PADI Instructor Development Course

The PADI Instructor Development Course comprises of the PADI Assistant Instructor (AI) and PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor (OWSI) courses. By combining both you can reduce the time needed to become a fully qualifed PADI Instructor by streamlining your training. Our IDCs run in conjuction with both the EFR Instructor course and the PADI IEs, allowing you to complete all the components of the Instructor Development process back to back.

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 Instructor Development Course you have use of the pool and classroom facilities available at Aquasport to prepare yourself for this course.

What will I do?

The Instructor Development Course (IDC) is made up of two parts – the Assistant Instructor (AI) course and the Open Water Scuba Instructor (OWSI) program. Most dive professionals complete the entire IDC and go on to attend an Instructor Examination (IE), which is the final step to earn a PADI Instructor certification.

During the IDC you will learn: 

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

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

How long will it take?

The PADI Instructor Development Course takes place over a minimum of seven days, normally conducted over a series of weekends. These weekends start on a Friday at 6.30pm and continue over the Saturday and Sunday from 8am until 6pm. However, to certify as a PADI Instructor will take as long as is necessary for you to successfully complete all the required sections. Intensive and internship options are available on request subject to candidate numbers.

Once ready, you will need to attend a PADI Instructor Examination (IE).  This is a two-day evaluative program that tests an instructor candidate’s teaching ability, dive theory knowledge, skill level, understanding of the PADI System, and attitude and professionalism. PADI IEs are standardised and conducted by specially trained PADI Instructor Examiners. The IE location, testing environment and examination sessions are organised to be as objective as possible to fairly and consistently evaluate a candidate’s abilities. Only those who meet the IE performance requirements earn the respected PADI Instructor certification. There is a fee for attending an IE.

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
• Before attending an IE, you must have a minimum of 100 logged dives
• 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

To complete your OWSI certifcation you will need to be a certified EFR Instructor. These courses run both in conjunction with and independently of our IDCs.

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 Instructor Development Course £1420.00

EFR Instructor £450.00

Upon successful completion of the course, there is a PADI IDC application fee and IE fee (if you wish to attend any future IE) which are 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?

When you are ready to progress, you will need to pass the PADI IE to earn a full PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor rating.

You may also consider adding PADI Specialty Instructor ratings to your instructor profile. The PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer (MSDT) Prep will allow you to learn how to teach five PADI Specialties under the guidance of our experienced PADI Course Director and Instructor Development Team

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 programmes are available on request.