Scuba diving is an exciting sport and wonderful way to explore our oceans.  It is a fast growing sport that can be dangerous if you have not been properly trained.  Scuba dive training courses are available everywhere and most states require that you be certified before diving.

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You may be planning a trip to an exotic location with beautiful seas where you would like to try this sport out.  Call ahead and reserve a spot in a scuba dive training class.  The place where you are staying may even have a certified diver on staff and all the diving gear available for rent that you may need.

After a few dives you may want to take more advanced courses that would enable you to dive in more extreme conditions.  There are prerequisites for these courses.  We have listed some of these prerequisites and the types of advanced scuba dive training that are available.

Prerequisites:  any and every scuba diver must have skills in swimming, obviously. Aside from this, however, a scuba diver must have had training and experience in snorkeling, which forms the basis for some of the techniques used in scuba diving. If you want to take up scuba diving as a sport but don't know how to snorkel yet, then take up snorkeling first before taking a course in scuba.

Regular Scuba Certification:  this trains a person in the basics of scuba diving, allowing operation in shallow water and near shorelines, and is mainly used for training scuba divers who undertake the sport for purely recreational purposes. For a vast majority of people who take up the hobby, this is enough.

Open Water Scuba Dive Training:  This is for the diver who plans to deep water dive off a boat several miles from shore.  It is necessary to know how to operate a boat.  Special equipment is another necessity for deep water dives you will be educated as to what equipment is needed and how and why it is used.

Scuba Dive Training for Rescues:  If you are planning to be a part of a search and rescue team this class will be a requirement.  You will be trained in CPR, how to use the special rescue equipment, and skills in underwater rescues.  There are a multitude of emergency situations that can arise during a dive.

Scuba Dive Training for Deep Dives:  Deep diving is an extreme sport that requires specialized training and special equipment.  Underwater exploration is one reason to go to such depths where the water pressure could crush a person not wearing the proper gear.

Hazardous Scuba Dive Training:  A scientist, explorer, or sailor on a ship may find it necessary to go into a dangerous diving situation.  Again, there would be special equipment to be certified on.  These situations could be a exploring a shipwreck where toxic chemicals could be leaking into the water, a shark infested site, or reefs and underwater caves.

To get more info on scuba diving go to Scuba Diving Certification