After Open Water: Advanced, Rescue and Specialty Scuba Courses Explained
Open Water is your first step, not the finish line. Here's how the next levels work, which courses are genuinely useful, and a sensible order to take them in.
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Once you're certified, you can simply go diving and build experience. That's a perfectly good choice. But continuing education courses are the fastest way to become a more confident, capable diver and to unlock deeper sites, wrecks and night dives. Here's the typical progression.
The typical course ladder
| Level | Prerequisite | Duration | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Water Diver | None | 3–4 days | Dive to 18 m with a buddy |
| Advanced Open Water | Open Water | 2 days (5 dives) | Dive to 30 m; broader experience |
| Specialties (nitrox, deep, wreck…) | Open Water (some need Advanced) | 1–2 days each | Specific skills and environments |
| Rescue Diver | Advanced + first aid/CPR | 2–3 days | Prevent and manage emergencies |
| Master Scuba Diver (PADI) / Master Diver (SSI) | Rescue + 5 specialties + 50 dives | Recognition rating | Highest recreational non-pro level |
| Divemaster | Rescue + 40 dives (60 to certify) | 2–8 weeks | First professional level |
Advanced Open Water Diver
Despite the name, the Advanced course isn't about being an expert. It's about gaining experience under supervision. You make five adventure dives, two of which are mandatory:
- Deep dive (to 30 m): you'll experience how depth affects air consumption, colours and nitrogen narcosis.
- Underwater navigation: compass use and natural navigation, so you can find your way back to the boat or shore.
You then choose three more from options such as peak performance buoyancy, night, wreck, drift, fish identification, boat, search and recovery, or underwater photography. Each adventure dive can often count as the first dive of the full specialty course.
Many divers do Advanced straight after Open Water, and that's fine. Doing 10–20 fun dives first often makes it more rewarding, though, because you'll be relaxed enough to learn instead of just coping.
Useful specialty courses for new divers
Enriched Air Nitrox
The world's most popular specialty. Nitrox (commonly 32% oxygen) reduces nitrogen absorption, giving you longer no-decompression limits at typical recreational depths (especially 18–30 m) and shorter surface intervals. You learn to analyse your gas, set your computer and respect the Maximum Operating Depth (MOD). It's often mostly theory, needs no dives in many agencies, and is ideal for liveaboards with four dives a day. Minimum age is usually 12.
Peak Performance Buoyancy / Perfect Buoyancy
If you only take one skill course, take this. Excellent buoyancy saves air, protects reefs, improves photos and makes diving feel effortless.
Night Diver
Reefs change completely after dark: hunting moray eels, sleeping parrotfish, octopus, bioluminescent plankton. You'll learn torch signals and navigation. See types of dives.
Wreck Diver
Covers wreck hazards, mapping and limited penetration with a guideline, in the "light zone" and within recreational limits. Essential for places like the Red Sea's SS Thistlegorm or Cyprus's Zenobia.
Deep Diver
Extends your depth limit to 40 m, the recreational maximum. It covers gas planning, narcosis management and emergency decompression procedures.
Drift Diver
Very useful for destinations with currents, such as Cozumel, the Maldives and Komodo. It teaches group descents, surface signalling and SMB deployment.
Other popular options
- Underwater photography/videography. See our underwater photography guide.
- Dry suit: essential for cold-water diving.
- Sidemount: tanks carried at your sides, comfortable and popular for travel and cenotes.
- Cavern diver: introduction to overhead environments within the daylight zone (not cave diving).
- Self-reliant / solo diver: only for very experienced divers.
Rescue Diver: the course most divers love
Ask experienced divers which course changed them most, and many will say Rescue. It shifts your focus from yourself to others. You'll learn to recognise stress in other divers, respond to panicked or unresponsive divers, perform in-water rescue breaths, organise an emergency response and give oxygen first aid. It's demanding, sometimes exhausting, and very rewarding.
You'll need a current first aid and CPR certificate (such as Emergency First Response or React Right), often taken as a combined package.
Going pro: Divemaster and beyond
Divemaster is the first professional level. You'll learn to guide certified divers and assist instructors. After that comes Instructor Development (IDC). Many people do Divemaster internships in places like Koh Tao or Egypt. It's a lifestyle choice, and not a well-paid one for most, but an incredible experience.
A sensible progression for a new diver
- Open Water, then 5–10 fun dives
- Advanced Open Water (with buoyancy and navigation-focused choices)
- Enriched Air Nitrox
- Peak Performance Buoyancy
- Rescue Diver + first aid, then specialties for what you love (wrecks, photography, drift)
Frequently asked questions
How many dives do I need before Advanced Open Water?
None: you can start Advanced right after Open Water. Doing 10 or more dives first often makes the course more enjoyable.
Is Nitrox worth it for beginners?
Yes, if you dive multiple times a day or on a liveaboard. It extends bottom time at 18–30 m and is a simple, mostly theory-based course.
How deep can an Advanced Open Water diver go?
Up to 30 metres (100 feet). The Deep Diver specialty extends this to the recreational limit of 40 metres.
Keep reading
How to Choose a Dive Center and Scuba Instructor (and Red Flags to Avoid)
Group sizes, gear condition, oxygen on board and the warning signs that should make you walk away.
Why You Should Never Scuba Dive Without Training
The physics that can hurt untrained divers, and how a proper course protects you.
PADI vs SSI vs CMAS vs NAUI: Which Scuba Certification Should You Choose?
How the big training agencies differ and whether it matters for you (spoiler: less than you think).