Marine Ecology

If you can't decide which specialty programs are the best choice for you, join the SSI Advanced Open Water Diver program! You'll try Deep Diving and Navigation, plus a choice of 3 other specialties, before committing to full specialty training. It's a great way to experience what advanced diver training is all about and how valuable it can be to your diving adventures. During the Advanced Open Water Diver Program, you'll experience 5 different specialties by completing one open water training dive per specialty after a thorough briefing with your SSI Instructor. By completing this program you will have total freedom to explore. You can complete the full Specialty trainings at any time in the future and credit your Advanced Open Water Diver training towards them.

In this fascinating program you will learn all the skills you need to conduct search and recovery dives with safety and confidence. You will learn to use search patterns, specialized dive planning and special equipment such as lift balloons, lines and reels. By developing and practicing your search and communication techniques on a dive team, you will quickly become a diver capable of conducting search and recovery dives with confidence. Upon completion, you will earn the SSI Search & Recovery specialty certification.

Choosing and buying your dive equipment is one of the most important investments you will make as a diver, but we know it's not always easy. We want you to choose the scuba gear that best suits your needs and to know how to take care of it. With the right knowledge, you can get the most out of your investment and enjoy diving safely and comfortably for many years to come. SSI's Equipment Techniques Specialty is the best program for learning how to choose, care for and store your scuba equipment. With the help of an experienced SSI professional, you'll learn detailed information about the components of your total dive system and understand how your equipment works. You'll also practice the procedure for performing preventive maintenance on your scuba equipment to optimize the performance and durability of your total dive system. Start training in this scuba diving equipment specialty today.

With SSI's Diver Stress & Rescue specialty program, you'll learn the skills necessary to protect yourself and your fellow divers. Not only will you learn how to identify stress and avoid accidents, but we'll also teach you practical techniques for conducting rescues and providing assistance in emergency situations. By combining practical sessions in the pool and in open water, this program prepares you perfectly and enables you to handle emergency and rescue situations with confidence. Upon completion, you will earn the SSI Diver Stress and Rescue specialty certification.

In this sidemount diving course, you will learn everything you need to dive with a one or two tank sidemount to a maximum depth of 30 meters or to your certification depth, whichever is greater. Sidemount diving is a very common practice among many wreck, mine and cave divers, but the advantages for more recreational divers are now being discovered. By not carrying a heavy tank on your back, you will feel more comfortable in the water and see your hydrodynamics and horizontal trim position improve effortlessly. By using less energy, you can reduce your air consumption, so you can make better use of your dive time. By improving buoyancy control, valve access and redundancy, sidemount diving offers you more safety and peace of mind. This is the best sidemount diving course to discover and enjoy the attractive advantages of this style of diving. You will learn all the skills and knowledge you need to dive safely and comfortably with a sidemount equipment configuration of one or two tanks.

Underwater photography involves certain challenges that don't exist on land, but thanks to SSI's Photo & Video specialty program, you'll quickly learn how to capture images of your underwater experiences. This program provides you with everything you need to dive with an underwater camera and teaches you all the details on how to use, store and maintain your equipment. You'll develop the skills and techniques necessary to safely and comfortably take underwater photographs and videos, and you'll perfect your diving skills while using your underwater camera. Learn how to capture high quality images to share with others and earn your SSI Photo & Video Specialty certification and get started today!

SSI's Perfect Buoyancy Specialty is ideal for improving your buoyancy and getting the most out of diving. Buoyancy is a fundamental skill, but, if you ask any experienced diver, they will tell you that it takes time to perfect it. With the Perfect Buoyancy Specialty, you will learn advanced buoyancy skills and techniques so you can master your buoyancy quickly and enjoy relaxed dives. In this program you will also learn new skills that will help you protect the environment and that you will be able to use in any diving situation. Upon completion, you'll earn SSI's Perfect Buoyancy specialty certification. Once you perfect your buoyancy skills, you'll be able to float with ease and take amazing pictures underwater.

In this specialty program you will acquire the advanced skills and knowledge you need to safely and confidently orient yourself underwater. In addition to the main orienteering techniques and basic orientation patterns, you will learn how to use a compass, how to calculate distance and how to leave a specific point and return to it. You will also learn how to combine different orienteering techniques to enhance your diving experience. In this way, you will perfect your underwater observation skills, improve your diving safety and get the most out of every dive. Upon completion, you'll earn the SSI Navigation Specialty certification.

The Enriched Air Nitrox Level 1 (32%) course is designed for certified divers who want to understand and safely use enriched oxygen mixtures. As a theory course, it focuses on the fundamentals of Nitrox without actually diving. Topics such as Nitrox advantages and limitations, oxygen percentages, exposure limits, maximum operating depth (MOD), dive planning and analysis of 32% mixtures are covered during the training. Ideal for divers looking to expand their knowledge, improve their dive planning and prepare for responsible use of Nitrox in future activities.

Dry suit diving provides you with unique opportunities, such as the chance to dive remote Arctic sites or explore other cold water dive sites teeming with marine life. Dry Suit diving also keeps your body warm during multiple dive days when you don't want to waste time putting on and taking off a wetsuit. SSI's Dry Suit Diving specialty program is the best option to become a dry suit diver and learn all the skills and knowledge needed to dive safely and comfortably in a dry suit. You will learn how to use specialized equipment, such as drysuits and buoyancy compensators, you will learn their main advantages and you will learn how to act correctly in case of emergencies specific to this type of diving. Upon completion, you will earn the SSI Dry Suit Diving specialty certification.

The SSI Decompression Diving Specialty will teach you to dive beyond the no-decompression limits. You will learn how to plan and conduct dives to a maximum depth of 40 meters with limited decompression using a total recreational dive system and a single decompression cylinder. In addition, you will know how to effectively use the dive computer functions, including gas switching, gas integration, time to reserve and time to surface. Eventually, you will use these dive computer functions instinctively and safely perform limited decompression dives without hours of planning. Upon completion, you'll earn SSI's Decompression Diving specialty certification and be able to explore deeper dive sites or larger wrecks without the restriction of traditional no-decompression limits, multiplying your adventure possibilities.

SSI designed the Computer Diving program to help certified divers become familiar with the functions and benefits of using a dive computer. By understanding and knowing how to use all the functions of a dive computer, you will not only increase your dive safety, but also make it easier to plan and execute your dive. SSI's Computer Diving program explores the functions and capabilities of the various dive computers and explains how to use these functions before, during and after the dive. Often, divers buy a computer and only use it for its basic information. Get the most out of your investment by learning how to use your dive computer to its full potential - start your SSI Computer Diving Specialty online today!

The ocean is full of dive sites, but many of the best sites can only be visited by boat. If you want to discover amazing places, become an SSI Boat Diver, the perfect program to learn to dive safely and confidently from a boat. As a Boat Diver, you'll have the opportunity to explore dive sites where you'll enjoy schools of pelagics and marine megafauna that you won't find near shore. Dare to experience the thrill of liveaboard diving, enjoy a fantastic day away from the crowds and sail off into the sunset. With online training and open water dive sessions, SSI's Boat Diving program is the best way to learn. This specialty teaches you all the skills and techniques needed to dive safely and comfortably from a variety of vessels, including small boats and live-aboard cruisers. Get your SSI Boat Diving certification - start today!

With the SSI Deep Diving Specialty, you'll learn everything you need to dive from 18 to 40 meters through a combination of academic sessions and open water dives. You'll learn how to plan and complete deep dives safely and how to use computers and gas consumption calculations to get the most out of your deep dives. Upon completion, you'll earn your SSI Deep Diving specialty certification and be able to explore deep dive sites wherever you go. This SSI specialty is a prerequisite for some of the advanced dive programs, making it the recommended next step in your dive training.