Standard Career Package
Approximate Course Duration: 9 weeks
Inshore and Offshore Diving
Our Standard Career Package qualifies you as a commercial diver for both inshore and offshore work in all standards of air diving equipment. It is designed to teach you the skills to be a commercial diver competent in the use of SCUBA, Surface Supplied and Surface Supplied (Top Up) techniques.
HSE First Aid at Work
The first week of the course covers the vital first aid and safety aspects of diving. It is essential that a professional diver has an understanding of anatomy and physiology, diving illness, physics and the principles of decompression before going underwater. During this week you will also sit a First Aid exam before commencing diving. Read more information on the HSE First Aid at Work course here.
HSE Surface Supplied
This is followed by the four week HSE Surface Supplied Course, which includes 24 dives up to a maximum depth of 50m (160ft) and will include a deep dive in one of our three surface decompression chambers. For full details on this part of the course, click here.
HSE Surface Supplied (Top Up)
After completing the surface supplied part of the course, you will then move on to the one week HSE Surface Supplied (Top Up) Course (also know as wet bell), which is essential for working offshore. Again, the focus of training is on the safety procedures required for diving from a wet bell, including bell rescues and loss of gas or communications. During this one week course you will complete at least 8 dives to a depth of 21m (70ft). You will also learn how to use a hot water suit to keep you warm during your dive. To read more about the top up course, click here.
HSE SCUBA
The final three weeks of the course cover HSE SCUBA techniques, which includes 24 dives to a depth of 30m (100ft) and teaches you how to use various types of masks, including traditional half mask and demand valve methods. Full details of the HSE SCUBA course can be found here.
In all, the Standard Career Package will provide you with over 50 separate dives, providing you with experience which is vital for your new career.
Assessments
Throughout the Standard Career Package you will be assessed on your practical abilities as well as completing both written and multiple choice exams. Assistance will be given to those not used to written examinations and you are permitted two attempts at each exam.
Commercial Diving Equipment
The Standard Career Package includes:
- All course books;
- Use of drysuit, woolly bear, neoprene undersuit for under the hot water suits; work gloves; diving knife; neoprene hood and hard hat;
- Submission to the HSE of Competency Assessment.
At the end of your course, you will have the following to take away with you:
- Overalls;
- Professional divers logbook;
- Underwater Centre commercial diving t-shirt.
Our Location
The Underwater Centre is uniquely based on the shores of Loch Linnhe, a sheltered seawater loch with tides and varying visibility. At the foot of our private pier, on the loch bed, there are a range of subsea structures for you to train with. You will dive from either the pier or from one of our purpose built barges and learn diving and inspection techniques with our seabed structures, such as our simulated oil platform leg, a number of wrecks, NDT structure, a section of pipeline or subsea welding station.
To read more about our unique facilities and why they really are the best in the world, click here, and to view footage taken by our ROV pilot technicians in training, filming commercial divers in training click here.
Certificates Gained
The various certificates you will gain when you complete the Standard Career Package are:
- HSE First Aid at Work
- HSE Surface Supplied
- HSE Surface Supplied (Top Up)
- HSE SCUBA
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