From: lls@kings.demon.co.uk (Lady Lodge Systems)
Subject: BSAC Was: Re: Are ther YMCA dive agencies in Australia ?
Organization: Lady Lodge Systems
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1992 08:27:46 GMT

In article <1992Jul21.015556.13933@herboid.uucp> adb@herboid.uucp (Anthony DeBoer) writes:
>John GriffithsMel <johng@syacus.acus.oz.au> writes:
>>If you don't like paying for training, you should try the BSAC,they train for 
>>free, once you've joined a club.....
>
>I trust you pay for the "free" training through club dues and/or club
>fundraisers and/or by getting the instructors to volunteer their efforts?
>

The way we work in our BSAC branch (Peterborough 297) is that members pay
a yearly fee of around (internationalisation on :-) $200.

This covers all training costs up to and including BSAC Advanced Diver
(see later) which is the highest level of qualification that can be
awarded at branch level.  Trainees can hire cylinders, DV's, weight
belts, ADV's/ABLJ's for around $5 per week - there are no further
training costs other than site/boat fees for the qualifying dives.  Pool
fees are covered by the membership fees.

Instruction is carried out by BSAC Nationally Qualified Instructors (we
have around 12 people qualified to this level or above out of 70
members).  To get qualified as an Instructor you first have to be
qualified to either Dive Leader (see later) or Advanced Diver, then
attend an Instructor Training Course (normally one weekend) and then sit
an examination (another weekend).  If you pass, this will qualify you
for Club Instructor.  You can then go on to Advanced Instructor,
National Instructor on much the same basis.

Our branch pays the costs of members attending Instructor Training
Courses in recognition of their willingness to undertake the additional
instruction needed to allow us as a club to train new members. We have
*never* had any problems in finding members wanting to do this as most
of them recognise the implied debt carried over from the members who
trained them!

Our training takes place over two evenings per week (one wet, one dry)
and we are diving just about every weekend throughout the year. Some
folks manage to make advanced diver in under two years, some members
have been diving for two decades and still have not made Advanced!

The big advantage of being a club is that we do not place any
constraints on trainees to finish their training by any given time - end
of a course for example (we had one guy who couldn't even swim - we
taught him to swim then taught him to dive!).

(later!)

BSAC Qualifications run like so (from memory and NOT BSAC phrasing!)

    Novice Diver - Probably won't kill themselves on a dive :-). Must dive
                   under supervision of Dive Leader or above.
    Sports Diver - Probably won't kill themselves or their buddy :-) and
                   should be capable of effecting self rescue and rescue of
                   their buddy. Can dive with other Sports Divers but
                   not Novice Divers.
    Dive Leader  - Really shouldn't kill themselves or their buddy :-)
                   Can hopefully prevent Novice Divers doing anything nasty.
    Advanced Diver - Probably will kill themselves as they are overconfident
                     by now :-)
                    Experienced Diver qualified to handle dive trips for 
                    numbers of divers.
    First Class -   Face fits with the 'in crowd' .... 1/2 :-)
                    Doesn't need a dive boat - walks on water.
                    Awarded by the BSAC at National level after fairly
                    serious tests and examinations.

The BSAC regard Dive Leader as being the 'normal' level of attainment.

If anyone wants, I'll post the actual text of the BSAC qualifications
and, if thought worthwhile, a summary of the training program.

Hope this was interesting for our friends across the water(s), sorry
to bore the BSAC people here in the UK.

-- 
Regards,
        Russell
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| Russell Brown          | MAIL : russell@kings.demon.co.uk                 |
| Lady Lodge Systems     | PHONE: 0832 272224 (Home/Work it's all the same) |
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