Further Certification

The Hoofer Scuba Club offers a variety of further scuba diving certifications including Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver, Dive Master, First Aid, Nitrox, and more! Advanced Open Water certifications are offered once during fall semester, once during spring semester, and once over the summer (see additional information below). Please contact us directly if you are interested in one of the other certifications as they are usually offered when interest is present.

We completed our Spring Semester 2023 Open Water Certification class April 29-30, 2023.

However, Fall 2023 Open Water Certification classes are being planned for September 2023. Please stay tuned for exact dates and further details.

Would you like to be able to cruise along the bottom of a lake at night guided by only the light of underwater flashlights, zip along using a diver propulsion vehicle, visit depths beyond the range of novice divers, confidently locate underwater locations during a dive, and be able to find and recover lost items from the bottom of a dive site? Want to participate in the Hoofer Scuba Wreck Diving Charters? If so, the Advanced Open Water class is for you! This class will extend your basic certification training to allow you to make new and exciting dives comfortably and safely. If you are a diver interested in developing your skills and learning more about the underwater world, sign up for an Advanced Certification class today!

Exploration, Excitement, Experiences. They’re what the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course is all about. And no, you don’t have to be “advanced” to take it – it’s designed so you can go straight into it after Open Water Certification. The Advanced Open Water Diver course helps you increase your confidence and build your scuba skills so you can become more comfortable in the water. This is a great way to get more dives under your belt while continuing to learn under the supervision of your PADI Instructor. This course builds on what you’ve learned and develops new capabilities by introducing you to new activities and new ways to have fun scuba diving. You’ll hone your skills by completing five adventure dives that introduce you to underwater navigation, deeper diving, and a sampling of three additional adventure dives that may include night diving, photography, wreck diving, diving with underwater scooters, buoyancy skills, etc.

Course participants must:

1. Be a certified Open Water Diver
2. Be a current Hoofers SCUBA club member
3. Be at least 18 years old

The $270 course fee includes a lifetime PADI AOW certification, the use of all equipment and tanks (see EQUIPMENT below), and academic instructional material, including textbooks and dive slates that participants keep for later reference.

All tanks and equipment (wetsuit, regulator, BCD, mask, fins, snorkel, weights and weight belts) are provided for use in the class. You’re welcome to bring any or all of your own equipment if you prefer. You will need to bring your dive log book. While there is no formal class for this course, the instructor will meet with the participants to hand out reading materials and give a dive briefing - typically early in the week prior to the dive weekend.

Sign-up is available online or via the Hoofers Outdoor UW Service Desk (visit the office at Lakefront at the Union, or call 608-262-1630) after announcement of course dates.