PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) is the world's largest recreational diving membership organisation. The membership includes dive businesses, resort facilities, academic institutions, instructor trainers, dive educators, divers, snorkellers and other watersports enthusiasts.
Professional PADI Members (dive centres, resorts, educational facilities, instructors, assistant instructors and divemasters) teach the vast majority of the world's recreational divers, issuing nearly 946,000 certifications each year.
PADI Professionals make underwater exploration and adventure accessible to the public while maintaining the highest industry standards for dive training, safety and customer service.
PADI is international in scope with service offices in Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Japan, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. PADI Worldwide (corporate headquarters) is located in California, United States.
PADI Offices serve more than 100,000 individual professional members and more than 4300 dive centres and resorts in more than 175 countries. To serve the needs of divers worldwide, translations of PADI materials are available in more than 20 languages.
When students successfully complete PADI courses, they receive positive identification certification cards that identify them as PADI Divers.
The PADI System of diver education is based on state of the art instructional system design theory, and progressive training that introduces skills, safety related information and local environmental knowledge to students in stages.
PADI courses are student-centred and provide for maximum practice and application. Students learn the basics through independent study and then are guided through additional development by their instructors. The goal is to get students in the water as soon as possible and provide them with the instruction necessary to gain confidence in their diving abilities.
