Evolution of SCUBA Open Water Training -

Evolution of SCUBA Open Water Training

Quality, Safety, and Industry Standards

Article by Troy Stephenson

The scuba diving industry has evolved significantly over the decades, particularly in the structure and delivery of Open Water Diver courses. As SDI professionals, it’s essential we understand this evolution, especially as the market continues to trend toward shorter, lower-cost training options.

How Open Water Diver Training Has Changed

Twenty-five years ago, diver training courses commonly involved around 72 hours of instruction, typically delivered over several weekends with dedicated classroom theory sessions. Today, driven by technology and market pressures, the same Open Water certification can be completed in as little as two practical days, primarily due to eLearning.

When I completed my Open Water Diver course, it cost approximately $590 AUD. Interestingly, today’s courses range between $299 and $600 AUD, a price stagnation reflecting intense competition and the market’s demand for quicker, cheaper training.

Standards and Industry Norms: Where Are We Now?

Globally, the accepted industry standard set by the Recreational Scuba Training Council (RSTC) and aligned with the International Standards Organisation (ISO) standards requires confined water session training followed by a minimum of four open water dives conducted between 5 and 18 metres in depth. This core structure has remained largely unchanged for decades, reflecting a broad industry consensus on what’s necessary to ensure a competent, confident diver.

Despite this clarity, there has been a concerning trend of systematically lowering standards by some agencies seeking greater market share by offering faster, cheaper courses. Such approaches typically erode training quality, risking diver safety, retention, and industry reputation. History has repeatedly shown that agencies dramatically reducing training times inevitably fail due to poor diver outcomes.

Innovation and Technology: The Positive Side

While core training standards have remained stable, significant advancements have occurred in the administrative and delivery aspects of training. Online academics, electronic student registrations, downloadable standards, digital certification cards, and online student records and rostering systems for tracking waivers and medicals are notable examples. These innovations significantly streamline workloads for instructors and facilities, reduce administrative overhead, and greatly enhance risk management. Crucially, this reduces the administrative burden, freeing instructors to dedicate more time directly to quality training and improving student experiences.

At SDI, we’ve fully embraced—and often led—these technological advancements, recognising their critical role in maintaining high-quality training without compromising safety or standards.

The Role of ISO and RSTC: Guardians of Standards

ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) is an independent global body that develops and publishes international standards, ensuring quality, safety, and efficiency across industries, including recreational diving.

RSTC (Recreational Scuba Training Council) is an international consortium of scuba training agencies dedicated to developing and maintaining consistent training standards to promote diver safety and competence worldwide.

ISO and RSTC play vital roles in ensuring diver safety through clearly defined and regularly reviewed standards. Committees from diverse industry backgrounds frequently convene to assess proposed changes. A recent example is the introduction of ISO/PAS 20708:2023 – Requirements for artificial open water sites.

A Publicly Available Specification (PAS) is a preliminary standard developed by ISO, often serving as a stepping stone toward establishing a full ISO standard. While helpful, it doesn’t carry the same authority or recognition as a fully ratified ISO standard. Using a PAS, such as ISO/PAS 20708:2023, to claim compliance with established standards like ISO 24801-2 can cause confusion and potentially undermine training quality unless explicitly aligned and compliant with all mandatory (“shall”) requirements.

Traditionally, diving clearly distinguished between confined water (pools) and open water (natural environments like oceans, lakes, and rivers). However, recent construction of large, purpose-built diving sites has blurred these distinctions, prompting ISO and RSTC to evaluate their classification.

The industry consensus was clear: these artificial environments, while useful, should not replace traditional open-water requirements. Instead, they warrant their own specific standards. Unfortunately, confusion persists among some agencies interpreting this PAS as permission to reduce open-water dive requirements, resulting in divers being inadequately trained. This confusion has already led to documented cases of divers experiencing distress due to insufficient open-water exposure during training.

Guidance for SDI Instructors and Facilities

As SDI instructors, your role is crucial in ensuring diver safety and satisfaction. Here’s how you can proactively manage this current situation:

Evaluate Diver Logs: Encourage divers to provide electronic logbook records when booking dives, especially if it’s their first dive after certification. This highlights potential gaps in training or limited open-water experience.
Assess Risk Appropriately: Recognise that divers trained through shortened courses may require additional support. Adjust your risk assessments accordingly to ensure their safety and comfort.
Offer Supplemental Training: SDI provides excellent programs, such as the SDI Inactive Diver and the Accomplished Diver, ideal tools to enhance skills and confidence before diver’s venture into more challenging environments. Though these may involve a small additional investment of time and money, the payoff in diver safety and satisfaction is substantial.

SDI’s Commitment: Safety and Diver Satisfaction First

At SDI, we stand firmly behind the principle that diver safety and satisfaction are paramount—without shortcuts. Our standards align strictly with ISO and RSTC guidelines, and our rigorous Quality Assurance processes ensure compliance and consistency in diver training outcomes.

As diving professionals, your responsibility extends beyond certification—it includes nurturing capable, confident, and passionate divers who remain active participants in diving. A diver’s positive experience directly contributes to industry growth and sustainability.

Remember: we are One Dive Family, dedicated to maintaining high standards, promoting safe diving practices, and sharing the endless joy of diving with every diver we train.

Start your SDI Open Water Diver training now!

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