SSI vs PADI

Question
Hi

My wife and kids want to dive with me and we are new to this area. I did a little looking around and came across two shops, one PADI and the other SSI. (It's like the Harfield's and McCormick's) We ended up going with SSI for them back in July and they still haven't gone for check out dives. Is this normal?

Answer
Hi Xavier,

I'm sorry to hear that you're having problems with the certification course for your wife and kids.  It's definitely not normal for this amount of time to pass between the conclusion of your academic and pool sessions and the completion of your check out dives.  Unless there are some extenuating circumstances, the check out dives should have immediately followed the completion of the rest of your course.  Waiting three months for check out dives means that the students are likely to forget some of the skills they had learned in the pool.  When skills are new, they need to be reinforced often to maintain competency.

I would immediately contact the shop and schedule your check out dives.  After a three month delay, it may be necessary to have a remedial pool session to resharpen their pool skills prior to their dives.  Your SSI dive shop should be very happy to assist you.

If you have any problems with the shop, I would strongly suggest that you contact SSI directly (www.ssiusa.com) and ask them for assistance. SSI is in a position to intercede on your behalf to resolve any certification problems you're having with the shop.  Keep in mind that they cannot force the shop to do anything but they have the final say in whether the shop can offer certifications through SSI.

Xavier, I hope this helps you in the resolution of your problems with this dive shop.  Let me know if I can assist you further.

Sincerely,
Mike Giles
Mike's Dive Center
mikescuba.com