Certifications
| Certification Name | Pre Requisites | Minimum Age | Max Depth | More Info | Certifying Dive Shops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACUC, Advanced Diver | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 2 hours (actual bottom time) ABT |
3 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Advanced Instructor | First Aid Instructor (possible corequisite) + Oxygen Instructor (possible corequisite) + Open Water Instructor (or equal rating) | 20 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 meters (130 feet) |
3 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Assistant Instructor | Divemaster, equal rating | 18 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 hours ABT |
1 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Cave Diving (exit point visible) | Advanced Diver, equal rating | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 meters (130 feet) |
1 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Deep Diving | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Divemaster | Rescue Diver or Advanced Diver with Rescue Specialty or equal rating + First Aid Provider (possible corequisite) + Oxygen Administrator (possible corequisite) | 18 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 21 hours ABT 40 meters (130 feet) |
4 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Dry Suit Diving | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Entry Level Instructor | Divemaster (or equal rating) or Assistant Instructor (or equal rating) | 19 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 41 hours ABT 40 meters (130 feet) |
2 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Equipment Maintenance | Open Water Diver or higher | 12 | 1 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, First Aid Provider | ACUC instructor with the first and instructor grading or higher | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Full Cavern Diving | Rescue Diver, equal rating | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | ||
| ACUC, Ice Diving | Rescue Diver or higher | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 meters (130 feet) |
2 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Initiation to Diving | 8 | 3 meters (10 feet) | |||
| ACUC, Instructor Trainer Evaluator Level | Advanced Instructor, Instructor Trainer | 24 | requires exclusive dedication to ACUC |
1 dive shopsView All | |
| ACUC, Instructor Trainer Level | Advanced Instructor + Reduced Visibility (Night) Instructor + Wreck (non-penetration) Diving Instructor + Underwater Orientation Instructor + 2 other Specialty Instructor ratings + First Aid Instructor + Oxygen Instructor | 22 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 1 dive shopsView All | |
| ACUC, Introduction to Diving | 12 | 10 meteres (33 feet) | 10 meteres (33 feet) |
2 dive shopsView All | |
| ACUC, Night Diving | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Open Water Diver | 12 | 25 meters (80 feet) | 25 meters (80 feet) |
4 dive shopsView All | |
| ACUC, Open Water Instructor | ACUC Divemaster or equivalent or an ACUC Entry Level Instructor or equivalent | 19 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 140 dives (70 hours bottom time) |
1 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Oxygen Provider | ACUC First Aid Provider or similar from other ACUC recognized agency | 12 | 1 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Rescue Diver | Advanced Diver, equal rating | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 12 hours ABT |
3 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Rescue Specialist | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Scuba Diver | 12 | 15 meters (50 feet) | |||
| ACUC, Surface Controller | None. Open to non-divers | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Teaching Assistant | Advanced Diver or higher | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 1 dive shopsView All | |
| ACUC, Underwater Archeology | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | |||
| ACUC, Underwater Biology | Open Water Diver | ||||
| ACUC, Underwater Guide | Rescue Diver or higher+ first aid provider + oxygen provider | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 meters (130 feet) |
1 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Underwater Navigation | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 2 dive shopsView All | ||
| ACUC, Underwater Photography | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 meters (130 feet) |
2 dive shopsView All |
| ACUC, Wreck Diving (non-penetration) | Open Water Diver, equal rating | 12 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 1 dive shopsView All | |
| ACUC, Wreck Diving (penetration) | Advanced Diver, equal rating | 16 | 40 meters (130 feet) | 40 meters (130 feet) |
3 dive shopsView All |
Your diving journey always starts with your diver certification. Diving is an immensely fun activity but needs to be done correctly as it can be very dangerous when done irresponsibly. Finding the right training for the diving activity that you intend to partake can be a challenging task.
There are a number of Diver certification bodies with hundreds of different courses offered; these courses are interrelated through a system of prerequisites and requirements such as age, experience and other factors. Through manual research we have compiled a unified database of all certifications & qualifications offered by the major bodies with notes, prerequisites and age requirements for each one.
The database below should provide some insight to the path that a diver can take in attaining the perfect mix of training necessary for the conditions and activities that he/she desires to partake in.