Scuba Schools International

Last updated
Scuba Schools International
AbbreviationSSI
Formation1970
FounderBob Clark, Ed Brawley, Jim Brown, Chuck Nicklin, Bud Smith
Type GmbH
Legal statusCompany
PurposeDiving Education
Headquarters Wendelstein, Germany
Region served
Worldwide
Official language
English, Arabic, Brazilian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese-Simplified, Chinese-Traditional, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dhivehi, Dutch, Farsi-Persian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, Zulu
Key people
Guido Waetzig - CEO
Parent organization
 HEAD NV
Affiliations
Website www.divessi.com

Scuba Schools International (SSI) is a for-profit organization that teaches the skills involved in scuba diving and freediving, and supports dive businesses and resorts. SSI has over 3,500 authorized dealers, 35 regional centers, and offices all over the world. [1]

Contents

History

SSI was founded by Robert Clark in 1970. [2] SSI headquarters was in Fort Collins, Colorado, and it is owned by Concept Systems International, Inc. In 2008, it was acquired by Doug McNeese, owner of the National Association of Scuba Diving Schools (USA) until its merger with SSI in 1999, and Robert Stoss, manager of Scubapro and Seemann Sub. On January 1, 2014, SSI was acquired by HEAD, which also includes the Mares brand of diving equipment, HEAD NV, for €4.9m. [3] [4] The current SSI headquarters is located in Wendelstein, Bavaria.

Training

SSI offers internationally recognized recreational diver training programs - starting with snorkeling and entry level scuba diving courses up to instructor certifications. The most common programs are: SSI Open Water Diver (OWD) and Advanced Open Water Diver (AOWD). There are more than 30 different specialty courses. Dive leader training programs start with the Assistant Instructor followed by Open Water Instructor and above. [5] SSI's training program for children aged 8–12 years is called SSI Explorers. [6] The training program for technical divers is called Extended Range and includes decompression diving, trimix and other courses that exceed the limit for recreational divers. [7] Furthermore, SSI offers courses in Freediving, Mermaiding, Swimming & Lifegaurd.

SSI scuba certifications are recognized throughout the world (such as RSTC - Recreational Scuba Training Council, EUF - European Underwater Federation, CUA - China Underwater Association and others). [1]

The main difference to other dive training organizations is that SSI instructors are only allowed to teach at SSI Dive Centers or SSI accredited dive clubs that adopt a franchise-like concept. [8]

SSI is a member of the following councils of the World Recreational Scuba Training Council - the United States RSTC, the RSTC Europe and C-Card Council (Japan). [9] [10] [11] It is also a member of the European Underwater Federation. [12] SSI obtained CEN certification from the EUF certification body in 2005. [13] It received their first ISO certification on June 1, 2010.

Current ISO-certified programs within SSI:

Scuba & Extended Range Training

TRAINING PATHWAY POSTER SCUBA-XR EN.jpg

The SSI Training Standards outline the offered programs, their prerequisites and certification progression. [14]

Non-certification programs

Entry-level scuba diving certification

In addition to the industry standard Open Water Diver (including Junior Open Water Diver for under 15s) qualification, SSI offers the following (which can be upgraded to Open Water certification with some additional training).

The Open Water Diver complies with Autonomous diver, ISO 24801-2. [14] The Autonomous diver level is variously described as the best, [15] and most popular, [16] introductory scuba qualification.

Progression beyond Open Water

After Open Water certification, progression mainly depends on completing Scuba Specialty Programs and logging certain numbers of dives. [14]

Scuba specialty programs

Below are some of the speciality courses that can be completed as part of the above certifications.

Professional diving certifications

The SSI Training Standards outline the professional qualifications and progression. [14]

Extended Range

Source: [7]

Extended Range certifications

  • XR Nitrox Diver
  • XR Advanced Wreck Diver
  • XR Cavern Diver
  • XR Sidemount Diving
  • XR Gas Blender

Technical Extended Range certifications

  • XR Extended Range Foundations
  • XR Extended Range / XR Extended Range Limited Trimix
  • XR Technical Extended Range Diver / XT Technical Extended Range Trimix Diver
  • XR Hypoxic Trimix Diver
  • XR Technical Wreck Diver
  • XR Cave Diver
  • XR Full Cave Diver

Professional certifications

  • XR Nitrox Instructor
  • XR Extended Range Instructor
  • XR Cavern Diving Instructor
  • XR Advanced Wreck Diving Instructor
  • XR Technical Extended Range Instructor
  • XR Hypoxic Trimix Diving Instructor
  • XR Technical Wreck Diving Instructor
  • XR Cave Diving Instructor
  • XR Full Cave Diving Instructor
  • XR Gas Blender Instructor
  • XR Nitrox Instructor Trainer
  • XR Extended Range Instructor Trainer
  • XR Technical Extended Range Instructor Trainer
  • XR Hypoxic Trimix Instructor Trainer
  • XR International Training Director

Classified Diving

The SSI Classified Diving [21] program provides adaptive training for students with limited mobility and/or sensory disorders, allowing them to dive with one or more Classified Dive Buddies, or a Classified Dive Professional. Through this program, individuals with disabilities or limited mobility who are medically cleared by a physician can experience the thrill of scuba diving. First in a pool/confined water environment, then potentially in the open water.

Public Safety Diving

Public Safety Divers [22] are trained to provide critical services to the public, including search and rescue/recovery procedures, often in adverse conditions to include zero visibility. A Public Safety Diver is often involved in search, rescue, and recovery missions of water accident victims, assists law enforcement with investigations, and is often employed by local or national emergency services.

Freediving and Mermaid

Freediving programs [23]

Freediving Professional Programs [25]

Mermaid Programs

Mermaid Professional Programs

Swim and Lifeguard

Swim Programs

Swim Professional Programs

Lifeguard Programs

Lifeguard Professional Programs

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Join the best divers in the world – learn to dive with SSI!". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  2. ↑ "History of SSI". Scuba America Historical Foundation. Retrieved 2009-05-23.
  3. ↑ "Head 2014 annual accounts" (PDF).
  4. ↑ "SSI info". DIVEIN Scuba blog. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
  5. ↑ "Dive into the World's Best Sites with SSI's Advanced Training". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  6. ↑ "SSI Explorers - Unforgettable aquatic adventures for kids".
  7. 1 2 "Extend your range with SSI technical diving – Get started online today!". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  8. ↑ "Es gibt so viele Tauchorganisationen. Welche ist die Beste?" (in German). dive.steha.ch. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  9. ↑ "United States Agencies". WRSTC.
  10. ↑ "European Agencies". WRSTC. Archived from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  11. ↑ "Japan Agencies". WRSTC. Archived from the original on 9 February 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  12. ↑ "Profit Distributing Members". European Underwater Federation. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  13. ↑ "EUF Certified Training Systems/Training Organisations". EUF Certification International. Retrieved 30 September 2013.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "SSI Training Standards". Scuba Schools International. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  15. ↑ "Get certified". SSI. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  16. ↑ "Open Water Diver". PADI. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  17. 1 2 3 "Continue your diving education". Scuba Schools International. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  18. ↑ "Diver Stress & Rescue". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  19. ↑ Staff. "SSI Specialty Course: Altitude Diving". www.divessi.com. Scuba Schools International. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Staff. "Specialty programs". www.divessi.com. Scuba Schools International. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  21. ↑ "Updated SSI Classified Diving Program". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  22. ↑ "Explore SSI's Public Safety Diver training programs - Get started online today!". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  23. ↑ "Learn to freedive with SSI – Get started online today!". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  24. ↑ "Freediving Program". SSI. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
  25. ↑ "Share your passion for freediving – Become an SSI Freediving instructor today!". www.divessi.com. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.