9 replies to this topic

[Trimix2dive]

Should OW and AOW be merged into one class, since on your first vacation your going to hit 100 feet anyways. Don't lie, i've done it you've done it.

[Basslet]

Not merged, but totallly revamped. Forget the "extra' courses to get your AOW. Like how the hell does fish id help you to become a better diver? I think a greater understanding of how exactly the ocean works (yeah, I know that sounds really stupid, but there's a reason I mention it) practice with a safety sausage and other signalling devices, teaching more about navigation (like how about checking your depth before leaving the mooring ball or anchor line? Duh). I've learned more on trips from other divers than I ever learned in AOW. I'm embarrased about my lack of knowledge. I should turn my card in.

[scubafanatic]

....I think you have a valid point there, I understand the vast majority of divers never persue any certification beyond OW, so the industry would be well-served to perhaps at least expand the training envelope to make OW training more comprehensive, since that's likely going to be the end of average divers lifetime training.

...on the other hand, there are a fair number of divers who need a slower / more gradual approach to avoid task-overloading, so perhaps the 60 ft. OW limit does have it's place.

...given the money involved though, it's hard to imagine anyone really standing in the way to block all those easy tourist dollars by upping the OW standards.

Karl

[Terri]

I've not taken AOW, so I can't really speak to the value added in the course. And I know that different agencies have different specifications for what constitutes an AOW course.

I was completely surprised at what constituted the OW course, though. I now wish there was a lot more practice on some of the basic skills that I've felt I only had a cursory overview on. But, to be perfectly honest, if the class was more time consuming, I don't know if I would have been ever taken the time to get certified. Now I'm completely addicted and committed to learning more and enhancing my skills.

[Latitude Adjustment]

The course used to be longer but it scared people away so now they suck you in with what's little more than an intro to scuba and hope you will come back for more.
If the instructor knows you are going on vacation where you will be needing more skills they should insist you get more relavent training before you leave.

[Brinybay]

I only took AOW because it was a prerequisite to Rescue. I know other divers felt the same way I did about AOW, that it amounted to little more than paying an instructor to go diving with us and sign off on the cert. I could have easily handled the curiculum and diving as part of one cert.

[drbill]

You mean return to those thrilling days of yesteryear when OW certification really meant something? Like you could dive to 130 ft because you had been trained to. Like you spent 2-3 weeks in class instead of 2 days? You mean when people were actually not passed if they did not master all the skills properly? You mean when basic rescue skills were actually included in OW certification?

Of course back then training didn't include all the new info we've learned about diving over the past few decades. And we didn't have equipment like SPG's, octo's, BCD's, dive computers, etc., to teach people so it could be done in less time than an equivalent class today.

[ScubaDadMiami]

We need to make sure that we are all talking about the same thing here. Different agencies at least used to have different names for courses of the same content. So, depending on what we are talking about here, there may be a misunderstanding.

Let's pick a completely random agency for our example . . . er . . . NAUI . NAUI offers a course called Advanced Scuba Diver. This course is designed to be nothing more than a "program of continued supervised experience designed to introduce divers to a variety of diving activities and to be taught entirely in an open water setting." There are no classroom sessions or written examination required for this certification. Why would anyone design a course like this? Simple.

We have other threads going on where people are already saying that the entry level class is hard enough to fit into their busy schedules. As soon as the certification process is over, most people have to try to go back to getting caught up with the rest of their lives. A couple of weeks pass. They start worrying that they might not remember what to do when they go on a dive boat/trip on their own for the first time without their instructor. You may be surprised to learn that a significant number of people never make another dive again.

The Advanced class gives you some more instructor supervision time without spending the whole day just practicing skills over and over again. It's fun, and it gives you great experience at the same time! Wouldn't you feel better if an instructor were hanging around on your first dives just to keep an eye on you?

What happens when you go out on dives where the conditions are common for the area but not exactly like on the day of your certification dives (such as at night versus day, in current compared to a calm day, on a wreck versus a reef, etc.)? The Advanced class is designed to introduce you to some new diving environments and conditions while continuing to work on skills you acquired but need to practice after completing your entry level training (such as navigation, dive planning, etc.).

Finally, the Advanced Scuba Diver certification gives you a chance to find out what kind of diving you will like to do in the future by sampling a menu of dives. After all, how do you know that you will like drift diving until you have actually done it?

The pre-dive briefings for this class are much more lengthy than on a typical dive outing, and they are designed to introduce the student to the environment and to review the skills (such as compass work, etc.) before hitting the water. Chances are, your instructor will have you arriving early at the boat dock to practice using your compass, etc., before departing on the boat for the destination. (That's not the only way to do it. It all depends on what kind of dive you will do.) There is a little more to the class than just jumping into the water in a new place; your instructor will give you an introduction to make sure that you are ready to participate.

When you are ready to specialize in something, then you can gain more academic knowledge and training by participating in a specialty course in that specific area. That will require classroom and more formal water training. However, the Advanced class is a great way to find out what you like without investing a lot more time and effort into a specialty only to realize that you don't care much about it. It is also a great way to polish the skills that you have just acquired in your entry level scuba certification while having an instructor nearby to escort you through your learning.

I am a big fan of this class!

[Diverbrian]

Student time is definitely a factor in splitting up the course work. But, it is a shame that so many good skills and concepts tend to get left by many shops until someone takes an AOW course.

[dustbowl diver]

Trimix,

I'll agree with you on the 100 ft depth. My second dive back in the blue water after a 19 year hiatus was to 105ft.

Having recently gone through a PADI AOW course, why shouldn't they be combined? Those skill sets I might have had some anxiety about, in the end were nothing to worry about. It was like that first year of college-exposure to multiple things and then pick and choose the direction you want to go.

Great question-THANKS!!