1) For the 4th consecutive year we've partnered with PADI's Project Aware and the University of Queensland to integrate our 4-week PADI Divemaster internship with the PADI Project Aware Coral Watch program. You'll learn to assess the condition of corals, record their health, and upload the data to a scientific database. This valuable program will improve your understanding of coral reefs and you'll make a valuable contribution to the Coral Watch program and to the international understanding of the condition of reef systems in the Caribbean. For more information please read this page on PADI Project Aware Coral Watch program and see how we're the worlds top contributors of data!

4) As a PADI/IANTD technical diving facility, the Utila Dive Centre runs monthly technical diving courses.  You'll get the opportunity to be trained as a DSAT Tec Support diver, learn about the logistics of technical dive mission, and provide valuable support and assistance to our technical diving Instructors and students. We're the only facility in the Bay Islands with an approved Tec Support diver specialty and Sidemount specialty (we wrote the courses)!  We also run monthly 'Discover Tec' workshops where we bring out the toys, so you get to try out double manifolded tanks, sidemount configurations and if available our rebreather units.

5) We're also offering International Yacht Training programs that can be taken concurrently and in conjunction with our Divemaster internships.  The IYT/PADI Dive Boat Mate is being offered and scheduled in conjunction with our PADI Divemaster internship, and we will be offering training all year round and e-learning is best completed independently prior to arriving on Utila and supported with our Instructors remedial training. The IYT Dive Boat Mate course allows our PADI pro's to start tendering and driving boats as second command, logging sea time and once an individual has completed 180 days (4 hours = 1 day) of sea time, as dive boat crew, they are eligible to take the IYT Coxswain Boat Captains course, which we also offer at Utila Dive Centre. 

Please see the following section for more information on the IYT training and courses offered at Utila Dive Centre.

 6) Start the Divemaster course today with online learning and dive theory online and complete all academics prior to arriving on Utila!

Unique to Utila Dive Centre in 2013

Book a Beautiful Oceans Coral Reef Guardian or Science Instructor course with our PADI Divemaster or Instructor training and receive immediate online access to the Beautiful Oceans e-academy. This allows you to make the most productive and constructive use of your time prior to arriving at Utila Dive Centre and you'll get online access to the Beautiful Oceans state-of-the-art online course material, videos, quizzes and exams. You'll rapidly improve your knowledge of the Caribbean coral reef ecosystem, its architecture and and the food web. You'll arrive on the island of Utila, Honduras with an intimate knowledge and scientific understanding of the environment where you'll soon be working as a dive professional.

Whilst studying online, our staff will be able to guide you through the materials and grade your assignments. Upon arrival you will immediately complete your Science Instructor Examination, and then we'll then take you out to our amazing coral reefs so you can apply in-water what you learned during the course, apply techniques of guided educational dives, and immediately enhance your enjoyment of coral reefs. There's no better way to start your training and education. No need to count down the days till you join us, just contact us today to see how you can get the best start to your dive education and training in the Caribbean!  

Our Reputation and Record

Utila Dive Centre (UDC) was set up in 1990 by a group of passionate Diving Instructors who wanted to create a dive training facility which offered amazing dive experiences and educational programs for visitors to Utila, and to conduct a high standard professional internship program that would lead to Instructor training. Since then Utila Dive Centre has grown to become the most awarded and the Premier PADI Career Development Center in the Caribbean and Central America, with a beautiful hotel the Mango Inn complete with swimming pool. Utila Dive Centre has probably trained more divers than any other dive facility in the Bay Islands and Caribbean. Utila Dive Centre works closely with Divers Alert Network, Project Aware, Beautiful Oceans, and the local Utila Centre for Marine Ecology to improve and educate divers about safety. 

2013 sees UDC entering its 22nd year of training dive professionals. In 2012, more divers chose to conduct their training with us than any other facility in the Bay Islands and Central America. We take this as a tribute to the high quality of our staff and facility and their much deserved reputation. The fact that 80% of our DMT and Instructor candidates are referred to us by 'word of mouth' shows the commitment, comfort and quality that we put into our professional courses.

When you train at Utila Dive Centre you'll receive continued assistance and support through our global network of dive professional and also have an open door to coming back with us and diving 'free of charge' for life!

Our Facility

Our 4 classrooms are all modern, air-conditioned and equipped with the latest multi-media presentations. We have 4 fully equipped dive boats, 24 hour back up power generator, Bauer compressors with 8000cubic ft air bank, 60 sets of ScubaPro rental equipment, private locker rooms, quiet study areas. We are the only full service, multi-range dive retail outlet on Utila with a beautiful dock area constructed over the water with social amenities. We have both a swimming pool for all year training sessions and also a white sands 'beach area' lined with palm trees which will prepare you best for when you yourself come to supervise diving in exactly this same kind of environment. 

Our curriculum

There are 2 options for completing your training with us, Option A, 'Practical training exercises' and Option B, 'Internship'. Option A is for candidates who start the program with at least 50 dives but have time constraints so the program can be completed in approximately 12 days (however, obtaining the manuals and independent study is required prior to arriving on Utila and starting the course). Option B, 'Internship' is for candidates who have more time available as we schedule this option over a minimum of 4 weeks (though we can extend for as long as you like) and include a pre-week of diving and coral reef surveying to get you to the necessary number of dives required to start the course.

As part of the internship, you'll be assisting our experienced team of Instructors as they conduct training programs with student divers. We'll provide Instructor-led class sessions to help you assimilate the most from your independent study - if Physics sounds like a foreign language, then you'll soon become multi-lingual thanks to the expert tuition of our staff! You'll also get experience working as a dive guide by guiding certified divers on our dive trips to Utila's famous North Side dive sites. We train all of our trainees as if they plan to go on to become Instructors. As part of the service we provide to our candidates, you'll be offered specialty training in areas of diving where you have accumulated additional experience, e.g. Fish Identification, deep diving, equipment maintenance, etc…

Our facility also has a full service retail outlet with special equipment packages for our trainees, and we have the latest courses in marine biology, digital photography, emergency oxygen administration, and 'diver propulsion vehicles'. 

Our 'Instructor Team'

If you've been impressed with what you've read about our program and dive centre so far, then what you're about to read will really make you smile and look forward to training with us. Though PADI requires that an Instructor holds the bare minimum rating of 'Open Water Scuba Instructor' in order to train Divemasters, at Utila Dive Centre our Instructors have to be at least an 'IDC Staff Instructor' in order to train a Divemaster. This means your tuition will come from Instructors that train Instructors and Assistant Instructors. Our staff have received recognition from PADI for their teaching efforts and numerous 'certificates of excellence' (which you'll see on display as soon as you walk into our dive center), and between them have to date issued over 5000 PADI diver certifications at all levels. Our 2 resident in-house PADI Course Directors (the highest Instructor rating) personally oversee all of our professional training programs and closely work with our Instructor team in a dynamic fashion, so our courses are constantly evolving and improving, the end result being a better trained dive professional. Our Instructors and support team are multi-lingual and come from cultures as countries and cultures as diverse as the USA, Argentina, the UK, Honduras, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland and Israel, with world-wide diving experience. This gives us a unique advantage in making our internships much more real-world, rather than boring you with too much traditional academics and allows you to draw and learn from years of diverse teaching experience. Our Instructors are also qualified to teach both recreational and technical diving up to 'Trimix Instructor' (including DSAT Gas Blending), and marine science courses through the educational agency 'Beautiful Oceans' and the full range of 'Divers Alert Network' programs. No other dive facility in Central America can offer this commitment to your success, personal attention and development! When our staff aren't working on our programs or instructing beginners, they are diving on Utila's reefs (both shallow and deep technical dives), working on community projects, promoting diver safety or simply enjoying the quality, beauty and tranquility of working as a dive professional and enjoying the Caribbean lifestyle. If our dive professionals were told they weren't going to be paid for their work, they would still place as much commitment and time into making you the best Instructor possible. Why? Simply because we love what we do and our passion for diving is genuine and real. Just make sure we all get a cold 'sunset beer' at the end of a good days diving!

Utila Dive Centre's Commitment to You after your course

Our commitment to you doesn't end at the end of the course. If you are staying on Utila looking to find work, we will do our best to help you. Our staff and facility have a high standing in the dive community of the Bay Islands and can try to find you suitable work. After you are certified you are welcome to stay with us for as long as your time frame allows, You can assist our Instructors and certified divers in their dive experiences, giving you valuable experience. This experience and a work reference from our PADI Career Development Center and 5 star resort will make it easier for you to find your own position. If you plan on traveling to other dive resorts in the world, then it's possible our Course Director and IDC Staff Instructors, through their own experience of working all around the world, can help and counsel you on teaching in differing environments and help guide you in the right direction to secure employment. As part of our commitment to you, we send regular newsletters keeping you informed of changes on Utila and, most importantly, you become part of a professional network that have all trained at Utila Dive Centre. You'll also receive the popular 'Global Dive Network/TrekCATS' card that entitles you to reduced rate diving at our preferred partners in Central America, the Red Sea, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia.

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