Our choice for gas

I owe Lamar and
Lee Ann a helluva
lot, so they always get a free plug

Instructor Development

Are you an instructor in current “teaching” status with a major recreational or technical diver training agency? Are you a certified cave diver with at least 100 logged cave dives? If you are you meet the major prerequisites for entering the NSS-CDS instructor development program. (A complete listing of requirements appear at the bottom of the page.)

How the Program Works

You are most likely used to the sort of instructor training and certification process where you pay an “Instructor Trainer” or “Course Director” a bunch of money to teach you from a proscribed curriculum. At the end of the program, you may have to pass some sort of evaluation — or you may just get handed a card.

The NSS-CDS doesn’t work that way. You can’t buy an NSS-CDS Instructor rating…but you can earn one. It’s a process that involves mentorship, internship and evaluation (and it doesn’t happen overnight).

Here is how it works:

• You start by finding a qualified NSS-CDS Instructor Sponsor (someone, say, like me) who is willing to help you through the process. We don’t generally charge for this, as the arrangement can be beneficial to both parties.

• After an initial orientation with your sponsor, you begin interning with a minimum of three NSS-CDS Cavern Diver courses and equal number of Basic/Intro-to-Cave Diver courses. These can be with your sponsor or, with your sponsor’s blessing, any other current CDS Instructor. (We like to see our instructor candidates exposed to as many different teaching styles as possible.) Most candidates do more than the minimum required internship.

• When you have met the internship requirements, and your sponsor is satisfied with your progress, you attend a two-day NSS-CDS Instructor Institute. Here your knowledge, skills, judgement and abilities will be evaluated by several top CDS Instructors.

If you pass, you become an NSS-CDS Cavern/Basic Cave Instructor. By repeating the process at the Apprentice/(Full) Cave level, you can upgrade to full Cave Instructor certification.

Okay, this is a lot more than most training organizations ask of their instructor candidates. But the diving public knows this, and that is why there is a greater demand for NSS-CDS Cave Diver training than for any other.

Do you have what it takes? (Not everyone does.) Nevertheless, if you are willing to rise to the challenge, I'm willing to help you meet your goal. Contact me for more information.

A Little Added Incentive…

Among the questions instructor candidates most often ask is, “Where will I find enough classes to intern with?”

Obviously, once you are on board, you are more than welcome to intern with any class I teach. I will also put you in touch with a number of good instructors who teach actively and are willing to help with the internship process.

There is one more thing you can do to facilitate the process — one you can benefit from both financially and in other ways. It is particularly well suited to dive store staff members and technical instructors, who may already have a large following of interested students. Here is how it works:

• You put together a class of students at the level or levels with which you need to intern.
• Schedule the class with me, so that we make certain the time frames work.
• When the time comes, we will team teach the class, with me as the Instructor and you as my assistant.

All you need to do on the financial side is to make certain that my minimum daily teaching rate and any out-of-the-ordinary expenses are met. Any revenue you generate above and beyond this is yours.

As an NSS-CDS cave instructor, you will need to be able to successfully recruit students of your own. This is a good place to start — and a good place to begin building your future customer base.

Again,if you have any questions, contact me.

[Top of Page]

Here’s a good story that explains why you need Cave Diver training

Another reason to get
your Cave Diver cert: Going with Connie to Mexico

Our recommendation
for manatee tours

Own a dive store? You should be reading this

“Here’s Your Sign…”