If you are considering taking that life changing decision to make a living out of diving, you might be thinking of becoming a recreational dive instructor (like I did 10 years ago). In many countries being a dive guide or dive master is not enough to get a working contract, let alone the having the fun of actually teaching and certifying divers. While the number of dive centers around the world are as good as countless, the number of locations where you can actually become a dive instructor are more limited. Still, there are so many options!
Because the course takes at least two weeks and the price is probably high compared to your previous dive courses – you want to make the right decision. How to figure out what is the best offer for your needs?
Dive instructors that have done the course are likely to have done only one and would probably recommend this. How to compare these opinions? The same goes for dive centers and the teacher (PADI Course Directors or SSI Instructor Trainers) that respond to similar social media questions. If somebody asks “Where should I do my IDC?” (Instructor Development Course of PADI), often the same answers and links are given as comment which can be quite overwhelming.
The Search Engine to Compare IDCs and ITCs
To save the people who are interested in this course as well as the people offering them a lot of time we have started collecting data from PADI IDCs and SSI ITCs from around the world and asked people to join hands to make it a bit easier for everybody. Anything from starting month to the price of the course and from dive conditions to the costs of living is collected. After growing rapidly the data has recently been uploaded in a brand new custom made search engine to compare dive instructor courses. You can find and compare all the IDC and ITC offers on https://www.diveoclock.com/pro/.
Potential students can filter by country, languages, dive organization and starting month.
On top of that they can select if they prefer a house reef, environmental / biology courses or even internships. When selecting one of their filtered offers the full profile of the teachers, dive center/location and the course details will be visible as well as photos and links to their website. It is easy to look for a dive center that also offers technical diving, has a classroom with air-conditioning, somebody that has been teaching these courses for over 10 years and so on. Find and compare the things you find important for your dive instructor course!
The search engine is free to use, for both the students and the people offering the courses.
If you offer dive instructor courses you can create a PRO account and upload your information. Create various packages (bronze, silver and gold for example) and upgrade it by adding profile pictures, a dive center logo, course photos and a promotional text to explain why your offer is the best.