PADI Rescue Diver Course
Ask experienced divers which course changed their diving most, and many will name Rescue Diver. Many will also tell you it was the most fun they ever had on a scuba course.
Your earlier courses teach you to look after yourself underwater: your buoyancy, your air and the small problems every diver meets. The Rescue course widens your view to the whole dive team. You learn to notice when someone isn’t comfortable before a dive, to help a buddy at the surface and underwater, and to give emergency oxygen. Above all, you learn to stop, think and act calmly when a dive doesn’t go to plan.
- 3-4 daysWe usually take four, which leaves room for extra scenarios and practice.
- 85 USDCovers your PADI manual and certification. Tuition, gear, transport and marine park fees are part of your volunteer stay.
- PrerequisitesAdvanced Open Water and first aid training within the past 24 months. We teach both.
- For volunteersOne PADI course for each four-week period of your stay. We don’t take walk-in students.
The course
What you’ll learn
The course has three parts. You start with the theory, through PADI eLearning and knowledge reviews. Next come the rescue exercises, which you practise until they feel natural. Finally you bring it all together in full rescue scenarios, where your instructor sets up a situation and you lead the response.
Along the way you’ll learn to recognise stress in other divers, to help a tired diver back to the beach or boat, to manage a problem underwater and at the surface, and to put together an emergency assistance plan for a dive site.
Rescue Diver is a PADI certification in its own right, and it’s the one you need before starting the PADI Divemaster course. Most of all, you’ll come out of it a more confident diver and a better buddy.
- 5theory sections with knowledge reviews
- 10rescue exercises
- 1self-rescue refresher dive
- 2+full rescue scenarios
- 1final written exam
The MCP way
Why we take four days
We usually run the Rescue course over four days. The extra time lets us run more scenarios and make sure everyone has mastered each exercise before moving on to the harder ones.
It also gives the new mindset time to settle. On a shorter course the change happens, but it often fades within weeks. We want it to stay with you for the rest of your diving life.
When something unexpected happens, people tend to freeze or rush in. Someone may jump straight into the water after a struggling swimmer, when throwing them something that floats would be quicker and safer. Throughout the course you’ll be tested in many different, and often very funny, ways on keeping a clear head, because that’s what the Rescue course is really about.
It suits the way we dive, too. On a survey dive everyone has a job, counting fish, recording coral and substrate cover or laying out the transect tape, and a diver who keeps an eye on the whole team is worth a lot.
Where it leads
From your first dive to dive professional
Every dive you log with us counts towards your next course.
Rescue Diver
Plus EFR first aid if you need it. Usually four days.
Want to go deeper? Our tec diving programme runs from Tec 40 all the way to Trimix.
Questions we often get
Do I need first aid training before the Rescue course?
Yes. PADI requires CPR and first aid training within the past 24 months before you can be certified as a Rescue Diver. Emergency First Response (EFR) Primary and Secondary Care covers both. Everyone who stays with us takes our one-day EFR course soon after arriving. Unless you have other recent first aid training, you’ll also need the PADI EFR certification for the Rescue course, which costs 65 USD including the manual.
Can I fit the Rescue course into my stay?
Our PADI courses are for volunteers, and you can take one course for each four-week period you start. A 6-8 week stay gives you two courses, for example Advanced Open Water followed by Rescue Diver.
Is the Rescue course hard?
It asks more of you than your earlier courses, but you won’t be rushed. You practise every exercise until it feels natural before moving on, and the scenarios are where most people say the course really gets fun.
What does the 85 USD cover?
Your PADI manual and certification. Tuition, scuba gear, transport and marine park fees are all included in your volunteer stay, so there’s nothing else to pay for the course itself. You’ll find all our prices on the course prices page.
Ready to start?
Tell us a little about yourself and your plans, and we’ll get back to you with everything you need to know.