Agencies

The Professional Association of Dive Instructors (PADI) is arguably the largest/most well known training agency in the world. With a standardized program for all instructors and on-line services to both the diver and resort location there are many benefits to choosing to learn through them.

The International Association of Nitrox and Technical Divers (IANTD) is another agency recommended for those who think they will want to pursue a more "technical" line of diving including decompression, closed circuit and cave diving. IANTD have their genesis (our opinion) in the highly demanding world of cave diving. Key life support dive skills from here have been fed down to the recreational diver and introduce a lot more advanced skills earlier in the divers development.

Technical Scuba Diving International (TDISDI) is another globally recognised agency. they started as a 'technical agency' but their success quickly resulted in them adding a 'recreational arm' to help new divers and those not wishing to go into specialist decompression style diving. TDISDI were first to introduce eLearning and offers a great support network for the instructor and student/diver alike.

The major agencies all have strict standards and quality procedures for their professional members (instructors and facilities) to follow.

These standards generally come from an umbrella organization: The World Recreational Scuba Training Council (WRSTC). Therefore all agencies adhering to their standards could be deemed of as being equal in the level of training they can provide.

At the end of the day perhaps the most important thing you should consider is:

• Does my instructor offer me a style of learning that I can feel comfortable with
• Can my instructor take me beyond this level and into more adventures? An instructor/mentor relationship can be critical to help you develop a training path whether you're thinking of becoming a professional or advanced individual diver.
• Is my instructor "current"? Check they are licensed to teach you in the specialty and geographical location you are interested in. They shold be able to give you their "ProCheck" details in the form of current/dated instructor card and/or printout from their agency website.