Pro Courses / Instructor Continuing Education

SSI Specialty Instructor Training

Teach more. Inspire more. Go beyond.

Expand your instructor toolkit with practical SSI specialty training. Develop deeper expertise, offer more courses and create new opportunities for your students—and your career.

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Single specialty $150
Best-value package 5 specialties for $499
Core entry level Assistant Instructor
Training format Academic + in-water

Grow your instructor career

Turn your favourite areas of diving into courses you can teach

Specialty Instructor ratings help you keep divers active, build safer and more capable students, and broaden the professional opportunities available to you.

Teach advanced skills

Guide divers beyond entry-level training with focused knowledge and real-world specialist skills.

Build your career

Increase your employability, course range and earning potential as an SSI professional.

Keep divers active

Create a continuing-education path that keeps students learning, diving and progressing.

Ocean Tribe professional diving instructor training

Course overview

Learn it. Present it. Teach it in the water.

Each seminar combines standards knowledge, digital study, teaching preparation and practical delivery so you leave ready to teach confidently.

1
Study the programme Review SSI Training Standards, digital learning, the instructor manual, PEGs and cue cards.
2
Confirm your knowledge Complete the programme review and final examination for your chosen specialty.
3
Prepare to teach Plan and deliver an academic teaching presentation with coaching from the training team.
4
Put it into practice Conduct an in-water teaching session and demonstrate the required specialty skills.

Choose your direction

Specialty Instructor options

Build a package around the subjects that match your interests, local diving environment and professional goals.

Advanced Wreck Diving Student certification required
Boat Diving
Computer Diving
Deep Diving
Enriched Air Nitrox Levels 1 & 2
Full Face Mask Diving Student certification required
Independent Diving Student certification required
Marine Ecology
Marine Mammal Ecology
Marine Invertebrate Ecology
Manta & Ray Ecology
Navigation
Night & Limited Visibility
Perfect Buoyancy
Photo & Video
React Right with Oxygen Provider
Recreational Sidemount Student certification required
Scooter / DPV Diving Student certification required
Science of Diving
Sea Turtle Ecology
Search & Recovery Student certification required
Shark Ecology
Stress & Rescue
Wreck Diving
Waves, Tides & Currents
Extra prerequisite: For Advanced Wreck, Scooter/DPV, Full Face Mask, Independent Diving, Recreational Sidemount and Search & Recovery, the candidate must hold the corresponding student-level certification before becoming an instructor in that specialty.

Prerequisites

Check that you are ready to enrol

Standard Specialty Instructor

  • Be at least 18 years old
  • Hold an SSI Assistant Instructor rating, or an accepted equivalent from another training organisation
  • Be medically fit to dive
  • Meet any programme-specific prerequisites for the specialty selected

Ecology Specialty Instructor

  • Be at least 18 years old
  • Hold an SSI Divemaster rating, or an accepted equivalent from another training organisation

Professional progression

Work toward Divemaster Instructor

Build the required Specialty Instructor ratings and teaching experience for your next SSI professional recognition level.

Required ratings Hold these instructor certifications
  • Open Water Instructor
  • Deep Diving Instructor
  • Diver Stress & Rescue Instructor
  • Navigation Instructor
  • Night & Limited Visibility Instructor
Teaching experience Issue at least 25 certifications

The certifications may be from any recreational scuba programme.

Qualifying equivalencies Apply eligible entry-level programmes

Completed programmes may count toward the minimum Open Water Diver certification requirement:

  • 12 Try Scuba recognition cards = 1 Open Water Diver certification
  • 6 Basic Diver certifications = 1 Open Water Diver certification
  • 2 Referral Diver certifications = 1 Open Water Diver certification
  • 2 Scuba Diver certifications = 1 Open Water Diver certification

Course investment

Choose one specialty—or build a broader teaching toolkit

$150 per specialty
Best value: 5 specialties for $499

Choose your preferred specialties with the Ocean Tribe team and confirm any programme-specific entry requirements before booking.

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What is included

Training—and support beyond the course

Online eLearning
Academic training sessions
In-water training
Dive cylinders and weights
E-card and SSI professional registration fee
Light refreshments
Dive club membership
Professional equipment discounts
CV preparation and job-placement assistance
Ongoing career support

Ready to expand your expertise?

Build the Specialty Instructor package that fits your career.

Tell Ocean Tribe which specialties you want to teach and the team will help confirm your prerequisites.

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