Becoming a Scuba Diving Instructor: It's a Longer Road Than You Think
Scuba diving looks so easy and fun to do, right? Who would not want to be a scuba diving instructor? You can spend your days in the water, teaching others how to safely explore the ocean or a lake, and get paid for it. If you want to explore this career option, you should know that the road to scuba instructor is much longer and more complex than you think.
Learn Scuba First
Learning scuba is easy enough. The basic course teaches you how to wear the equipment, check the equipment, make shallow dives to fifteen feet or less, and how to enter the water from a dock and a boat. You should also know how to swim and learn to swim with flippers on your feet because it is very different than just kicking with bare feet.
Find Advanced Scuba Classes
There are advanced scuba classes that teach you how to do deeper dives and avoid diving sicknesses like "the bends." You learn how to fill your own air tanks, check for leaks in the hoses, and make sure your mouthpiece and mask have no cracks or broken parts so that they can protect your face and lungs in deeper dives.
Scuba Diving Certification and Training
Once you have taken advanced scuba lessons, you can take the training and certification course that lets you dive on vacation without a guide. This training and certification course allows you to go anywhere in the world and dive without a guide (so long as you are diving with a partner; you must never dive alone!). After you have been certified and have "x" number of diving hours under your belt, you can take the instructor course.
Taking the Instructor Course
Finally, after you have completed ALL of the above, you are allowed to take the instructor course. After completing the instructor course, you are ready to teach scuba to other interested parties. You can choose to teach basic diving, or teach more advanced divers, and you can take your instructor permit to any locale in the U.S., including popular diving spots in Florida, California, and Hawaii.
Popular Career Moves for Scuba Instructors
Scuba instructors enjoy working for themselves near popular beaches. You could also work for major resorts, which hire scuba instructors to teach others how to dive. Local police and rescue teams hire scuba divers to find missing persons in large and deep waterways.
