The Ocean Star Scuba Story

Changes in diver training

Having been a certified scuba diver since 1978 I have watched great advancements take place in the field of diving, mostly in equipment. I have also watched a decline in the quality of dive training. When I taught in "83" it was 18 hrs academics, 18 hrs pool work taught over 6 weeks followed by multiple dives in a fresh water spring and then an additional 4 ocean dives. Just signing up for a scuba course in those days meant that you were making a commitment to the time and effort to become competent diver. Now in the age of instant gratification you can get certified in as little as one weekend. I am not sure by who's standards but most definitely not by NAUI's and Ocean Star Scuba's certification standards are set to meet or exceed those set by NAUI or PADI.

Has scuba diving really changed that much or is it just the effects of dive shop competition. Shop A lowers their prices to be competitive. Shop B tries to top shop A and has to reduce their operating costs to compensate. This means shortening classes (and instructors pay). Some of the courses I have looked into do not meet the minimum standards of NAUI and in some cases I don't believe they are even meeting their own standards. A lot of good instructors have left the sport because it is difficult to earn a living while being cost competitive. Scuba instructors who stay in the sport are dependant on commisions from gear sales. Would you rather be taught by a good instructor or a good salesperson?

The cost of change

These changes have resulted in a large number of people getting certified, diving once or twice and then giving it up because they just don't feel comfortable without thier instructor present. The problem is that courses are too short to really absorb the information or practice the skills. I can speed read a chapter. then pass a test. That doesn't mean I will remember it 3 days let alone months later.

The skills and knowledge to dive are actually easy to learn but it takes time and practice to gain confidence. Repetition is a valuable tool for learning but how much repetition can take place in a weekend course. I have recently talked to some of the first divers I trained (in '83'), and was surprised by how many are still diving today. I have spent the last 7 years working on dive boats on the weekends and have seen how poorly new divers perform in the water and watched a high dropout rate of new divers. I believe that the only reason more divers are not seriously hurt is because of the high drop out rate. I was taught during my instructors couser that even good student will only retain a percentage of what they are taught. If you only teach the bare minimum necessary to dive that would mean your students would retain less than the minimum skils.

The solution

Our staff consists of private instructors who are interested in teaching scuba and not selling dive gear. Our pay is not based on commission, so yes, to earn a living we charge more and teach fewer students. This allows us to teach longer courses and give one on one attention to each student.

Most shops have dropped drills from their course claiming the the student will never actually do this in the real world. They are right that some skills we teach will never be used on anything other than a training dive. However these same skills are great confidence builders and if you can feel comfortable with these drills then anything you might have to do, "in the real world", will be simple by comparison.

The more comfortable and confident you feel during your early dives the more likely you are to continue to dive long after your classes are over. If you simply want quick and easy certification then you have come to the wrong place. If you really want to become a skilled scuba diver then we will do everything we can to see you realize your goals.

Thank you. And hope to see you in the water soon.
Steve S.
Founder of Ocean Star Scuba