PADI Open Water Certification
Ready to take the leap into the incredible underwater world of scuba?
As the world's most recognized dive certification, your PADI Open Water course is a doorway to endless adventure beneath the seven seas (and countless lakes and springs) across the world.
There are 3 steps to earning your PADI Open Water Certification at Diver's Oasis:
- Knowledge Development, aka the academic portion, where you'll learn the theory behind diving and the principles of scuba.
- Confined Water Training, where you'll practice the actual sport of scuba diving in a swimming pool.
- Open Water Dives, the final step in certification, where you'll get to put everything you've learned into practice in the open water!
At Diver's Oasis, we're committed to giving each of our dive students personalized attention and care throughout the course. We go out of our way to make sure that you feel confident and comfortable along every step of the journey to your Open Water Certification.
Read more about each step of the process below, or if you're ready to get started now:
KNOWLEDGE DEVELOPMENT (ACADEMICS)
The academic portion of the certification process is where you'll learn the basic principles and theories of scuba diving, as outlined in the PADI Open Water Diver Manual. There are two options for completing this portion:
- In-Person Classroom — Diver's Oasis in-shop classes are generally held in the evenings, once a week, and last for four weeks. We take pride in creating a comfortable environment that is conducive to learning and open discussion among students and dive instructors.
- e-Learning — The PADI e-learning option allows you to study from home at your own pace. But we won't leave you on your own—you can come by the store any time to chat with a certified dive instructor with any questions you may have.
CONFINED WATER TRAINING
Once you've learned the theory, it's time to learn the practice. The confined water training gives you a chance to actually embody the skills you've learned from the academic portion, in a safe and comfortable swimming pool environment.
Diving requires a delicate balance of multiple skills: swimming with scuba equipment attached to you, breathing underwater, maintaining equalization, following underwater dive communication from your instructor, etc. Mastering these skills in the pool will prepare you to dive with confidence and comfort once you hit the open water.
Our confined water training area has a 9-ft pool depth, which will allow you to get comfortable with practicing equalization at different depths before you complete the open water dives.
The confined water setting is designed to give you a strong foundation for comfort and safety throughout your lifetime of diving adventures, and as such, we never rush our pool time.
OPEN WATER DIVES
The open water checkout dives are the final step to your new scuba certification. After all that time spent studying and practicing, the open water dives are the reward that allows you to finally experience what this sport is all about — diving!
There are four check out dives that occur in an open body of water, such as a quarry, ocean, or lake. During these dives, you will have an opportunity to practice the same skills that you learned in the confined water training—this time in a bit more adventurous environment.
Many open water certification experiences only meet the minimum requirements, but at Diver's Oasis we LOVE the sport of diving and sharing this sport with others. That's why our full focus during the open water dives is to make sure that you feel comfortable and have fun while diving.
Each diver is unique, and so are their needs during their first open water dives. That's why we modify every open water experience in order to give each student the best introduction to diving. If a student requires additional one-on-one help in the open water setting, that is what we do! Our goal is to get you out and diving so you can enjoy your new sport with confidence.