Turn Your Passion into a Profession with Our PADI Instructor Development Course With Our Multi-Award Winning 5-Star IDC Dive Centre
Ready to live the dream? Our PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) transforms passionate divers into certified pros, opening doors to adventure, travel, and a career underwater. Teach diving anywhere from the tropical reefs of Thailand and the Maldives to the Great Barrier Reef and the Caribbean.
Many of our UK-based instructors earn extra income doing what they love and fund unforgettable dive holidays along the way. But the real reward? Seeing a student’s face light up the first time they breathe underwater.
As a PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Centre in London and the South East, we offer expert-led, hands-on training that prepares you for real-world teaching, so you can start your dive career with confidence.
Why Become a Professional Diving Instructor with Oyster Diving?
Becoming a professional diving instructor with Oyster Diving means joining the UK’s leading PADI 5 Star Instructor Development Centre.
We offer world-class training, small group mentorship, and hands-on experience that sets you apart from the start.
Whether you’re looking to launch a full-time diving career or earn extra income doing what you love, our supportive team and flexible course options make it easy to turn your passion into a profession. Plus, with access to top dive locations and exclusive travel opportunities, your journey with Oyster Diving is just the beginning of a life filled with adventure.
- 5 pools to choose from
- Exclusive use of Mercers Lake
- Largest dive school in the UK
| 2025 AI/IDC Dates | Instructor Exam Date |
| Starts 28th August | 6-7th September |
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.
Instructor Course Content
- 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 Snorkeller (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!