Want to learn to dive? BSAC Ocean Diver is the place to start. As a member of OUUEG, we offer several opportunities to get your entry-level diving qualification. UK-based training tends to happen in Hilary term, so that you’re ready just in time for the warm summer waters! We either run this ourselves directly, or with the help of the BSAC regional team, dependent on demand. If you’re not tempted by UK waters, we regularly run international trips in both the Michaelmas and Summer Vac - most of which give you the opportunity to get qualified with all the comforts of a balmy tropical holiday to go along with it!

If you’re interested in doing a course with us, ask on our whatsapp, or get in contact with our training officer, and we’ll get you sorted!

Course fees

As we are a volunteer run club, you only pay the direct costs of training, plus a small (usually around ~£10) charge to keep the club running. This allows us to offer you training for a far lower cost than almost anywhere else. It also means that prices will fluctuate a little, dependent on current costs of things like fuel, gas refills and dive site admission. The total cost of training often comes in to around £300, which is usually comprised of:

  • E-Learning materials
  • Gas refills
  • Transport and entry to dive sites
  • Pool Fees
  • Equipment running costs

Training Schedule

The course begins with a series of e-learning lessons to teach you the theory of diving. We often also run theory lectures in Michaelmas or Hilary - these are a more social way to learn, and are often more hands-on than the lectures you’re used to! BSAC also charges less for theory-lecture packs than e-learning, which means we can offer the training for an even lower price! Following this you sit a short multi-choice theory test, to make sure you haven’t forgotten the most important bits!

After that, you’ll then take part in five sheltered-water pool dives, where you’ll be taught the basic skills, and start to get more comfortable in the underwater environment. Here you’ll learn how to set up and use your equipment, and get practice in helping your dive-buddy navigate theirs. Once you’re comfortable with that, we move out into open-water sessions, which often take place in a lake or flooded quarry - these give you a taste of what diving can be like in the UK and often have a variety of both wrecks and aquatic life for you to explore!

Once you’ve completed these sessions, you can officially call yourself an Ocean Diver! Your qualification will be recorded on the BSAC system, and you can even ask for a card showing your certification if you like!

What Next?

Once you’re Ocean Diver qualified, you’ll be able to join us on any of our dive trips, and will be certified to a maximum depth of 20 metres. This allows you to experience much of the marine life the UK has to offer, as well as explore a wide range of sites, both inland and offshore. You’ll be able to come along on our boat trips, where we explore shipwrecks from a range of time periods out in the English Channel, and, since your certification is internationally recognised, you’ll even be able to dive on holiday as well!

However, as we get towards the colder months here in the UK, many divers find themselves most comfortable with extra thermal protection. This is where the drysuit comes in. Not only does it allow you to enjoy diving in colder waters, the drysuit is also preferred by many divers as it allows for finer buoyancy control, and prevents you from getting chilly between dives. Most of our Ocean Divers do their open water sessions in a drysuit, and so we often offer it as an additional qualification towards the end of the course. This is also open to already qualified divers who want to start exploring UK waters!

As you start diving more, you might encounter other divers using specialised equipment, like the DSMB. You might also find that the 20 metre depth limit becomes a little restrictive for exploring deeper wrecks. Or you might even be interested in progressing your diving career towards becoming an instructor, or a more engaged member of the club. If that sounds like you, your next step should be to look at the Sports Diver course, which teaches you how to use a range of more advanced equipment, allows you to dive up to 40 metres depth, and is a necessary prerequisite for becoming an instructor!