Scuba diving is a passion shared by innumerable people who are looking out for some adventure in life. But every layman in scuba diving has got to hear of certification requirements before going for the real action. The certification is a mandatory procedure for every serious scuba diver. It is a process of obtaining a certificate for scuba diving from a recognized and registered diving school. These schools host professionally authorized instructors who take courses in teaching scuba diving. Every interested scuba diver is required to invest the time and money to get certified as it is dangerous and requires technical expertise before attempting it. In addition to potentially hazardous and fatal underwater creatures, the conditions down there could be dangerous too. There are risks of nitrogen narcosis and decompression sickness and one needs to be prepared for any of these eventualities.

The two most recognized diver training organizations in the US are PADI – Professional Association of Diving Instructors and NAUI – National Association of Underwater Instructors. These two institutes have been in this profession for years and have a number of authorized and approved facilities across the country.

NAUI was established in 1959 with its first recognized Instructor Certification course in 1960. The students went on to become instructors, branches were formed and hence today NAUI is an established center for scuba diving. The institute boasts of a number of celebrities on the Board of Advisors like Jacques Cousteau, Lloyd Bridges (TV Sea Hunt fame) along with divers renowned in the scuba diving world. Apart from these famous names NAUI-certified schools are known for their instruction owing to their highly qualified instructors with thousands of hours of real-life underwater experience. Apart from adequate real diving experience the NAUI instructors are required to attend and clear the exams of a number of courses which cover every bit of technical diving qualification be it recreational, sport, or professional. Through these courses the instructors acquire knowledge in the physiology of underwater diving, details of equipment, their usage, safety measures and so on.

The types of offered courses come in all forms, catering to entry level for beginners to advanced technical diving expertise. The training for students is a blended combination of classroom theory sessions, self study and practical guidance in relatively safe areas like pools and open waters. The NAUI-certified instructors are hence the most qualified people to instruct and train scuba divers aspirants. Similar is the case for the PADI-certified courses and instructors. Together NSUI and PADI members teach most of the recreational divers and are known to issue almost a million divers’ certificates each year.

Scuba diving is a passion shared by innumerable people who are looking out for some adventure in life. But every layman in scuba diving has got to hear of certification requirements before going for the real action. The certification is a mandatory procedure for every serious scuba diver. It is a process of obtaining a certificate for scuba diving from a recognized and registered diving school. These schools host professionally authorized instructors who take courses in teaching scuba diving. Every interested scuba diver is required to invest the time and money to get certified as it is dangerous and requires technical expertise before attempting it. In addition to potentially hazardous and fatal underwater creatures, the conditions down there could be dangerous too. There are risks of nitrogen narcosis and decompression sickness and one needs to be prepared for any of these eventualities.