NAUI, the National Association of Underwater Instructors, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to scuba diver training. NAUI provides a wide variety of scuba certification courses that can train you for any level of recreational or technical diving. If you pass your course, you will earn a certification card to show as proof of your training at dive sites around the world.
History
As recreational scuba diving accidents increased in the late 1950s, several organizations began training and certifying scuba students. The YMCA provided the first national scuba certification program in 1959, according to Marinebio.org. NAUI formed soon afterward, also in 1959, followed by PADI in 1966. NAUI remains one of the world's largest recreational diving organizations, second only in size to PADI, according to Marinebio.org.
Course Structure
NAUI courses include classroom lectures, pool training sessions and final open water dives. In your classroom sessions, you will learn about the science, equipment and safety concerns relevant to the type of diving your course covers. In pool sessions, you will learn and practice relevant practical skills and safety procedures. You will then have to demonstrate your proficiency with these skills in the final open water dives and pass a written exam to demonstrate your mastery of classroom material.
Prerequisites
You must be at least 10 years old for the basic scuba diving course, at least 12 years old for advanced scuba diving and at least 15 years old for the master diver course. You must be at least 18 years old for many specialty and technical courses. All prospective students must demonstrate good physical condition, and they must pass a basic swimming test. Advanced technical courses often require that students have passed certain other courses and logged a certain number of dives.
Recreational Courses
NAUI offers three basic levels of recreational scuba diving courses. After the basic scuba diving course, you can take advanced scuba diving, which covers search and recovery, boat diving, wreck diving, surf and current diving and shore diving. The Master scuba diver course trains students in emergency rescue, deep decompression diving, night diving and navigation.
Specialty Courses
NAUI provides a wide variety of specialty courses tailored to specific interests. You can take courses in deep diving, dry suit diving, enriched air Nitrox, rescue diving, search and recovery diving, underwater archaeology, ecology or environment, underwater photography, underwater hunting and collecting, and wreck diving.
Technical Courses
NAUI also provides a wide variety of technical courses for advanced divers. You can train for cave diving, cavern diving, decompression diving, ice diving and wreck penetration diving. You can also take courses dedicated to particular types of equipment and gas mixtures, including closed circuit rebreathers, semi-closed rebreathers, heliair, helitrox, mixed gas blends and tri-mix.
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