PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor Courses (IDC) London and South East

PADI Diving Instructor Development Course (IDC) at
Our Multi-Award Winning 5-Star IDC Dive Centre

Our professional PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor diving course opens up a whole new world of exciting opportunities. As a PADI instructor, you can live the dream and work in the worlds ‘prettiest office’ including warm and tropical destinations like the Caribbean, Thailand, Maldives, or Great Barrier Reef.

Many of our instructors choose to supplement their income by doing something they love which helps to pay for trips to places they might not normally be able to afford.

For most instructors and the greatest reward is the look of joy when they first introduce a student to the underwater world and seeing their eyes light up.

As a PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Diving Centre, we are one of the few scuba diving centres in London and the South East area that can offer the PADI Instructor Development Course.
Our focus is on providing interactive courses and workshops that prepare instructors for the real world of teaching, and truly make you a professional instructor.

dive awards
Dive centre of the year
PADI Open Water Instructor Courses

Why Become a Professional Diving Instructor with Oyster Diving?

Networking: As the UK’s largest PADI centre we have personal contacts with centres and other instructors around the work that we can put you in touch with.

Qualified, experienced, friendly and fun Course Director with a fantastic pass record.

Emergency First Response Instructor Training included in the course

23 Specialty Instructor Courses to choose from once you have completed your I.E.

Use of exclusive lake

Choice of 6 pools to practice in

Support from the UK’s premier PADI Scuba Diving and Travel Centre

The chance to work in one of the UK’s biggest and best dive centres after your course.

2025 AI/IDC DatesInstructor Exam Date
28th February to 6th March8-9th March
11th to 17th July19-20th July
29th August to 4th September6-7th September
21st to 27th November29-30th November
PADI Divemaster and Instructor Courses

Welcome to the PADI Diving Instructor Course

All the instructor course training we provide is tailored to each individual to ensure everyone receives the lessons in a way that is most beneficial to them. The PADI Instructor Development Course lasts 8 days and gets you prepared for the Instructor Exam (IE).

Meet our Course Director

Mark Taylor

Mark is a PADI Course Director and an Elite instructor who has a wealth of experience teaching students and leading professionals. Over his career he has had the pleasure of taking many students from Discover Scuba Divers, and see them progress with amazing results through to PADI Instructors and even PADI Course Directors.

He has dived all over the world, including Egypt, Mauritius, Costa Rica and Mexico, but still loves diving in the UK the most.

Mark has a background in IT which has enabled him to work with IDC Candidates to understand all the various PADI digital tools, but also give them useful insights into website design, SEO and CRM tools.
Mark is also a Power Boat Instructor and Scuba equipment technician, so is able to provide a comprehensive insight into the dive industry which when used in conjunction with his global network of various dive centres, gives IDC candidates the best chance of successful job placement.

You Will Learn to Become a Competent PADI Instructor

  • Complete the full skill circuit of 24 basic scuba skills
  • Deliver presentations on parts of dive theory from the courses you’ll be qualified to teach
  • Give teaching presentations in confined water working with simulated students
  • Give teaching presentations in open water combining multiple skills with simulated students
  • Give a demonstration of a complete rescue scenario
  • Complete various workshops in the following areas: DSDs and Scuba Reviews, Adventures in Diving, Rescue and Marketing
  • Attend presentations on key areas of being a dive professional from the structure of individual courses to risk management and the business of diving

Pre-requisites

In order to enroll in the PADI Instructor Development Course, you must meet the following prerequisites:

  • Be a PADI Divemaster or an instructor member in good standing (renewed or eligible to renew) with another recognised recreational diver training organisation, or have a leadership-level certification in good standing (renewed or eligible to renew) with another recognised recreational diver training organisation; 60 logged dives; documented experience in night diving, deep diving and underwater navigation.
  • Be a minimum of 18 years old
  • Medical clearance attesting to dive fitness signed by a physician within the previous 12 months, and have had no medical condition changes.
  • Certified diver for at least six months.
  • Completed the EFR Primary and Secondary Care course, or other qualifying training, within the last 24 months.
  • Documentation of any non-PADI qualifying entry-level, advanced, rescue and leadership-level certifications as required.

Prices

Standard Package

Full AI and IDC Course
EFR Instructor Training
IDC Crewpack and online learning
EFR Instructor Materials
EFR Instructor Training
£2,250





Master Scuba Diver Trainer Luxury Package



Above plus MSDT Package comprises 5 instructor specialties – O2 Provider, Nitrox, Dry Suit, Wreck and SMB.
Internship to gain 25 certifications team teaching with an experienced Instructor with Oyster Diving
£2,750
PADI fees payable directly to PADI
PADI IDC Application Fee
PADI UK IE fee
PADI EFR Instructor application fee
PADI Spec Instructor fee CD Trained (per spec)

£211.20
£738.00
£132.00
£49.20 each

As a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor you’ll be able to teach

  • PADI Scuba Diver/Open Water Diver
  • PADI Adventure Diver/Advanced Open Water Diver
  • PADI Rescue Diver
  • PADI Divemaster
  • PADI Junior Divemaster
  • PADI Advanced Snorkeler (Skin Diver)
  • PADI Discover Scuba Diving
  • PADI Seal Team and Bubblemaker
  • PADI ReActivate and Discover Local Diving
  • PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy
  • PADI AWARE Specialty
  • AWARE Coral Reef Conservation

EFR Instructor Training is Included

At Oyster Diving, we are passionate about ensuring every person we train through our instructor diving course is as prepared as possible for any diving eventuality. That’s why we provide free Emergency First Response (EFR) training as part of our instructor training course.

Emergency First Response training teaches first aid for both adults and children, emergency oxygen use, and how to use Automated External Defibrillators (AED). The techniques and principles our instructors teach on this cause are the same used by medical professionals, but in a way that is accessible to everyone.

Do You Want a Diving Job? Our Instructor Courses Can Help

Once qualified as a PADI Instructor, you will be able to teach Open Water, Advanced Open Water, Emergency First Response, Rescue Diver and Divemaster Courses. Whether you wish to teach in the Maldives, the UK, the Great Barrier Reef, or Iceland, you can expect to get paid for the work that you do. As a PADI member, you will also have access to their dedicated website which includes dive centres for sale and dive centres looking to recruit instructors. Once you’ve qualified as an instructor, the world really is your Oyster!