Have you been thinking about diving but not sure what to expect? Until Recently I didn’t even realise you needed a licence to be able to dive but there is a lot you need to learn to make sure you have both fun and safe dives. Find out here what to expect from your open water diving course.
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Which Organisation to Use?
The first question you need to think about is which dive certification organisation to use. There are many organisations out there but which ones are available will depend on the location you do your course. I did my Open Water in Thailand and my choices were PADI and SSI.
I hadn’t planned to go diving on this trip so I hadn’t researched who was better. I had heard of PADI and knew they were a worldwide organisation but the SSI course was cheaper so I wasn’t sure who to use. I spoke to the dive shop about them and he said that both were the same and there was no real advantage of using PADI over SSI.
In fact, SSI was more flexible with their training which means you don’t have to a pass one section before moving on to the next. You can come back to it later after you’ve gained a little more confidence under the water.
What Does the Course Entail?
So you’ve signed up for one of the courses but what does that mean? As a student taking on the Open Water course you are agreeing to:
- Study the Manual and Videos
- Complete academic review sessions and pool sessions
- Complete open water dives
Open Water Manual
I’m afraid there is a bit of study work involved with the Open Water Course. While diving is great fun it also poses a lot of risks if you are unprepared. Before you click away let me assure you it’s easy, simple and well worth sitting through!
If I had opted for PADI I would have been given a manual to keep but as I was backpacking around Asia at the time I really didn’t fancy adding a thick book to my backpack! Thankfully with SSI I just had one on loan from the dive centre so I didn’t have to worry about finding room for it.
What I also liked about SSI is you can download a free app for your phone that has the manual on it. It also has little quizzes at the end of each chapter. The app is also handy to have as you can electronically store all your dives on it and have a digital copy of your license.
Open Water Videos
As well as having a bit of studying to do from the manuals there are also some videos to watch. Some people learn better from watching than reading so they are making sure the information gets to the student. I’m not going to lie, the videos are the boring, outdated kind you get made to watch at school. It sucks but it’s something you have to do briefly in order to be allowed to dive.
Another reason that I went for SSI over PADI was that the training videos were shorter. PADI videos go over everything twice which makes them twice as long. If you learn better by watching this could be a good one for you but as I learn better by doing there was no need for me to watch everything twice. The information didn’t really start sinking into my head until I hit the water but we all learn differently so it depends on what works best for you.
Academic Review Sessions
To make sure the information is starting to get through to you there are review questions at the end of each videos. Don’t panic though, they are simple. It’s just a case of filling in the missing words from sentences and you can have the manual open in front of you! It’s not an exam, just a way of making sure you didn’t miss the important bits in the videos. It’s really easy I promise!
Open Water Exam
I’m sorry, there is an exam that you do need to pass in order to get your Open Water Diving License. Before you click away there is nothing to fear from this exam. It’s a simple multiple choice exam that you only need to get 75% correct in order to pass. Oh and it’s also designed to be easy enough for 10 year olds to pass!
Don’t forget, you’ve also just studied these things so they’ll be fresh in your mind. The manual shows what are key facts so I just flicked through those before my exam as a little refresher.
Like I said, it’s an easy exam but if you do fail what happens? Do you need to redo the whole course? Of course not! Your instructor will go over the wrong answers with you and all you have to do is take another test. The test only takes about 15 minutes so it’s very little bother if you do have to take it again!
When do you take this exam? Well it’s actually up to you and your instructor really. I was asked if I wanted to do it after the first day of diving or second. After he pointed out that most people don’t want to do an exam after completing their final dive I agreed to do it before my final day of diving. After we returned I quickly flipped through the manual while he prepared the test, then I simply took it, passed and that was it. All over.
Pool Sessions
Your Open Water Course is more about the practical side which is why the theory and exam stuff is quick and easy. Before you get taken out for an actual dive you’ll need to practice the skills in safe, shallow water. They say you should have 6 pool sessions but the instructor is left to decide how many each student needs. Most try and fit everything in to one longer session.
When I did mine we went to the beach for our training as I did mine on an small island in Thailand. The training is done in shallow water that covers your head when you sit down but you can easily stand up in if you feel uncomfortable with a certain task.
During the pool session there are a set of skills you must show the instructor you are comfortable with. In reality, they are all easy but each individual will find some easier than others. I did not like having to take my mask off under the water but was quite comfortable taking my regulator out (the thing you breath through).
I had my pool sessions at the beach
What sort of skills will you learn?
- How to do a controlled descent
- How to maintain buoyancy underwater
- How to clear your mask when water gets in
- How to clean your mask if it get foggy
- How to completely remove your mask and put it back on underwater
- How to clear the regulator of water if it’s had to leave your mouth
- How to find your regulator if it should fall out
- How to communicate with your buddy underwater
- How to remove weights in case of emergency
- How to do a controlled ascent
- How to do an uncontrolled ascent
- How to do a buddy breathing ascent
- How to remove and then put on your equipment underwater
While it may not seem like it at the time, all of the skills are necessary to have. When you’re diving you can only communicate with simple hand signals and you can’t rush up to the surface to speak. During one of my dives I suddenly had the urge to cough which kept getting stronger. I had no idea what to do but because we had practiced it I was comfortable to simply take out my regulator, cough, and then return it to my mouth.
Going on the Open Water Dives
Once you’ve done some theory, learnt some skills and demonstrated to your instructor you’re comfortable with them it’s finally time to get out in the water. To pass your Open Water Course you will need to complete four open water dives. Each dive school will be slightly different in there approach. When I did my Open Water with Phi Phi Sea Frogs they had a boat to take us out into the ocean.
There were several people coming out on the boat but I was only diving with my instructor and another girl who was doing a refresher dive. She wanted to practice controlling her buoyancy underwater so us working together during our dives made sense.
That’s what you want from your dive centre. You want one that treats you as individuals with individual needs rather than customers to just take money from. This is why I liked that the Sea Frogs were taking everyone out in different groups, each with their own instructor or dive master.
During your open water dives you’ll be experiencing one of the different ways of entering the ocean. There are several ways of doing it but as I was on a boat for mine I had the jump. Well, technically it’s more of a large step. If you’re entering from the beach though you will be shown how to do that instead.
Once you are in the water you will slowly descent like you practiced but this time going down further. The trick here is to remember what you were taught during your pool sessions and remain calm. Just remember that you are in safe hands and there is someone there keeping a very close eye on you.
During your dives you will repeat some of the training exercises from the pool to make sure you are still familiar with them. All the dives will be slightly different but you will probably be doing some games along the way too. We did several to practice floating because that’s what we needed to learn.
All divers will tell you that everyone handles diving differently when learning but everyone has moments of feeling uncomfortable as it’s a completely new experience and there’s lots going through your mind. During my second dive I had a massive panic attack that almost stopped me coming back to finish the Open Water Course.
The trick is to stay calm as panic leads to mistakes and mistakes can cause serious health problems. I don’t say this to scare anyone but it is true. If you have all the skills under your belt you will be fine. I found I relaxed when distracted by the beauty around me.
Why Go Diving?
Diving isn’t for everyone but it opens you up to a whole new world. I had always loved snorkelling so being able to go deeper was an unbelievable experience. I’m so happy with my decision to start diving. There are so many amazing things to be seen under the sea. I can’t wait to explore more dive sites all around the world.
I hope this has helped show what you can expect from your Open Water Diving Course. It may seem like a lot of work but it is worth it and diving quickly becomes an addiction!
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I found it interesting that you state that each individual dives differently. My wife and I want to go diving on our anniversary this year. I will keep this in mind while we are looking for a scuba diving charter.
Hi Claire,
I’m a scuba instructor and I’m so glad to hear that you persevered and continued with your Open Water course! It is definitely a bit scary the first few times, I also panicked during my course, but like you, I continued, fell in love with it, and now I’ve been instructing in Thailand for 4 years!
The thing that was hardest for me was clearing my mask of water, but once I nailed that, everything else came easily!
I got my open water certification in Thailand too – one of the best travel experience; I am so glad you got that experience.
This has really helped me , I’m dyslexic and leaning from books and taking exams is a nightmare for me. so good to see what you say about SSI as I’m taking their open water course next week in Croatia and I’m already stressed about the written test even though , I have watched, read and written everything many times. Thanks again for posting.