PADI Open Water Diver Certification


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Become a Confident, Capable Scuba Diver—not Just a Certified One

Learning to scuba dive should be exciting, comfortable, and personal. At North American Divers, our goal isn’t simply to move you through the required skills. We take the time to help you become a safe, confident diver who is genuinely prepared to dive after certification.
As a locally owned PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Center in Orem, we have helped divers throughout Utah County and the Wasatch Front discover a lifetime of underwater adventure. Whether you’re preparing for a tropical vacation, want to explore local dive sites, or are looking for a new activity to enjoy with family and friends, we’ll support you from your first breath underwater through your future dive adventures.

Learning to scuba dive should be exciting, comfortable, and personal. At North American Divers, our goal isn’t simply to move you through the required skills. We take the time to help you become a safe, confident diver who is genuinely prepared to dive after certification.
As a locally owned PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Center in Orem, we have helped divers throughout Utah County and the Wasatch Front discover a lifetime of underwater adventure. Whether you’re preparing for a tropical vacation, want to explore local dive sites, or are looking for a new activity to enjoy with family and friends, we’ll support you from your first breath underwater through your future dive adventures.

Why Choose North American Divers?

Patient, supportive instruction: You’ll practice each skill with an experienced PADI professional who wants you to feel comfortable—not rushed.

A complete learning experience: Your course includes PADI eLearning, hands-on pool training, and four open-water certification dives.

Training that prepares you for real diving: You’ll learn more than how to pass the course. We emphasize buoyancy, equipment familiarity, safe diving habits, and confidence underwater.

A trusted local dive center: Get help with equipment, rentals, continuing education, dive planning, and professional equipment service from one convenient Utah County location.

A community that keeps you diving: Certification is only the beginning. You can continue developing your skills and join North American Divers on local activities and group dive trips.

Your PADI Open Water Diver Course Includes:
* PADI eLearning that you complete on your schedule
* Pool training with a PADI Instructor
Use of major scuba equipment during scheduled training*
Four open-water certification dives
A PADI Open Water Diver certification recognized at dive destinations worldwide
Personal guidance before, during, and after your course

Once certified, you’ll be qualified to dive with another certified diver to a maximum depth of 60 feet, giving you access to an entirely new world of travel and adventure.

Start Your Scuba Adventure in Utah
You don’t need previous scuba experience—just basic swimming ability, reasonable comfort in the water, and a desire to learn. We’ll guide you through the rest.

Course tuition: $525
Personal mask, snorkel, fins, Homestead Crater admission, and certain location-specific expenses are not included.

Call or text North American Divers at (801) 491-3483 to reserve your place in an upcoming class.

What you’ll learn (skills you’ll actually use)

By the end of the course, you’ll be confident with:

  • Setting up and using scuba gear
  • Buoyancy control and underwater comfort
  • Safe descents/ascents and planning a simple dive
  • Handling common issues (like mask clearing and regulator recovery)
  • Respectful interaction with aquatic life

How to earn your scuba certification (Step-by-step)

PADI eLearning®

1. Independent Study: PADI eLearning®

Complete the knowledge development on your schedule—online or offline—then message your instructor anytime you have questions.

  • Typical eLearning time: 5–10 hours

2) In-water training with your instructor (Utah)

Practice core skills in a pool (or pool-like environment) until you’re comfortable—then you’ll complete 4 open-water dives to finish certification. In Utah, those open-water dives are often done at the Homestead Crater in Midway (depending on your class plan), or completed on an ocean checkout.

Class Details (schedule)

Each class runs for three weeks and meets twice per week:

  • Tuesday/Thursday or Wednesday/Friday and Saturday’s
  • Open Water sessions typically start at 6:00 pm
  • Crater sessions start at 6:00 pm or 8:00 pm (based on assigned crater times) 

For upcoming start dates, check the calendar on this page or call/text the shop: (801) 491-3483

More Info

The course cost is $525 (personal gear and Crater fees not included).

This course requires both knowledge development and in-water training for certification. When you purchase a SCUBA course from North American Divers, the cost covers the knowledge development, SCUBA training in a pool, and open water dives at the Homestead Crater in Midway.

There will be an additional cost to complete your certification with one of our instructors. A private course depends on class size, location, and whether or not you need to rent equipment.

  • We do require students to provide their own masks, fins, and snorkels. If you already own a mask, snorkel and/or fins, bring them to your instructor before your first in-water session. Some snorkeling masks and fins are inadequate for scuba diving.
  • Basic scuba gear, including a regulator, buoyancy control device (BCD), dive computer, and cylinder, may or may not be included with the in-water training cost.
  • You may also need to buy or rent exposure protection (wetsuit or drysuit) depending on the diving environment.

Scuba diving requires a minimum level of health and fitness. Chronic health conditions, certain medications and/or recent surgery may require you to get written approval from a physician before diving.

To avoid disappointment, download and review the Diver Medical form to ensure you won’t need a physician’s approval to dive before enrolling in a scuba course. Instructors, divemasters, and dive shop staff are not physicians and should not be asked for medical advice; only medical professionals can give medical clearance to dive.

If you (or your physician) have questions about your medical fitness to dive, contact the experts at Divers Alert Network (DAN).

Course prerequisites: able to swim, medically fit for diving, comfortable in the water

During the Open Water Diver course, your instructor will ask you to:

  • Float or tread water without aids for 10 minutes
  • Swim 200 meters/yards with no aids or 300 meters/yards with mask, fins, and snorkel

Minimum age: 10

Divers certified between the ages of 10-14 earn a Junior Diver certification

Junior Open Water Divers automatically become Open Water Divers at age 15. Any replacement certification card or eCard purchased the day after the diver’s 15th birthday will automatically show an Open Water Diver (not Jr. Open Water Diver) certification.

Children eight or older can try scuba diving in a pool (or pool-like environment). Ask your us about a Bubblemaker experience or birthday party. Children who are comfortable in the water can participate in the PADI Seal Team program, a multi-day pool diving experience.

Looking for a detailed explanation of what’s involved with learning to scuba dive? This comprehensive article covers everything you need to know about scuba certification.

PADI eLearning: 5-10 hours

Entire course: 4-7 days

PADI’s online courses are designed to work on the browsers listed below. For the best experience, make sure your browser is up-to-date.

  • Chrome
  • Safari
  • Edge
  • Firefox

If you plan to be somewhere without internet access, use the PADI Training app to download course content and study offline. Content can be downloaded in small sections with a total file size of approximately 1.10 GB. When you get back online, upload your progress so you can resume your training right where you left off.

The PADI Training app is available for Android™ and Apple® iOS devices. For the ideal experience, devices should be no more than three models old and running with the most current OS (operating system).

Experience new adventures with a PADI Instructor by your side. PADI continuing education courses like Advanced Open Water Diver and Deep Diver will help you develop your skills as a diver. Learn more about PADI Specialty courses.

Not sure which specialty to try first? Try the Advanced Open Water Diver course, it’s like a specialty sampler platter.

  • Improve your navigation and buoyancy skills while you try new activities like wreck diving, night diving, or digital imaging
  • Choose from more than 20 specialty diving options
  • An Advanced Open Water Diver certification also opens the door to dive sites deeper than 18m/60ft

If you don’t have the opportunity to dive for six months (or longer), you can quickly refresh the knowledge and skills you learned in Open Water with the PADI ReActivate® program. Your PADI certification never expires, but after a long period of inactivity, you may want to brush up on diving fundamentals and safety procedures.

Call North American Divers today for more information.

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