DIVE HAPPY

Looking for work as a Divemaster or Scuba Instructor? Divehappy gives a quick rundown of where to look on the Web for jobs and how to beat the fierce competition'

For anyone who's bitten by the scuba bug, the idea of getting a dive job comes up pretty fast as the best way to dive frequently and earn some cash too. Even though scuba divers in general tend to be pretty tech savvy and all over the Internet, there's surprisingly few decent sites about scuba diving jobs. This is in part because many jobs in the dive industry get filled by word of mouth rather than emailing a resume - but looking to the job boards is still a great way to find employment opportunities in far flung climes.

The two sites I've found the most consistently useful for scuba diving job posts are PADI's own members' job board and the self explanatory DiversJobs.com. There's quite a bit of duplication between the two sites, but both are worth continually monitoring.

To gain access to the PADI job boards, you need to have completed your PADI Divemaster course and got your PADI Number. This lets you register on the PADI site and access the boards for free.

Unsurprisingly, competition for scuba diving jobs is fierce - everyone wants to make a living out of diving, and secondary, non-dive skills tend to be the clincher for winning many positions. Foreign language skills besides English top the list, with German and Swedish the most sought after. Boat handling skills - with a certificate to show proficiency - are often required too. Chef experience is also required by some companies who run liveaboards, although you need to be careful and ensure you will be diving as well as cooking.

Sales skills will get you a lot of attention, as every dive operator is always looking for ways to bring in customers - if you're happy to get more people through the door, you'll be welcomed with open arms. The team player mentality is key to working with a lot of dive shops - they operate on tiny profit margins, so if you're just interested in diving and nothing else, they're probably not going to be interested in you. Similarly, a sunny disposition helps too, as you have to keep customers - who are often learners or novice divers - happy by giving them reassurance and boosting their self-confidence.

If you don't have any of the secondary skills listed above - besides the sunny disposition - don't despair. It's still worth sending out prospective emails to see what sort of response you get. If you can convey a "can do" attitude and an interest in helping the shop and customers as well as enjoying your diving, you're halfway there.

You can also opt for the "in person" approach and hope to find a job either while you're studying to become a pro diver or while you're backpacking once you've completed your Divemaster course. If you've yet to do your Divemaster course, take as long as you can completing it - 4 weeks or more - so you get to know the staff of the dive shop you're studying with. If they get on with you, they may well push some work your way.

If you are travelling, asking around at dive shops is always a good way to introduce yourself and maybe find some bits and pieces of work - like scuba reviews - that could lead on to other stuff. A lot of jobs are given simply on how well someone gets on with the rest of the staff rather than solely on experience or skillset. Obviously, it helps to choose an area where there are several dive shops so that you don't get turned down by the only operator for miles - so research where you want to go carefully. If you hang around in one place long enough, and keep politely reminding dive shops you exist, you will probably get some work eventually.

This is just from my own, not particularly extensive, experience of hunting round for a job here in Thailand. Since the tsunami, I've only done a little bit of pro dive guiding on my friend Joe's liveaboard in the Similan Islands, but I'm looking to get back into instructing and spend more time in the water in 2006. Hence I'm looking for a dive job too - see you on the job boards...