FAQ

We know you have many questions before starting your training
We have summed most important questions we received over the last few years.

I'm just starting with diving, can I still enroll?
What is the difference between PADI IDC and PADI CDC ?
New Divemaster curriculum as of 2011, how to see the difference ?
Where are your training facilities?
Where do I stay? prices and how do I get there ?
How is my return on investment ?
How are the medical facilities and conditions of living ?
How politically stable is the country and what about work permits and Visa ? ?
Is Equipment Included in my training?
Can I prepare before my IDC with Pro Dive International?
Why does the IDC training at Pro Dive International takes 14 days and other centers only 9 days ?
Who teaches the IDC ?
What if I fail the PADI IE exam ?
What if I have to cancel my training, do I loose my money ?
Is there a job guarantee or how are my chances to get a job or hands-on ?

I'm just starting with diving, can I still enroll?

Yes!  We provide full training from beginners to Instructor.  You can do all modules separately or better yet choose one of our special "Zero to Hero" or "Career Change" programs. (with savings up to almost 1000us$).  These are tailor made to kick-start your professional scuba career ! 
There are minimum requirements to become a PADI Instructor (including a 6-month time period since becoming a certified diver), but we can within weeks train you to become a Dive Master, able to guide divers and assist PADI Instructors.  Then after this you can fulfil the other minimum requirements and we can train you further as a PADI Instructor.

What is the difference between PADI IDC and PADI CDC ?

The PADI 5 Star Career Development Center (CDC) classification is awarded to PADI 5 Star IDC centers that conduct additional instructor-level training and meet requirements for assisting dive leaders in reaching their educational and professional goals.

PADI 5 Star CDCs offer career-oriented training to prepare dive professionals for employment in the dive industry as well as offering job placement assistance for program graduates. PADI 5 Star CDCs are committed to training dive leaders and conducting career development programs.

The PADI 5 Star Career Development Center (CDC) award is given to PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Centers (IDC) that dedicate their businesses to professional development beyond regular instructor training. These businesses offer vocational oriented continuing education training to prepare individuals for dive industry careers and provide job placement services within the dive industry. PADI Members and the dive industry at large benefit from the PADI 5 Star Career Development Centers’ commitment to professional development and excellence, and their unique ability to provide qualified candidates to fill industry employment needs.
The difference is basically synonym between being a high school or a university.

Where are your training facilities?

Our training facilities are at different location in and around Playa del Carmen
Your course has a diversity of locations depending on the training objectives, to get the best practical experience.

A) Most of our IDC training will take place out of our IDC facility at the Royal Hideaway Playacar Hotel in Playa del Carmen.
     Here you are only a short walk from Playa's famous 5th Avenue and the Cozumel ferry pier. 
     We have our own dedicated IDC classroom, boat, as well as access to the deep and shallow swimming pools for
     confined water skills practice.
         B) We also boast our second IDC facility a short drive north of Playa, at world renowned Maroma Beach, where we
              occasionally conduct additional sessions, to best match learning objectives.
         C) Besides training at our PADI IDC center locations, there also will be days where you will visit one of the many
             mystic cenotes here, or Cozumel National Marine Park  in order to practice some open water exercises –
             and of course fun dive!

Our GoPro candidates stay and live in Playa del Carmen, are trained most of the days at Playa del Carmen and some days will be going to our PADI CDC facility north of Playa del Carmen for other exercises.  Our IDCs include a cenotes dive plus diving at the Cozumel Marine Park.

Where do I stay? prices? and how do I get there ?

The most convenient location to stay is at the CENTER of Playa del Carmen, close to our IDC facility.  Everyone has their own preferences, tastes and budgets when it comes to accommodation, and for this reason we don't provide accommodation during your training with us.

We have found a number of places which are all close to our IDC facility in Playa, and close to the centre
Please look at our "housing" web page for our offerings. 

Playa del Carmen is a vibrant young city and has everything you want. There is absolutely no other place that can beat the atmosphere of this dynamic small city. It has culture, discotheques, restaurants and tourists all year long. It's safe to walk anywhere you like, and the attractions are within walking distance, or by cheap taxi's. 

There are many beautiful beaches like Mamita's beach and Shangri La beach.  On weekends, you often find beach football tournaments going on, live music in the restaurants and more.

It also offers Spanish language schools (see our exclusive language school packages!) and a spectacular nightlife. Life is cheap here compared to most other countries.  

Getting here:  Mexico is easy to reach via Cancun. There are daily flight operators flying into Mexico. 
At the airport there are "ADO" busses going to Playa del Carmen every hour for only us$15 (very comfortable). 
Once in Playa del Carmen, you may walk around and find your way or get a taxi to your apartment/condo

How is my return on investment ?

Every professional training or career change starts with an initial investment, but the return on investment in this industry is very fast. The diving industry will not make you rich, but it's a lifestyle with a decent income that can take you to many tropical and culturally diverse places around the world.
The moment you receive a job opportunity your return on investments starts, and with an average start salary of us$1000 this is earned back within a couple of months! 

But bear in mind when you pass the PADI IE, many others in the area also pass their PADI IE, and they are all looking for jobs!
This is why it is important to choose the proper training facility, as many "say" they offer job assistance, but few really do!
After every PADI IE our human resources department is overwhelmed with new applications.  However, being a PADI Career Development Center we prefer to train our own staff and also hire the right people from our own academy.

So invest clever, and just look at our testimonial page, almost 80% of our candidates in the past years went on to gain employment as Instructors, many of them with Pro Dive International
WITH NINE DIVE CENTERS WE TRULY  OFFER JOB OPPORTUNITIES!!

How are the medical facilities and living conditions?

Pro Dive International offers free medical consultations for all our employees, through our affiliation with our hyperbaric chamber clinics at the mainland and on Cozumel. 
For non staff, you may also visit them for a minimal fee.  (We highly recommend that you take out appropriate dive accident insurance before your trip).

Mexico offers "state of the art" Medical care with American standards, through one of the many private clinics.
They have several price “levels”, but usually for people living in Mexico there is a big discount in place. Please ask for this.
Dentists in Mexico are recognized worldwide, and it’s no wonder that many people have their surgery or treatment in Mexico instead of the USA.
There are many American doctors living and working in Mexico. Also Mexican universities are very famous....

Living standards here in the Riviera Maya are good and depends on what you like to spend.  
We have electricity everywhere, roads, internet access, cell phones, schools, universities and big supermarkets.
For day to day expenses, it all depends on you and your budget, and how good you are at sticking to a budget! 
If you eat at the local cheap restaurants, where locals eat, you can get a tasty decent sized meal for USD 5, and a beer or Coke costs around USD 2.  Of course we have the touristy restaurants with European prices if you want to treat yourself.   If you live conservatively, you can easily get by on 15 dollars or so a day for food and drinks. 

How politically stable is the country and what about work permits and Visa ?

About stability we can be very clear, there is a government, president and free elections.... 
Mexicans are truly family-loving people and very, very friendly. Also Playa del Carmen is very open, safe and friendly.
Forget CNN, FOX and other opinion making programs, as yes there is a drugs problem, but NOT here, but far away against the borders, just like any other country in the world.  Mexico is a very big country!!

For most nationalities you will receive a visa from your air provider when you arrive and in most cases this will be valid for 6 months.  So you may stay 6 months in Mexico for training, internship training, Courses or pleasure.   (please check with your embassy to ensure you know your own requirements)

A work permit is required if you want to work her after your training.  We at Pro Dive International have a HR department and once we offer you employment WE will take care of all the papers for you! 

Is Equipment Included?

In all our courses up to Divemaster full equipment is provided. We only use the best gear (ScubaPro). From Divemaster and up, equipment is not included because each it is mandatory for any professional to have their own professional equipment.  We can rent equipment to you for a special reduced price, but as we are SCUBAPRO dealer we have the BEST deals for our candidates. 
Please ask your Course Director...

Can I prepare before my IDC with Pro Dive International?

As we only have Instructors employed you will have professionals around you all day long. We also give you our IDC Prep courses right before the IDC training.  
Furthermore we have an ONLINE student portal with the latest Video's, training, guidelines and everything you need to prepare for your upcoming training...FREE of charge!
After your IDC you also need to prepare for teaching your first course to real students!  That is where we also can help you with our Free 3-week instructor-internship as part of our MSDT Prep Program.

Why does the IDC training at Pro Dive International takes 14 days and other centers only 9 days ?

At Pro Dive International we offer a 14 day IDC (including our free IDC Prep) with plenty of time for private counselling and personal attention.
In fact with our team of supporting staff instructors, together with group and private counselling we are aware of our leadership as to 100% passing rates.

The GoPro team at Pro Dive International do not see their job as just preparing you to pass the PADI IE.  That is the easy part.  Their job is to create great professionals who will stand out from the crowd, and who go on to succeed in their professional diving career. 
Being an instructor is a fabulous opportunity, but also brings major responsibilities, as you will be leading dive groups, responsible for their safety, and will be seen as a role model for other divers. 
Being trained at Pro Dive International means that you have an advantage over others, as we are known all over the world for our high quality of training. 
During your IDC training or Internship we get the opportunity to know you better, and get a feeling about your talents and skills as we are always looking for quality staff for our centers. 

WE BUILD DIVING CAREERS!

Who teaches the IDC ?

One of our Platinum Course Director heads our IDC team and will be involved in all of your training.  We have attracked the worlds most leading Platinum course directors in the past 20 years. Many of them worked with us for several years until they decided to start working in another part of this beautiful world. That's the most amazing part of their profession.

Our last Course director has worked and dived in more than 10 countries including Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Australia, Honduras, Curacao, UK, Spain and Galapagos. 
His enthusiasm and passion for his work was evident in every part of our IDC training which results in engaging presentations and fun-packed workshops. Our last Platinum Course director has trained more than 1500 divers, and also had more than 1500 professional-level certifications under his belt, making him one of the most experienced and respected Course Directors around the globe
It's these sort of professionals which we as Pro Dive International always like to find for our students. Only the best!

What if I fail the PADI IE Exam ?

To be honest....chances are very slim as we have 14 days of training (including PREP course), instead of 9 days and FREE online Student portal!
Also our Course Director knows exactly who needs extra teaching or not before going to the PADI IE.

We do offer an "IE pass-guarantee":
In the very unlikely event that you are unsuccessful in the PADI IE. Our Course Director will talk with you about where the next PADI IE is and will work towards this date with you for FREE, so you will pass any modules that you failed. You can re-take the next IDC with us (at no extra cost), and we will pay any fees to re-sit your exam.
Our Platinum Course director's success rate with Pro Dive International is the best in the region, and we are confident that you too will succeed.  However we understand that peace of mind is important which is why we offer our “IE pass guarantee”.

What if I have to cancel my training, do I lose my money ?

Try to find "refund & cancellation" policy with other IDC providers.  Hard to find,isn't it?
You will not be the first one, who lost some money due to academies, travel agents or shops closing down.

Please have a look at our clear and honest refund & cancellation policies

For all professional courses (other than IDC Course) when cancelled 30 days or more before starting date, we will refund your deposit money! (minus small cc charges we have) or we re-schedule your training without extra costs!
For the IDC trainingas we ordered crew packs, material and reserved limited spaces in our classroom we will charge only 50% deposit! Or you may send someone else, or you may re-schedule at no extra cost... No problem at all. 

New Divemaster curriculum as of 2011, What does that mean to you?

Please note that the new Divemaster curriculum, which has been taught in many places since January 2011, has a different level of theory than the old curriculum and one which falls short of the level required for your IDC.  As dive theory is not taught as part of the PADI IDC, it is important to revise and refresh your knowledge before starting.

This is also why we changed our IDC training to include for FREE the 2-day IDC Prep course.  So that ALL our students start the IDC course with the same knowledge and basics!  Of course, you need to take some time to go through your dive theory before your training starts, but with our IDC Prep we can help you get to grips with any areas that you have trouble with, and can show you alternative teaching methods which will also help you in the future as an Instructor.

If you are not sure which Divemaster course you took, it's easy to find out – if you took 8 exams then this is the old curriculum, and if you took only 2 exams then this is the new curriculum. 
If you took the new curriculum, or maybe it was a long time since you took the old Divemaster course, we can give you some tips and suggestions to enable you to study and get your theory in shape before the IDC, and of course our Student Portal is just right for this.  Just let us know if you need help.

Is there a job guarantee or how are my chances to get a job or hands-on ?

There are no guarantees!
But, the opportunities are here in the Riviera Maya. We have a great track record of finding jobs for our own IDC candidates, both with Pro Dive International and elsewhere in Mexico and the world.
Which other Career Development Center can say they have NINE 5-STAR Scuba Dive Centers and are in need of quality staff year-round.

Furthermore: We have calculated that there are 4 dive centers every square mile here in Riviera Maya and Cozumel. Nowhere else can you find this potential than with us and in Mexico. We have a separate HR team looking into all applications, and of course our Course Director and his team will advise us after the IDC. We will provide the high quality training that, the rest is down to you!



For any other questions, please do feel free and contact our Course director and his team.