If you have always wanted to take scuba diving lessons, experience unparalleled adventure and see the world beneath the waves, this is where it starts. Get your scuba diving certification with the PADI Open Water Diver course – the world's most popular and widely recognised scuba course. Millions of people have learned to scuba dive and gone on to discover the wonders of the aquatic world through this course.
The PADI Open Water Diver course has three main parts:
To enroll in a PADI Open Water Diver course you need adequate swimming skills and need to be in good physical health. No prior experience with scuba diving is required.
The Adventure Diver course is a subset of the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver Course. Have you always wanted to try digital underwater photography, fish identification or dry suit diving? There’s a long list of scuba adventures you can take part in during this programme. Complete three Adventure Dives and you earn the Adventure Diver certification. It's a great opportunity to work with your instructor to build your scuba skills and gain more confidence. Get a taste of what you like and enjoy scuba diving more than ever.
Does having fun, trying new things, and gaining new skills sound like something you would like to do? Then the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course is the course for you.
You do not have to be 'advanced' to take it – it's designed to advance your diving, so you can start right after earning your PADI Open Water Diver certification. The course helps build confidence and expand your scuba skills through different Adventure Dives. You try out different specialties while gaining experience under the supervision of your PADI Instructor. You log dives and develop capabilities as you find new ways to have fun scuba diving.
The PADI Advanced Open Water Course allows you some flexibility to begin to explore the areas of diving you are most interested in. There are two required dives – Deep and Underwater Navigation – and you choose the other three, for a total of five dives. Some of the more popular in Malta are Wreck, Underwater Naturalist, and Night, but these are only a few options.
If you are already an Adventure Diver, you only need to complete two more Adventure Dives to earn theAdvanced Open Water Diver certification
Nearly all divers who enroll in the PADI Rescue Diver course describe it as the most challenging, yet most rewarding course they’ve ever taken. Why? Because you learn to prevent and manage problems in the water, and become more confident in your skills as a diver, knowing that you can help others if needed. During the course, you learn to become a better buddy by practicing problem solving skills until they become second nature. Plus, the course is just fun – it is serious, but still allows for lots of laughter in between the focused learning.
The PADI Rescue Diver course prepares you to deal with dive emergencies, minor and major, using a variety of techniques. Through knowledge development and rescue exercises, you learn what to look for and how to respond. During rescue scenarios, you put into practice your knowledge and skills.
Topics include:
You also need to have Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care (CPR and First Aid) training within the past 24 months. You can complete this training during the Rescue Diver course.
The Emergency First Response courses meet the CPR and first aid training requirements for the PADI Rescue Diver course and all professional-level ratings. However it is also designed for non-divers, and anyone that wants to learn more about CPR and First Aid to give them more skill and confidence to deal with medical emergencies.
The following EFR courses are based on internationally recognized medical guidelines for emergency care.
Primary Care (CPR)– This course teaches you the steps and techniques for handling life-threatening emergencies. You will practice eight skills for aiding patients who are not breathing, have no heartbeat, may have a spinal injury, may be in shock or who may have serious bleeding. You’ll learn to how to perform CPR and continue to monitor the patient, so that you provide every possible chance of survival while waiting for emergency medical services to arrive.
Secondary Care (First Aid) – Because many medical conditions are not life-threatening and emergency medical services are sometimes delayed or unavailable, this course teaches you how to provide first aid that eases pain and reduces the risk of further harm. You will learn to assess a variety of injuries and illnesses and practice bandaging and splinting.
EFR Refresher – It is a good idea to refresh your CPR and first aid skills every 24 months, and that’s what the EFR Refresher course is designed to do. Focusing on key skills, the course allows you to stay up-to-date and ready to lend aid when needed.
Join the best of the best in recreational scuba diving and live the dive life as a PADI Master Scuba Diver. The Master Scuba Diver rating places you in an elite group of respected divers who have earned this rating through both significant experience and scuba training.
Fewer than two percent of divers ever achieve this rating, so earning your Master Scuba Diver certification means that you’ve spent time underwater in a variety of environments and had your share of dive adventures.
To gain your Master Scuba Diver rating you will have completed your PADI Open Water, Advanced Open Water & Rescue Diver certifications. You will also have completed five PADI Speciality Diver certifications and have logged a minimum of 50 dives.
Scuba diving is a way to explore the underwater world in new and different ways. PADI Speciality Diver courses teach you new techniques and give you the tools to enhance your exploration.
The Diving Resource Centre is able to offer the following PADI Speciality courses:
Contact the Diving Resource Centre for further information regarding any of the PADI Speciality Courses.
These courses are not offered by the University of Malta (UM) and no certification will be issued by UM.