So, without dwelling on 2020 we all know that many worldwide industries have taken a beating; particularly the travel industry which ultimately affects the diving industry. Conversely it is also fair to say that considering flights have been grounded and governments advise against non-essential travel, many dive related business have still found ways to stay open and service those looking to take dive activities.
The way things are going with professional diving
We have seen many businesses changing the way in which they operate and in many cases changing the pricing structure or in some cases diversifying the products they provide. Of course for us, rather than reducing prices and finding ways to cut corners, reduce components or combining tasks we take the latter approach of diversifying our training and finding ways of providing more; adding components and restructuring the way in which we deliver training whilst still providing the absolute highest possible standard of quality.
So when we say that our philosophy is to provide “Bang for your Buck” its referring to an idiom meaning the worth of one’s money or exertion. The phrase originated from the slang usage of the words “bang” which means “excitement” and “buck” which means “money so in turn providing the highest possible quality of training at a highly competitive and reasonable price.
The way in which we see it going
So ultimately there are many options available when choosing which PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) is the best choice and all offer a range of deals. The PADI IDC Indonesia in the Gili Islands with PADI Course Director Holly Macleod does not offer any specific deals, discounts, knocked down prices, free equipment, free courses and other typical trinkets which are often seen thrown into the deal. But instead ensures a level of superior training through the continuous provision of Quality, Experience and Assurance paving the way for a solid proven track record in ensuring all new scuba diving instructors gain the necessary skills, knowledge and confidence to be highly successful in this exciting and rewarding career.
So if we delve further into the concepts of Quality, Experience and Assurance, we can see why value for money is only really quantified when we look at what is offered. Of course experience and assurance are both contributing factors when it comes to quality. Therefore the best way to review and develop our professional training is to use our experience to provide you the assurance that you are going to receive the absolute best quality in every aspect of your training experience. So, let’s dissect every component of training and consider the facilities, the person conducting the program, the program itself and the location.
PADI Instructor training facilities
All PADI Instructor training takes place at Trawangan Dive, a dive centre that is renowned and industry recognized as a world class dive training facility offering the best possible environment to develop as a scuba instructor. One of the ways in which the facility can be measured is through the industry itself and the way in which it has been recognised by the training organisation. Today Trawangan Dive is the only ever PADI 5 Star IDC Career Development Centre (CDC) to have ever been established on the island of Gili Trawangan and was actually the first ever PADI 5 Star IDC CDC Centre to have been established in the Gili Islands and the entire Lombok regency. Thus providing both recreational and professional dive students with the assurance that Trawangan Dive holds the highest possible certified standards available within industry, the experience of maintaining those standards and therefore the assurance to those looking to use the facilities for personal dive training experiences.
The person conducting the program
The program is entirely conducted by PADI Course Director Holly Macleod offering a wealth of experience spanning over nearly 18 years teaching professional PADI programs in a variety of global diving destinations including Honduras, Thailand, Australia, UK, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and of course right here in Indonesia. Having issued well over 3000 Instructor level certifications in the Gili Islands alone, Holly is well versed in what the dive industry requires from new Instructors and conversely what new scuba diving instructors can expect from the industry itself. In terms of dive industry recognition, the program itself has received multiple awards from training organisations including those for professional development and also specifically Instructor development achievement awards. Holly has received the Platinum PADI Status award as well as the PADI Elite-300 Instructor awards for the past 7 consecutive years. Professional divers training alongside Holly can be assured that they will receive the highest possible standard of training delivered by a highly experienced, passionate and dedicated PADI Course Director.
The program delivered by Holly
Ok, so it’s a fairly straightforward job to deliver the standard PADI IDC curriculum in the suggested format outlined by the training organisation. In this case Industry Leading Platinum PADI Course Director Holly Macleod has specifically designed The PADI IDC Indonesia program to go beyond the basic syllabus and provide a standard which is now considered to be of a level way over and above that generally seen within industry. Prospective candidates can expect to find a range of in house experience based workshops that have been designed to provide a range of different scenario based teaching options. Candidates are also provided with proven techniques to overcome situational obstacles which have been tried and test over 2 decades working within industry. A new component of the program is continuing education workshops including a Deep Scenario practical dive workshop and an increased focus on teach the PADI Rescue Diver Course. Other new components include legislative and regulatory knowledge workshops, practical problem solving group workshops and a WRSTC/ISO/EN standards comparison module. The PADI EFRI also includes a number of additional components which have been adopted from other diving medic programs also offered by Holly. This includes tourniquet use for cases of serious bleeding, the use of adjuncts in Airway Management, additional techniques to respond more effectively to drowning and advanced resuscitation methods using a bag valve mask (BVM)/ resuscitator/ self-inflating bag or sometimes known by the proprietary name Ambu bag.
The Gili Islands for training
The Gili Islands offers some great diving conditions with our purpose build Instructor training site situated less than 15 minutes boat ride away. Our dedicated dive boats leave from directly outside the dive shop so candidates can be sure to maximise the time spent underwater, in the swimming pool and in the classroom without the usual time wasted travelling by car or on long boat journeys.
Although conditions offer crystal clear visibility, most dives are drift dives and therefore exhibit current. Our training site is situated in a mild split current which gives instructor candidate’s great practise as they will need to learn how to deal with a variety of changing conditions such as current strength, direction and differing visibility.
There are many, many factors that make up the decision on where to take professional level training, and cost is inevitably high on the list. It is however important to also think about the experience of the people conducting the training and the quality of the program offered. Of course you will need to gain the necessary assurance to proceed with your choice once it has been made.
To find out more about the program offered by Holly simply check out the PADI IDC Indonesia Instagram Page for updates and the PADI IDC Gili Islands TripAdvisor Page for first hand reviews of the program.