Why PADI?
PADI Divers carry the most respected and sought after scuba
credentials in the world. No matter where you choose to dive,
your PADI certification card will be recognized and accepted. In
fact, on most dive adventures you’ll be surrounded by other PADI
Divers who made the same certification choice you did – to train
with the world’s largest and most respected diver training
organization.
The Educational Difference
PADI courses are designed to make learning enjoyable and
worthwhile. You get in and under the water quickly, scuba diving.
Under the guidance of your professional PADI Instructor, you
gain confidence while mastering important safety concepts and
skills. You pick up key information as well as helpful tips by
interacting with PADI educational materials – manual, videos,
workbooks, multimedia discs, etc. Credentialed instructional
designers use state-of-the-art technology and learning theories
to create PADI materials with you, the student diver, in mind.
Your PADI Instructor makes sure that you are ready for
certification using the concept of performance-based learning.
This means that you progress as you demonstrate that you have
mastered specific performance requirements essential to becoming
a diver. Your instructor is there to help you meet these
requirements, regardless of how quickly or slowly you master
them. You must earn a PADI certification, but you do so in an
encouraging and well-supported learning environment.
The unsurpassed quality of PADI materials and the educational
validity of PADI courses has been independently acknowledged by
international educational and vocational training authorities.
The American Council on Education (ACE) and Canadian Learning
Bank have both evaluated and recommended PADI courses for
college credit equivalency. PADI Instructor Development Courses
provided through PADI affiliated centres have received
vocational training recognition by the Vocational Education
Training and Accreditation Board (VETAB) in Australia, by the
New Zealand Qualification Authority and in the United Kingdom on
the National Qualification Framework.
International Integrity
The PADI System of diver education assures that PADI
professionals worldwide deliver PADI courses in a consistent and
standardized manner, yet adapted to your unique needs and the
requirements of your local diving environment. A PADI course you
sign up for in Indonesia is virtually the same as a course a
friend may take in Poland, yet both will be adapted to local
cultures, customs, protocols and language. With more than
130,000 PADI Professionals and around 5300 PADI Dive Centers and
Resorts operating in 180 countries and territories, you will
likely find a PADI Professional who can speak your language and
offer you a comfortable learning experience. To serve the needs
of divers worldwide, translations of PADI materials are
available in at least 26 languages.
Because PADI Dive Centers, Resorts and Instructors exist almost
everywhere, no matter where your travels take you, you’ll find
PADI programs and PADI dive buddies.
Professional Quality
Just as you must earn every PADI certification, PADI Instructors
must complete a development program that sets the industry
standard for instructor training. Each new PADI Instructor
demonstrates a thorough knowledge of the PADI System and the
ability to conduct PADI programs by meeting specific criteria.
Before earning the PADI Instructor rating, all candidates are
evaluated by a select group of PADI-employed Instructor
Examiners. This ensures that the evaluation process is objective,
fair and consistent worldwide.
All PADI programs, entry-level through instructor training, fall
under strict educational standards monitored for worldwide
consistency and quality. PADI takes a proactive approach to
quality management and randomly surveys PADI Divers to confirm
that their courses met PADI’s high standards as well as the
divers’ expectations. No other diver training organization works
to maintain this level of professional reliability and integrity.
PADI’s commitment to a strong quality assurance process helps
continually improve customer satisfaction.
Continuing Adventures
Your underwater adventures begin in your entry-level course and
grows as you explore new dive sites, use new equipment and try
different types of diving, like night or wreck diving. Providing
the education, equipment and experiences you want and need, your
PADI Dive Center or Resort supports your diving and helps you
truly live the dive life.
You can tap into more than 25 specialty diver courses that allow
you to focus on your areas of interest. You can progress up
through PADI Rescue Diver on to PADI Divemaster and put your
skills to use assisting other divers, or aim for the elite PADI
Master Scuba Diver level – diving’s ultimate non professional
level recreational scuba diver rating. The PADI System of diver
education allows you to continue your dive education for a
lifetime – even after you become a PADI Instructor – a vocation
or avocation that provides a fulfillment few jobs can match.
As a PADI Diver, you become part of the larger PADI community.
In many parts of the world, you can join the PADI Diving Society,
an organization made up of dive enthusiasts of all ages and
experience levels. The PADI Diving Society keeps members
informed on the latest developments in dive news, technology and
training and offers members savings and incentives on all of the
things you need to stay active and involved in diving -
including dive travel, equipment and training.
My PADI is an online dive community built just for PADI Divers.
Through it, you tap into the experiences of other divers around
the world, share your personal dive experiences, track your dive
education and maintain records of your equipment purchases.
As a PADI Diver, you also have access to the dive travel
specialists at PADI Travel Network. With years of experience
seeking out the best dive vacation values and helping divers
plan memorable, customized trips, the PADI Network can send you
on a dive holiday to member resorts, dive operators and live-aboard
dive boats in popular destinations around the world.
Environmental Responsibility
The worldwide PADI organization is committed to preserving the
aquatic environment for future generations. PADI courses
encompass Project AWARE’s environmental awareness and protection
philosophy. Throughout every PADI course, you’ll learn the
importance of protecting fragile aquatic ecosystems and are
encouraged to become involved in conservation efforts. As a PADI
Diver, you join millions of others to form a growing force that
can and does make a difference in the effort to preserve the
underwater world. |
