Are you a rescue diver, 18 and over and not sure what to do with yourself this summer, then why not take your first steps with us and become a Dive Professional?

We promise it will be fun, if not a little hard work at times.

We are offering an ‘on the job’ Divemaster Internship – where you will gain invaluable experience from truly working in all areas of our dive centre whilst working towards your Divemaster qualification.

As a minimum, you need to be available on: -

• Thursday pool session 7pm – 9pm
• Saturday’s all day including evening pool session
• Sundays – 1st and last Sunday of the month – normally but we are a small and busy dive centre so do train on additional Sundays and midweek.  The more involved you are the more you will get out of the internship.

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The times detailed above are over and above the time you will need to spend on completing the performance requirements of the PADI Divemaster certification.

For committing your summer to us, then in return you will be involved in working in the dive centre - all areas, including

• Operating and day to day management of the compressor
• Assisting with repairs to equipment
• Managing the logistics of pool nights, open water sessions and dive trips
• Assisting in the shop
• Working with other members of the Dive Rutland teams assisting students whilst expanding your own knowledge and skills to the required Divemaster standard.
• Undertake Surface Support and operational site logistics
• Marketing and social media campaigns and creation.
• Guidance and mentoring from our very own onsite PADI Course Director - Tracey Roberts

Subject to meeting the PADI Standards and requirements of the PADI Divemaster course the PADI Divemaster certification

First Aid at Work certification – valid for three years

Equipment Discounts

For more information on the Divemaster course see our Divemaster Web page or to discuss this or the summer internship please feel free to phone Tracey or Bridget or just drop us an email 

The Divemaster course as per the PADI Instructor Manual recommended hours is 50 which means you could achieve in a little as 8 days, but remember as per all other PADI courses, performance requirements do have to be met.

Just because you can do it in 8 days, does that mean you should?

On a condensed short course option you will become a Divemaster, but what are the drawbacks?

• You will rarely if ever get to work with real students as a result, a lot of your training will be simulated, and parts can only be played so well.
• Generally (and we are speaking generally) the shorter course option tends to meet the bare minimum performance requirements for certification. True mastery is not always achieved

 
Do not despair if undertaking a short course fits with your schedule; this can still be  is a good option.  We would urge you to see it as a 'boot-camp' you have to have completed all of the elearning Diver Theory and pre-reading prior to attending the course.
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​After the course, we do recommend you come back at times to suit and gain real application of divemaster skills by working with real students and our professional team members.

​The short course is ideal for university students who have limited breaks to still gain a professional qualification in the small time they have.

By completing over a longer period of time you will be working with the Dive Rutland professional team and your mentor assisting on actual courses which exposes you to students that are in training during your course and not role-playing exercises as used in the short consolidated course option.

You will become more involved in the running of the dive centre, working with qualified and unqualified divers, risk management, logistics and dive planning.

The extended course options are great for divers who have a little more time and want the benefits of working with real people in real training to gain real experience.

​Here at Dive Rutland, we offer both options.  Our short course is ran over an intensive two-week period, or you can choose a the long option which works on a flexible schedule but this is still a formalised training programme.

By taking the option to complete over a longer period of time with Dive Rutland, you will not be a lacky or ‘kit monkey’; the activities you undertake will be directly related to your Divemaster course but to an agreed schedule.  Every professional in the team has to prepare the required equipment for the course they are running, and you will be exposed to all of this activity, including fetching and preparing your own equipment just like your professional mentor does.

​You will be involved with real-world experience of working within our dive operation as this is an important element of the course and you becoming a great Divemaster.

We believe in high quality training, what we ask is you look around and find the mentor and dive centre who delivers high quality training and you and they fit together after all this is about your journey not just the dive centre, it’s a partnership.
 
Our Trainee Divemasters work with Tracey our onsite Course Director to ‘pick’ their mentor, someone they aspire to be or would like to work with but Tracey will always be there for guidance.  You might even choose Tracey.  Whoever you choose you will still get to work with other instructors and professional staff as no two individuals work exactly the same way, it is all part of the learning process.

You are looking for an adventure or experience, looking for a complete change of career or even wanting to gain huge amounts of diving knowledge and improving your diving skills and are considering joining a Divemaster course and have questions.

This article is to help you in preparation on your journey to becoming a Divemaster

To start on the Divemaster course there are a number of pre-requisites: 
 

• Minimum age of 18 years old -Junior Divemaster programs are available
• PADI Rescue Diver certification or equivalent.
• Medical clearance signed by a physician
• A minimum of 40 logged dives - as a general rule, you should have sufficient diving experience to be able to focus on the students and divers under your supervision.
• Completed EFR Primary and Secondary Care training within the last 24 months
• Mask, Snorkel and Computer as a minimum

During your Divemaster course and actually EVERY professional course afterwards you will be asked to complete a number of swim tests.  For Divemaster these are: -

• 400 metre swim
• 800 metre Snorkel swim
• 15 minute tread water
• 100m tired diver tow

 
Although not difficult, you do need a level of fitness to complete. These are timed and the faster you are the more points you get and remember Points make prizes.
 
Why are professionals asked to complete these types of tests? As a professional in the dive industry you will be responsible for the safety of students and customers, being fit is part of your ‘duty of care’ to your client.

In-water skills -  Brush up on your skills.

Remember back to your open water course and the skills that you were asked to complete in the pool? Those are the skills that you will be asked to demonstrate as part of the skills circuit during your course.
 
Practise them and do not worry if they are not demonstration quality that is what your Divemaster course is for. In order to demonstrate the skills you need to first be confident in completing the skill. As part of your course we will teach you how to demonstrate the skills.

​We have a playlist of the skills being demonstrated by Dive Rutland's resident Course Director Tracey Roberts available on our Youtube channel.

​Start reading through your Divemaster theory, read diving magazines and books as well.
 
Read printed materials written by those in the industry as well as outside of it. After all being a professional is not just about diving there are so many soft skills required to be successful such as selling, marketing, website design and communication with a customer all very important. Each of our staff members has their own specialist area and a library to suit.  

Gain knowledge about the marine animals and environments that you will be diving in, this makes your dive briefings more interesting and customers will always ask questions - be prepared.

By now, you will have started to collect equipment. The more of your own kit you have, the more comfortable you will be, making your Divemaster course easier. It is not enough to just know your kit. ​Get up to speed with the latest dive equipment and developments going on in the industry. If the opportunity arises go diving in different types of equipment as there is no ‘one size fits all’ and your students and customers will ask questions about equipment, helping customers understand their options allows you to make their diving more enjoyable.

​This is the question that gets asked the most by potential Divemaster students.  Ideally by now you should have a full set of dive equipment, being in your own equipment means you are comfortable and it truly fits.

As a minimum by now you should have have a mask, snorkel and computer.  
 
Make sure your mask is comfortable and is your friend as there is nothing worse than mask fog when you are underwater and responsible for students.  You need to be able to see at ALL TIMES.

All divers should carry safety equipment and as a minimum have 1 visual and 1 audible signalling device something like and SMB and whistle.
 
Compass so you can navigate – again you should have one as you completed navigation exercises as part of your Advanced open water course!
 
Maybe something to write on and write with – this will help you when you do your mapping exercise as part of this course.  They are also useful occasionally to be able to communicate with your buddy and / or your instructor.

​Having a great attitude is very important.  At times things will be more challenging than you anticipated.  Just because it appears difficult does not mean it is impossible.

We have provided you with items to think about as part of your preparation towards becoming a Divemaster, but there are other things to consider as part of that journey

• Where to train
• Who to train with
• Do you do the course as a set 9 - 10 day short / intensive course or over a longer period of time

We will be publishing additional articles and linking forward and back to this blog as we publish them

In the meantime if you have any questions then please contact us to discuss, our lovely staff will be please to help.

As a working Dive Professional here in the UK you have to be aware of so much more than your agencies training standards, we are bound by the rules and regulations of other bodies such as Swim England and Health and Safety.
 
The Health and Safety – Diving at Work Regulations 1997, approved Code of Practise and Guidance.  This document covers both the instruction and guiding of people diving for recreational purposes where at least one person taking part is at work, for example as an instructor 

This regulation applies to all recreational diving projects within the 12-mile limit of territorial waters adjacent to Great Britain.

One of the rules is about the size of the dive team, so today we thought we would look at one of those specific roles – Surface Support or Surface Cover

​The regulations states that the absolute minimum team size for a dive using recreational techniques is three, one person on the surface and two in the water, so if you are working and do not have this then you AND the Diving Contractor are working outside of HSE.

The Diving Contractor is the Dive Centre OR the independent working instructor.
 
The Diving supervisor is an individual or individual(s) appointed by the Diving Contractor and should be in writing and covering that they are responsible for including but not limited to: -

• To ensure dive goes properly
• Legal
• All requirements of Dive Centre owner are implemented and adhered to
• Dives are logged properly
• Equipment is safe to use
• Ran within training agency standards

The definition of Surface Support is A person who does not have to be diver but should be familiar with the Dive plan and the arrangements for obtaining assistance in the event of an emergency

Your Surface Support should be present throughout the time that an instructional team is in the water and ready and able to raise the alarm, if required OR assist with managing any dive incident.  
 
This means they should be 

• Waterside for the entire time you have divers in the water – not wandering off for a cup of tea or coffee – eyes should be waterfront at all times.
• Log divers in and out of the water via whatever logging system you choose
• Have the means to raise the alarm in the event of an emergency
• Know what the dive time and dive plan are
• Hold some level of First aid qualification

 
How about making your students’ lives easier and provide some good quality customer care and have them assist your divers with

• Kitting up waterside
• Helping divers enter and exit the water

This is a common response when professionals are questioned about not having surface support.   Even as a volunteer, if anyone is being paid by the student then you are 'at work' and HSE rules apply

​Yes, you do, our inland quarries generally supply an emergency evacuation process for divers within their quarries but that is NOT surface support, and they are not obliged to offer an emergency service.

First, congratulations on becoming a PADI Professional! Now, are you ready for the next challenge? YES?! 

Why did you choose to become a Divemaster?  Was it the personal challenge? Was it that you have a career in mind? Whatever the reason, it is  "Well Done and go for it", here at Dive Rutland,  we wish you well and are here if you want any help or guidance.

Below we have given you just a few ideas of what you could do moving forward, there are many more.

That is the most common way of using your newly acquired dive skills. Whether it’s a part-time job , seasonal adventure in the tropics, or a full-time position in a dive center, your main focus is to give an underwater tour to already certified divers or help instructors with the logistics and student's supervision. 

Here in the UK an instructor can not work without a certified assistant as we work under Health and Safety Exec.

You could do your Discover Scuba Diver Leader uplift or take the step to Assistant Instructor or straight to Instructor.  Here at Dive Rutland with our Professional staff and Course Director you can take any step you like.

Taking those next steps increases your chances of employment and gives you many more options.  In many popular dive destinations (like Indonesia, Maldives, Honduras, Thailand) you need a special visa to be able to work and those are mostly granted to instructors. ​

Many organisations will look for skilled, experienced divers just like you. This way you can progress your diving, gain further knowledge about marine life, and contribute to ocean conservation. Often you get food, accommodation, and of course, diving included. 

In the last decade the growth of the ‘superyacht industry’ increased positions for Divemasters and Instructors. However, these jobs often require additional boating qualifications like the STCW95 and can involve 80 percent deckhand/cleaning/maintenance work to 20 percent diving-related work. On a plus side, it will probably be the best-paid divemaster job ever and tax-free.

With the increased power of social media, there is a massive demand for underwater photographers. We don’t know a dive center that doesn’t have one. It’s a great source of income and the minimum required certification for that position is usually Divemaster

​While it might not be a dream come true for a newly graduated and excited Divemaster, you will still be surrounded by incredible marine life. It is a great option if you are still studying at university, need additional income, or are stuck in a landlocked location craving to blow some bubbles and we have instructors who have gone on to work at Aquariums such as Bear Grylls at Birmingham

​As a Divemaster, you are way more experienced than most recreational divers therefore you can provide others with your expertise on dive equipment, dive trips, and dive courses. 

​It’s sort of like a tour leader but for divers. By the time you’ve done your training, you should have an idea, how to run and supervise a dive trip. A great way to earn some extra cash and travel to top diving destinations is by organising dive trips for a group of certified divers. 

Get in touch and talk with us, let us know what it is you are trying to achieve and we will map out a training plan for YOU,

Here at Dive Rutland we are constantly looking at the way we run our business and the impact that we have on the planet and that is why we actively run a Reduce, Recycle, Reuse policy. 

We have been developing our Dive Professional training and wanted to give all of our attendees something to remember their time with us, so went through all the normal things like:-

T-Shirt / Polo Shirts - decided no due to the impact of microfibres on our environment - you have seen our blog on that subject yes?

Water Bottles​ - we have these in store for those who do not have but we actively engage everyone owning these so you might already have one and we wanted something more - something unique 

Hats - as cold water divers most of us have enough warm hats, we looked at baseball type caps but if you have ever seen me in one of those you know why that got taken off the table!