Advanced AND SPECIALTY courses
PADI Advanced Open Water Course
Ready to take your diving to the next level? This is the course for you!
Extend your depth limit to 100ft Advanced Scuba Classes
PADI Rescue Diver Course
The PADI Rescue Diver course prepares you to deal with dive emergencies, minor and major, using a variety of techniques.
PADI Specialty Courses
PADI Specialty Courses
Interested in a particular underwater activity? There is a PADI Speciality Course to fit you
Advanced Scuba Classes
PADI Advanced Open Water Course
EXPLORATION, EXCITEMENT, EXPERIENCES
They're what the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course is all about. And no, you don't have to be advanced to take it. It's designed so you can go straight into it after the PADI Open Water Diver course. The Advanced Open Water Diver course helps you increase your confidence and build your scuba skills so you can become more comfortable in the water. This is a great way to get more dives under your belt while continuing to learn under the supervision of your PADI instructor. This course builds on what you've learned and develops new capabilities by introducing you to new activities and new ways to have fun scuba diving.
Try the PADI Advanced Open Water E-learning FREE
Get started on the PADI Advanced Open Water Course NOW with E-learning!
YOU'LL HONE YOUR SKILLS BY COMPLETING FIVE ADVENTURE DIVES THAT INTRODUCE YOU TO:
Underwater navigation
Deeper water diving (typically anywhere from 18-30 metres/ 60-100 feet)
A sampler of three more Adventure Dives of your choice (based on what local conditions will allow)
THE FUN PART: YOUR CHOICE
One reason youll love the Advanced Open Water Diver course is that you and your instructor choose from 15 types of Adventure Dives to complete your course. You can try your hand at wreck diving, peak performance buoyancy and much more.
Get credit! Each Adventure Dive in the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course may credit toward the first dive of the corresponding PADI Specialty Diver course.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:
The knowledge and skills you get in the Advanced Open Water Diver course vary with your interest and the adventures you have, but include:
- Practical aspects of deep diving
- Physiological effects of deeper scuba diving.
- More ways to use your underwater compass
- How to navigate using kick-cycles, visual landmarks and time
- How to better use your dive computer
- And much, much more, depending on the Adventure Dives you choose
THE SCUBA GEAR YOU WILL USE:
You use all the basic scuba gear including your underwater compass. Depending on which three adventure dives you pick, you may also try out underwater photography equipment , DPVs (underwater scooters), a dive light a dry suit, lift bags, a dive flag/float or other specialty gear.
Check with us about gear rentals and packages offered with this course. You can find most everything at our scuba diving shop.
THE LEARNING MATERIALS YOU WILL NEED:
PADI's Adventures in Diving Manual and DVD provide information on more than 16 types of specialty diving. You'll use them as a guidebook to improve your diving skills and prepare for new experiences and adventures.
Curious about night diving? Flip to the night diving chapter. Once youve previewed the skills, your instructor will guide you on your first night diving adventure. Having trouble with underwater navigation? Review the underwater navigation section then sign up for the Navgation Adventure Dive with your PADI Instructor.
To purchase this product, contact Southern Maryland Divers.
PREREQUISITES:
To take this course, you must be:
- A PADI Open Water Diver (or qualifying certification from another training organization)
- 15 years old (12 for Junior Advanced Open Water Diver)
PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course is part of PADI eLearning. The Advanced Open Water Diver Course Online gets you started right now with the background information you need for the seven of the most popular Adventure Dives (though you and your instructor can still choose any of the Adventure Dives.) Contact us to get your E-Learing Online code or get started now by clicking HERE.
We offer the PADI Advanced Open Water Course at any of our Quarry Checkout Weekends. If you dont see a class that fits your schedule on our class schedule, please contact us and we will work with you to get you into a class that does.
Course Fee: $395.00
*Course fee includes E-learning course and digital certification card upon successful completion. Divers are responsible for all other fee's associated with the training. (Quarry entry, gear rental, air fills, etc)
Our Advanced Open Water Course can be taught during any of our Quarry Checkout Weekends and will require both Saturday and Sunday to complete. Click HERE for our schedule.
Underwater Navigation Skills
Click on the image for our schedule
PADI Rescue diver course
PADI Rescue Diver Course
Who should take this course?
Scuba divers describe the PADI Rescue Diver course as the most challenging, yet most rewarding course they’ve ever taken. Why? Because you learn to prevent and manage problems in the water, and become more confident in your skills as a diver, knowing that you can help others if needed. During the course, you learn to become a better buddy by practicing problem solving skills until they become second nature. Plus, the course is just fun – it’s serious, but still allows for lots of laughter in between the focused learning.
PADI (Junior) Adventure Divers who are at least 12 years old and have completed the Underwater Navigation Adventure Dive may enroll in a Rescue Diver course. You also need to have Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care (CPR and First Aid) training within the past 24 months. You can complete this training during the Rescue Diver course. Your instructor may also offer the PADI Emergency Oxygen Provider specialty diver course at the same time.
What will you learn?
The PADI Rescue Diver course prepares you to deal with dive emergencies, minor and major, using a variety of techniques. Through knowledge development and rescue exercises, you learn what to look for and how to respond. During rescue scenarios, you put into practice your knowledge and skills. Topics include:
- Self rescue
- Recognizing and managing stress in other divers
- Emergency management and equipment
- Rescuing panicked divers
- Rescuing unresponsive diver
You may be able to get college credit for the Rescue Diver course – ask your instructor.
How can you start learning now?
Register for Rescue Diver Online – PADI’s eLearning option – to start now. You progress through five knowledge development sections using a web-based system that lets you learn at your own pace through an easy-to-use, interactive program. You also have access to an online version of the Rescue Diver Manual for reference during and after the course.
If you prefer, you can choose to study with the Rescue Diver Manual and watch the Rescue Diver Video (a book and DVD package). Go to your local PADI Dive Center and Resort to enroll in the course, get your materials and start learning. Your PADI Instructor will meet with you to schedule knowledge review sessions along with your rescue exercises and scenarios.
The Scuba Gear you will use:
You’ll use your basic scuba equipment and will need a pocket mask to practice in-water resuscitation. During exercises, you’ll work with an oxygen unit, floats, marker buoys and perhaps CPR mannequins. Your PADI Instructor will explain the equipment that you need and may suggest additional gear, such as your own first aid kit, which will be useful throughout your diving career.
Stop into the shop to get advice about everything you need for your diving adventures.
Course Fee: $395.00
Course fee includes the PADI Rescue Diver E-learning course (we will issue the code), instruction, and digital certification card upon successful completion.. Students are responsible for all other gear, tanks and fills for the quarry weekend, quarry entry fee's, travel and lodging. Rental gear is available on a first come first served basis.
Learn More
The Rescue Diver course consists of 2 days of training. The first day is skill building with the final day consisting of several scenario based evaluations.
2025 Rescue Diver Course Dates
May 24/25
June 21/22
July 19/20
Aug 23/24
Sept 20/21
Oct 11/12
All dates are being held at Lake Phoenix
PADI Specialty courses
AWARE Coral Reef Conservation
This course helps you appreciate the complexity of coral reef habitats and teaches how you can help conserve these vital systems.
AWARE Fish Identification
Enjoy dives even more when you can recognize and identify fish families and their characteristics.
Boat Diver
Cavern Diver
This course helps you expand your knowledge about boats from small inflatables to large liveaboards. You'll gain experience scuba diving by completing two dives from a boat.
Cavern Diver
Digital Underwater Photography
Cavern Diver
Gain the knowledge and skills to explore caverns correctly and safely. This course guides you to enter far enough for adventure, but stay within the light zone for an easy exit to open water.
Deep Diver
Digital Underwater Photography
Digital Underwater Photography
Explore deeper dive sites with confidence at depths down to 40 metres/130 ft. Learn to manage your gas supply, go over buddy contact procedures, and buoyancy control.
Digital Underwater Photography
Digital Underwater Photography
Digital Underwater Photography
The most popular diving specialties course. It’s easy and fun to capture images of your underwater scuba adventures.
Diver Propulsion Vehilce
Diver Propulsion Vehilce
Diver Propulsion Vehilce
Propel your way through the water and glide over reefs, buzz around a large wreck or weave through a kelp forest. You must be at least 12 years old and a PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver or higher.
Drift Diving
Diver Propulsion Vehilce
Diver Propulsion Vehilce
Drift diving can be relaxing and exhilarating. The course teaches you how to enjoy going with the flow as you scuba dive down rivers and use ocean currents to glide along.
Dive Against Debris
Diver Propulsion Vehilce
Pay the ocean forward by helping clean it up on your next dive. Learn about the problems of marine debris, conducting Dive Against Debris surveys, and how divers are a part of the solution to keeping our oceans clean.
Emergency Oxygen Provider
Immediately recognize scuba diving illnesses treatable with emergency oxygen and be prepared to offer aid. There are no prerequisites or age restrictions. This course is open to everyone.
Drysuit Diver
Equipment Specialist
Becoming a dry suit diver allows you to expand your boundaries and dive more places, more often. This suit seals you off from the water and keeps you comfortable, even in surprisingly cold water.
Equipment Specialist
Equipment Specialist
Learn to manage basic scuba diving equipment repairs and adjustments. Understand routine care and maintenance procedures and how dive gear works.
Enriched Air "Nitrox"
The most popular PADI specialty course. Scuba diving with enriched air nitrox gives you more no decompression time, especially on repetitive scuba dives.
Full Face Mask Diver
Diving with a full face mask allows you to breathe from your nose and mouth, and provides added comfort in colder water. The mask can also be fitted with communication gear, which can be useful for various types of specialty diving.
Night Diver
The underwater world changes as day creatures retire & nocturnal organisms emerge. If you've wondered what happens underwater after the sun goes down, enroll in the PADI Night Diver Specialty course.
Peak Performance Buoyancy
Observe aquatic life without disturbing their surroundings. Improve the buoyancy skills you learned as a new diver and elevate them to the next level.
Project AWARE Specialist
Uniting scuba divers and water enthusiasts to make a difference. By earning this certification, you’ll learn how you can make a difference for ocean protection every time you dive or travel.
Public Safety Diver
Work with local authorities, be part of a rescue team and, quite possibly, assist in underwater criminal investigations.
Self Reliant Diver
Search and Recovery Diver
Search and Recovery Diver
Although diving with a buddy is the norm, there are reasons for an experienced diver to develop self-reliance and independence while diving. Learning to carry out dives without a partner can make you a stronger diver in most dive situations.
Search and Recovery Diver
Search and Recovery Diver
Search and Recovery Diver
Retrieve lost items that have fallen overboard or over a dock. Learn effective swimming patterns and using a lift bag for heavy objects.
Sidemount Diver
Search and Recovery Diver
A sidemount configuration (scuba tanks alongside of the diver) offers more flexibility and better steamlining options. Learn about the many benefits of diving with a sidemount configuration.
Underwater Navigator
Fine-tune your underwater observation skills and learn to use your compass more accurately. This course may count towards college credit, ask your instructor.
Underwater Videographer
Capture the sights, sounds, and the dynamic motion of the underwater world as a videographer. Cover the fundamentals and create interesting, entertaining video worth watching again and again.
Wreck Diver
Ships, airplanes and even cars are fascinating to explore and usually teem with aquatic life. Each wreck dive offers a chance for a new discovery.
PADI Public Safety diver course
PADI Public Safety Diver Course
Who Should Take this Course?
If you have the opportunity to work with local authorities and be part of a scuba diving rescue team, or conduct search and recovery dives, and maybe even underwater criminal investigations, this is the course for you. Although public safety diving can be a fun and exciting adventure, it’s serious and requires special training. The PADI Public Safety Diver Specialty course gives you a solid foundation to build upon and teaches you both surface and underwater skills that you may need on the job.
Who Should Take this Course Diver course, you must be certified as a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver and at least 18 years old. You will also earn your PADI Rescue Diver certification by the end of the course which is included in the course fee.
What will you learn?
You’ll be introduced to the special procedures, equipment, scene handling, communications and documentation requirements for a public safety diving operation. During four open water dives you’ll practice compass navigation, knot tying, arc search techniques, victim recovery, rope-pull communications and rescue techniques for a distressed public safety diver, plus plenty more.
How can you start learning now?
Visit Southern Maryland Divers LLC and get your PADI Public Safety Diver Manual to read before class. Also, see if there is a Public Safety Diver Workshop scheduled in your local area.
Course Fee: $695.00
**We need a minimum of (4) students to hold this class locally. To travel to your site within the Maryland, Virginia, DC, Pennsylvania, and Delaware area, we need a minimum of (6) students**
Public Safety Diver using tether for search patterns