# Get scuba certified (PADI Open Water Diver)

> Finish PADI eLearning, five confined-water sessions and four open-water dives with a dive centre, and hold a lifetime certification to dive to 18 metres worldwide.

- **Section:** Licences & certifications · **Region:** Global · **Difficulty:** medium
- **Time:** 3–5 days intensive, or 2–4 weekends · 12–15 hours of eLearning beforehand
- **Cost:** $400–$700 typical in the US; often less in tropical destinations; eLearning about $236 of that
- **You end up with:** A PADI Open Water Diver certification card, recognised worldwide and valid for life
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-09-05 · **Canonical:** https://for.do/p/padi-open-water-diver/

## Before you start

- Age 10+ (Junior Open Water until 15; full Open Water from 15)
- Able to swim 200 m unassisted (or 300 m with mask, fins and snorkel) and float or tread water for 10 minutes
- The PADI medical questionnaire completed; a doctor's sign-off if you answer yes to any condition

Open Water Diver is the certification every dive shop on earth asks for. The course is three parts — knowledge development, confined water (pool) skills, and four open-water dives — and the fastest way through it is to do the first part online before you go anywhere near a dive centre.

## 1. Check the medical and swim requirements

- [ ] Fill in the PADI diver medical questionnaire honestly. Any "yes" needs a physician's clearance before in-water training.
- [ ] Make sure you can swim 200 m continuously and float or tread water for 10 minutes. There is no time limit on the swim, but it has to be completed.

## 2. Choose a dive centre and course format

- [ ] Options: a 3–5 day intensive at a dive destination, a weekend-based course at home, or a "referral" — theory and pool at home, open-water dives on holiday.
- [ ] Ask what the price includes: eLearning, gear rental, boat fees, certification card. Quotes differ mainly on what is left out.
- [ ] Check the instructor-to-student ratio for the open-water dives; smaller is safer and calmer.

## 3. Complete PADI eLearning

- [ ] Buy the PADI Open Water eLearning (about $236) or have the dive centre include it.
- [ ] Work through the five sections and pass each knowledge review and the final exam. Budget 12–15 hours.
- [ ] Bring the completion record to the dive centre; it is the entry ticket to the pool.

## 4. Confined-water (pool) sessions

- [ ] Five sessions of skills: mask clearing, regulator recovery, buoyancy control, emergency ascents, buddy checks.
- [ ] Practise until each skill is calm, not merely completed; the same skills are repeated in open water.

## 5. The four open-water dives

- [ ] Dives 1–2 are shallow and skill-focused; dives 3–4 go deeper (to 18 m) with navigation and buoyancy.
- [ ] Log each dive with depth, time and conditions; your logbook starts here.
- [ ] Plan the last dive so there are at least 18 hours before any flight.

## 6. Get the card and keep the skills fresh

- [ ] The instructor submits your certification; the eCard appears in the PADI app within days and a physical card follows if ordered.
- [ ] Dive again within six months, or take a ReActivate refresher before your next trip.

## Where people get this wrong

- Booking the dives before finishing eLearning. Dive centres will not put you in the water until the knowledge development and quizzes are complete; do the 12–15 hours at home first.
- Ignoring the medical form. Asthma, ear or sinus surgery, certain medications and recent decompression all require a physician's signature; turning up without it forfeits the booking.
- Diving and flying too close together. Wait at least 18 hours after multiple dives before flying; plan the last dive day accordingly.
- Treating the referral option as a loophole. You can do the theory and pool at home and the four open-water dives abroad, but the referral paperwork expires after 12 months.

## Questions

**How deep can I go afterwards?**  
The Open Water certification is to 18 m (60 ft). The Advanced Open Water course extends that to 30 m.

**Does it expire?**  
No. PADI certifications are for life, but most operators want you to have dived within the last 6–12 months or take a short refresher (ReActivate).

**PADI, SSI or NAUI?**  
All are recognised worldwide and the skills are the same. PADI has the most dive centres; choose the centre you trust rather than the agency.

## Tools used

- [PADI eLearning](https://find.do/t/padi-elearning/) — The knowledge-development part of Open Water Diver, online before the pool.

## Sources

- [PADI — Open Water Diver course](https://store.padi.com/en-us/courses/open-water-diver/p/60462-1B2C/)
- [PADI blog — certification rules and requirements FAQ](https://blog.padi.com/padi-certification-rules/)