teaches student the planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of drift diving. The student will learn about special equipment (floats, lines, reels), proper procedures for buoyancy-control, navigation, communication, site selection, and techniques for staying close to a buddy or together as a group. Lastly, the course will cover site selection and an overview of aquatic currents, its causes and effects.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Dry Suit Diver
This course is designed to familiarize divers with the skills, knowledge, planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems, hazards and enjoyment of diving with a dry suit. The course is intended to serve as a training program that emphasizes adventure and fun while establishing the benefits of dry suit diving and developing required skills.
Requires an evening of classroom, a pool session and two dives.
Enriched Air Diver Course
This course is designed to qualify recreational divers to use enriched air ("nitrox") for no stop recreational diving. The program addresses the use of enriched air with 22 to 40 percent oxygen, with emphasis on enriched air with 32 and 36 percent oxygen.Requires an evening of classroom.
Equipment Specialist Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to new types of equipment and to familiarize divers with the operation and maintenance of equipment. The theory, principles and operation of diving equipment, routine recommended care and maintenance procedures, and equipment storage will be covered. Common problems with equipment and recommended professional maintenance procedures will be included as well as simple suggestions for comfortable equipment configurations and an introduction to new equipment.Requires an evening of classroom.
Master Scuba Diver Rating
The Master Scuba Diver rating is the highest recreational diver rating in the PADI program, and denotes superior achievement and proficiency.To achieve this rating, a diver must be a PADI Advanced Openwater Diver, PADI Rescue Diver and have certification in any five PADI Specialty ratings and fifty (50) logged dives.
Multilevel Diver Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to multilevel diving and to help the student develop the necessary skills, knowledge and techniques. During this course students will review decompression sickness theory, emergency decompression procedures, and PADI's S.A.F.E. campaign. Students will then learn definition and advantages of multilevel diving, methods of calculating multilevel dives, procedures for flying after diving, guidelines, rules and procedures for multilevel diving with the PADI Wheel and/or diving computers. Care and maintenance of dive computers will also be covered.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Night Diver Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to night diving and to help the student develop the skills, knowledge and techniques necessary to safely participate in night diving activities. Night is considered to be any time between sunset and sunrise.Students will learn planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of night diving. Proper procedures for buoyancy control, navigation, communication, use of dive lights and buddy system techniques will be stressed. Disorientation, emergency procedures and orientation to nocturnal aquatic life will also be covered.
Requires an evening of classroom and three dives.
Peak Performance Buoyancy
The
PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Specialty course assists all divers in polishing
their buoyancy control beyond that Open Water Diver level. The goal of the
course is to enhance the student's buoyancy control abilities through knowledge
development and skills practice. Students will focus on fundamentals such as
buoyancy check, fine-tuning buoyancy underwater, weight position and
distribution, streamlining, and visualization. Students will have an opportunity
to polish buoyancy control beyond the Open Water level by learning about
positioning and distributing weight for comfort and desired body position
(trim), visualization techniques prior to dives, buoyancy checks, establishing
neutral buoyancy during all segments of a dive, fine-tuning neutral buoyancy
underwater and hovering.
Requires an evening of classroom, a pool session and two dives.
Project AWARE
This purpose of this specialty is to familiarize divers and nondivers with
the plight of worldwide aquatic ecosystems and to describe what individuals can
do to help protect them.
Requires an evening of classroom.
Search & Recovery Diver Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to search and recovery diving and to help the student develop the necessary skills and knowledge for safe search and recovery diving. The student will learn the planning organization, procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of search and recovery diving. They will become familiar with limited visibility diving and underwater navigation techniques. Proper techniques and safety considerations for object location, including the use of various search patterns, lines and reels will be stressed. Students will also learn proper techniques and safety considerations for recovery of objects using various lifting devices.Requires an evening of classroom and four dives.
Underwater Naturalist Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to the underwater aquatic environment and to help the student develop safe and responsible interaction with aquatic life. This course teaches the planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of diving in different aquatic environments. Students will have a basic overview of major aquatic life groupings, factual information that dispels myths of potentially dangerous aquatic life, an overview of basic aquatic life interactions and associations, responsible human interactions with aquatic life, and diving techniques used to help preserve bottom dwelling aquatic life and minimize aquatic life disturbance.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Underwater Navigator Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to underwater navigation and to help the student develop the skills and knowledge necessary for use in underwater navigation. The course will cover such skills as methods of estimating distances underwater, natural navigation techniques, using underwater patterns, dive site relocation techniques, and compass navigation techniques.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Underwater Photographer Course
This course is designed to be an introduction to basic underwater photography and to help the student develop the skills, knowledge and practical techniques necessary to enjoy this interesting activity. The student will learn the planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of underwater-photography diving. Further, the course will cover photographic principles, composition, film types, flash/available light photography and camera-handling techniques. Finally, the student will learn about the preparation, care and maintenance of photographic equipment.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Underwater Videographer Course
This course is designed to introduce students to the selection, use and care of underwater videography equipment, and the basic principles of underwater video production. This course will cover the selection, maintenance, care and handling of underwater video equipment, safe diving practices while using underwater video equipment, shot types, lengths and camera moves. Further, the student will learn developing a story line and shot sequencing, planning, organization, procedures, techniques and problems of underwater videography.Requires an evening of classroom and two dives.
Wreck Diver Specialty Course
The course is designed to be an introduction to wreck diving and to help the student develop the skills and knowledge necessary for safe wreck diving. Penetration dives will be limited to within the light zone and within 130 feet from the surface, vertical and horizontal distance included. Students will be prepared for planning, organization, procedures, techniques, problems and hazards of wreck diving. They will learn preparation and use of lights, air supplies, special equipment, penetration lines and reels. The course will also cover limited visibility diving techniques and emergency procedures.Requires an evening of classroom and four dives.