Follow these step-by-step instructions and you will soon be a happily certified scuba diver (PADI Open Water)!

1. Join the Auckland University Underwater Club.

2. Get a dive medical (certifies you are fit to dive).

Print this PADI Medical Form and fill in the sections “Divers Medical Questionnaire” & “Student”. Contact your personal general practitioner for an appointment (usually cheaper) but not all GP’s are willing to do dive medicals. Just make sure that you tell the receptionist that you are coming in for a recreational dive medical when you book the appointment. If your doctor can’t do it they may be able to recommend someone who can. The doctor will go through your answers with you, as well as a standard check up. If you are an international student, the following doctors are close to town and are able to sign your medical off:

1. Remuera Doctors, ph: 524 6504, $90
2. City Med, ph: 377 5525, $90 (8 Albert Street, CBD)
3. Symonds Street Medical Centre, ph: 309 9577, they charge around $45 for students, with your uni ID card

Student Health at uni doesn’t have a doctor that will do them, unless you are a regular patient there.

3. Select the Course Dates that you are able to attend. It is essential that you are able to attend all of the sessions.

4. Contact the Open Water Training Officer to sign up to your chosen course. Print out this AUUC Scuba Diver Training Agreement, sign it and get it to the Training Officer.

5. Secure your spot on the course by promptly paying for it. See Ways to Pay. Your spot on a course is not confirmed until your club membership and course fees have been paid, and as such, your place may be offered to someone else if you do not pay promptly.

6. Collect your course resources from the University of Auckland recreation centre reception.

7. Attend every session of your course.

[NOTE 1: The course provider has some great package deals on mask snorkel and fins for club members that you can see on the first night of the course. These are your diving 'underwear' and although you can rent or borrow them for the course you will likely want your own at some point. Feel free to ask us if you need any advice on what to choose.]

[NOTE 2: As you will be representing the Auckland University Underwater Club during the two weeks of your course, here are a few things to bear in mind:

• You need to attend each session in a physically able condition - i.e. not too hung over!
• If you are too sick to dive, a refund will only be granted if a medical certificate is provided.
• It is imperative that you attend each session on time. There is a lot to cover in the course, and not much time to do it. The instructor will therefore start on time and if you are even 5 minutes late you will miss potentially vital information. If you do arrive late, it is at your instructors discretion whether you need to repeat the lesson. Any lessons missed will be made up at your expense at a date/time convenient to the shop and instructor.

[NOTE 3: The Training Officer is a volunteer. Please don't stuff them around by committing to a course and then trying to pull out at the last minute and get your money back. This will cause the course to fall apart and spoil things for everyone (Training Officer, course participants, dive shop owner). Make everyone's life easier: commit to a course, pay and attend. No refund will be offered if you suddenly decide to cancel on us. If you have a genuinely good reason to withdraw from a course, you MUST give the Training Officer at least 2 weeks notice and a refund will only be provided if we manage to find a replacement.]

We may sound a bit draconian but as we’ve been stuffed around by unreliable students so many times in the past, we now feel the need to spell things out.

8. Now you can dive! Enter the phone number for the Divers Emergency Service into your mobile phone (DES: 0800 433 7111). Hopefully you’ll never have to dial it.

9. Sign up for some trips.

10. Take your diving to the next level by signing up for another course to progress your diving skills. PADI Open Water leads to PADI Advanced Open Water leads to PADI Rescue Diver. There are also some great TDI courses that can teach you about decompression and nitrox diving. See what we have on offer here.