PADI Assistant Instructor

The PADI Assistant Instructor Course is the first part of the PADI Instructor Development Course.

How do I get started?

Self-study is a major part of the Assistant Instructor learning process. The PADI materials you need to complete the programme are the IDC Crew Pack and eLearning. Both are included in the course costs.

The PADI IDC Crew Pack and eLearning contain all the materials you will need to become an Assistant Instructor and full PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor.  You will receive:

• Lesson planning slates for confined and open water
• Instructor cue cards for the core PADI courses (31 slates)
  
  

The IDC eLearning includes digital copies of:

• Open Water Prescriptive Lesson Guides
• PADI Guide to Teaching
• PPB and AWARE Specialty Instructor Guides
• Diving Knowledge Workbook
• OLPC Tutorial
• Open Water, Advanced Open Water, Rescue and Divemaster exams

Once you have paid your course fees and enrolled on our Assistant Instructor programme you have use of the pool and classroom facilities available at Aquasport to prepare yourself for this course.

What will I do?

The PADI Assistant Instructor is where you will learn to teach. You will take part in classroom presentations, as well as learn how to evaluate your student divers' water skills in both the pool and open water. Throughout the training you will improve your own diving knowledge and skills base beyond Divemaster level. Once certified you will be qualified to assist a PADI Instructor in many different areas of the PADI system, as well as independently teach certain PADI Specialties. 

During the AI course you will learn: 

• PADI Standards and Procedures for courses you can teach
• How to deliver classroom presentations
• How to teach and evaluate student skills in both confined and open water
• Learning, Instruction and the PADI System
• Risk Management and Diver Safety
• The Business of Diving and your role as an Assistant Instructor

The course will consist of classroom workshops and presentations, confined water dives in our onsite heated training pool and open water dives at one of the local dive sites.

How long will it take?

The PADI Assistant Instructor programme takes place over two weekends. To certify as an Assistant Instructor you will need to successfully complete all the required sections. The programme combines all the training into two weekends with the home study fitting in around these dates. 

The course starts on a Friday at 6.30pm and continues over the Saturday and Sunday from 8am until 6pm over two weekends. Intensive and internship options are available on request subject to candidate numbers.

What will I need?

• A PADI Divemaster who has been a certified diver for six months . Divers certified through other agencies should contact Aquasport first as there may be additional requirements
• A minimum of 60 logged dives, including experience in night diving, deep diving and underwater navigation
• A valid certification in First Aid and CPR (within the last two years). The PADI EFR programme is ideal for this
• A Diving Medical signed by a physician, dated from within one year of your course start date. We recommend the HSE medical if you wish to work as an Assistant Instructor in the UK

You will also need the standard PADI materials from your previous core courses. Equipment rental is not included in the cost, so you will need to rent from us or bring your own. A full list of equipment and PADI material requirements is available at the centre on request.

Prices

PADI Assistant Instructor Course including materials £995.00

You will receive your PADI IDC Crew Pack and associated eLearning materials needed to start the programme.

Upon successful completion of the course, there is a PADI Assistant Instructor application fee which is paid directly to PADI. Current prices are available on request.

Open water dive site entry and air fills while away from the centre are not included. This is approximately £30 a day.

Where can I go from here?

The PADI Assistant Instructor is the first half of the Instructor Development Course (IDC).  When you are ready to progress, attending an OWSI program allows entry into an IE to earn a full PADI Instructor rating.

You may also enrol on one of the EFR Instructor courses held at Aquasport International and teach the EFR and CFC programmes.

Aquasport also offers you the chance to learn more about the day to day running of a busy dive centre. This is ideal for divers wishing to take more of an active involvement at their local centre or for divers looking to use their certification whilst travelling. The programme involves modules such as compressor operations and cylinder filling, retail training, equipment servicing and dive centre operations. All these are aimed at making you more attractive to future employers in the industry. More information about these options is available on request.