PADI Open Water Diver

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About the Course

PADI® Open Water Diver is the first scuba certification level. A highly-trained North American Divers PADI Instructor will teach you how to scuba dive in a relaxed, supportive learning environment.

By the end of the course, you’ll have the skills and knowledge to dive at home or abroad and be an ambassador for the underwater world.

Take This Course:

  • If You Want to Explore the other 70 percent of our planet​
  • Support ocean protection​
  • Learn from a scuba diving expert ​
  • Carry the world’s most recognized scuba certification​

Learn How To:

  • Learn How to Be a confident and skilled diver​
  • Assemble and use scuba gear ​
  • Manage your buoyancy​
  • Respectfully approach marine life​
  • Handle common problems​

How to Earn Your Scuba Diving Certification​

Learn about scuba diving principles and terminology (either offline or online), then learn basic scuba skills in a pool (or pool-like environment) with a highly trained North American Divers PADI Instructor. When you’re ready, make four dives in an open water environment (the Homestead Crater or the ocean) with your instructor supporting you every step of the way.


1. INDEPENDENT STUDY

PADI eLearning®

PADI eLearning makes it easy to fit scuba lessons into a busy schedule. Learn about scuba diving principles and terminology whenever and wherever it’s convenient for you.

It’s your course on your time. Study offline, or online using a computer or mobile device. Connect with your instructor whenever you have a question.

  • eLearning time commitment: 5-10 hours

2. AT OUR DIVE SHOP

With Your Instructor

Practice using scuba gear in a pool (or pool-like environment) until you’re comfortable. PADI training includes practice “mini dives” to help you build confidence in your new abilities before making four dives in open water.

  • Prerequisites: Able to swim; medically fit for diving
  • Total time commitment: 4-7 days
  • Minimum age: 10 years or older
  • Depth: expect shallow dives (12m/40ft), the maximum allowed depth is 18m/60ft
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Class Details

Each class runs for three weeks. We meet twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday or Wednesday and Friday. Open Water sessions 1 – 4 start at 6:00 pm and Open Water Crater sessions start at either 6:00 pm or 8:00 pm, depending on what times we are given. Generally, it’s 6:00 pm.

The calendar below shows when each Open Water (OW) class starts and what the start date is.

If you have any questions, please reach out to us at (801) 491-3483.

More Info

The course cost is $495.

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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Address

350 E 800 SOrem, UT 84097

Phone

(801) 491-3483

Email

info@nadivers.com

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