Recreational Sport Diver Equivalences from Dive Training Agencies, PADI, SSI and SDI

by Lauren Kieren:

Have you ever found yourself wondering if an SDI course is equal (or equivalent) to courses offered by other dive training organizations?

Maybe you were asked to show verification of an “advanced diver” rating but you are unsure if your certification matches what the dive center is looking for.

If these situations sound familiar, this blog post is for you!

While each dive training organization strives to produce great divers, sometimes we use different terminology to say the same thing.  Understanding equivalent ratings will allow you to see where your certification lines up with other organizations.  In addition, it will allow you to know if you meet the prerequisites for a course if you hold a certification with one dive training organization then take a subsequent course with another.

Recently, we have received an influx of calls and e-mails requesting confirmation on equivalent ratings offered by multiple organizations.  As a result, we put together an equivalency table of ratings offered by three agencies listed within the WRSTC: SDI (Scuba Diving International), SSI (Scuba Schools International), and PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors).

At the top of the chart you will find each dive training organization, and the certifications for that organization below it.  You can quickly cross-reference a rating between dive training organizations; in the event a certification listed is not equivalent to the other organizations, the field will simply list “not applicable.”

Compare Diver Courses with this Equivalency Chart (PADI, SDI, SSI)

Skin Diver	Snorkeler	Snorkel Diver
Discover Scuba Diver	Scuba Discovery	TRY SCUBA DIVING
Bubble Maker	Future Buddies	Scuba Rangers
ReActivate™ – Scuba Refresher	Inactive Diver / Refresher	Scuba Skills Update
Not Applicable	Shallow Water Diver	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	Supervised Diver	Not Applicable
Scuba Diver	Not Applicable	Scuba Diver
Open Water Diver	Open Water Scuba Diver	Open Water Diver
Not Applicable	Advanced Diver	Advanced Open Water Diver
Rescue Diver	Rescue Diver	Diver Stress & Rescue
Master Diver	Master Diver	Master Diver
Not Applicable	Scubility Diver	Classified Diver
Advanced Open Water Diver	Advanced Adventure Diver	Advanced Adventurer
Peak Performance Buoyancy	Advanced Buoyancy Control	Perfect Buoyancy
Altitude Diver	Altitude Diver	Altitude Diving
Aware – Fish Identification	Marine Ecosystems Awareness Diver	Not Applicable
Aware – Coral Reef Conservation Diver	Marine Ecosystems Awareness Diver	Not Applicable
Boat Diver	Boat Diver	Boat Diving
Cavern Diver	TDI Cavern Diver	Extended Range (XR) Cavern Diving
Multilevel Diver	Computer Diver	Not Applicable
Enriched Air Diver	Computer Nitrox Diver	Enriched Air Nitrox Diver
EFR CPR & AED	CPROX 1st AED	REACT RIGHT
Deep Diver	Deep Diver	Deep Diving
Diver Propulsion Vehicle Diver	Diver Propulsion Vehicle	Not Applicable
Discover Rebreather	TDI Rebreather Discovery	Not Applicable
Drift Diver	Drift Diver	Not Applicable
Dry Suit Diver	Dry Suit Diver	Dry Suit Diving
Equipment Specialist	Equipment Specialist	Equipment Techniques
Not Applicable	Full Face Mask Diver	FFM
Ice Diver	Ice Diver	Ice Diver
Project AWARE® Specialist	Marine Ecosystems Awareness Diver	Ecology
Night Diver	Night/Limited Visibility Diver	Night & Limited Visibility
Not Applicable	Research Diver	Not Applicable
Search and Recovery Diver	Search and Recovery Diver	Search & Recovery
Not Applicable	Shore/Beach Diver	Waves, Tides, & Current
Sidemount Diver	Sidemount Diver	Recreational Sidemount Diving
Self Reliant Diver	Solo Diver	Independent Diver
Rebreather Diver	Not Applicable	Rebreather Diver
Not Applicable	UW Hunter and Collector	Not Applicable
Underwater Nagivator	UW Navigation Diver	Navigation
Digital Underwater Photography	UW Photographer	Underwater Photography
Underwater Videographer	UW Videographer	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	Visual Inspection Procedures	Not Applicable
Wreck Diver	Wreck Diver	Wreck Diver
Distinctive Specialties	Unique Specialties	Additional Specialties
Aware – Shark Conservation Diver	Shark Diver	Shark Diver
Invasive Lionfish Tracker	Lionfish Eradification Diver	Not Applicable
Sea Turtle Awareness	Turtle Awareness Diver	Not Applicable
Whale Shark Awareness	Not Applicable	Not Applicable
PADI Free Diver	Not Applicable	Basic Free Diver
Not Applicable	Goliath Grouper Awareness Diver	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	SDI Fill Station Operator	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	Heritage Awareness Diver	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	Kayak Diver	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	Manatee Awareness Diver	Not Applicable
Not Applicable	River Diver	River Diver

It is recommended to all SDI, TDI, and ERDI instructors that they verify new students can demonstrate skills required in previous courses.  As a result, if you are enrolling in an SDI, TDI, or ERDI course and coming from another organization you may be required to do a check-out dive with your instructor to verify that your skills and knowledgebase line up appropriately for the course, prior to commencement of training.  We also recommend divers take a refresher course after a period of not diving, this period, while not a hard and fast rule, is about a year. This simply means that even though you hold a certification it is always a good idea to go on a dive with a professional and refresh your knowledge and skills.

All information is current at the time of publication.  Over time, as organizations update their standards and create new courses, the information in this table may become outdated and is subject to change without any given notice.  With that said, please do not copy or take screen captures of this table, as it may not be accurate in the future.

Regardless of the dive training organization you choose, we hope you have a wonderful dive experience and continue advancing your dive education in the future.

For a list of courses offered by SDI, including their Standards, click here!  Also, if you are looking for your nearest SDI Dive Center, check out the SDI Dive Center Locater.

If you do not see your dive training organization on this list and you are curious if it’s equivalent to an SDI, TDI, or ERDI rating, let us know!  Simply write a message to the training department (training@tdisdi.com) and we will be happy to help.

Are you a professional Diver?

See our Accepted Professional Crossovers here!

Should you have any questions, feel free to ask us below.