SSI Assistant Instructor Course
Make the exciting move from leading certified divers to learning how to teach. Build real presentation, demonstration and student-supervision skills with an experienced Ocean Tribe instructor-training team.
The Assistant Instructor course forms the first part of the SSI Instructor Training Course pathway.
Turn your dive experience into teaching ability
Being a strong diver and dive leader gives you an excellent foundation. The Assistant Instructor course begins the next stage: learning how to explain, demonstrate, supervise and evaluate diving skills effectively.
You will work on academic presentations, confined-water teaching, demonstration-quality skills, student control and constructive feedback. The aim is not simply to know the material—it is to learn how to help another diver understand and perform it.
One focused step at a time
Assistant Instructor training allows you to begin developing teaching skills without having to complete the entire instructor pathway in one block.
Divemaster
Develop leadership, supervision and professional dive-management skills.
Assistant Instructor
Learn academic presentations, skill demonstrations and student supervision.
Complete the ITC
Finish the remaining instructor-development workshops and teaching assessments.
Open Water Instructor
Successfully complete the required Instructor Evaluation and begin teaching independently.
More than a qualification
The course is designed to make you clearer, more confident and more effective whenever you brief, demonstrate or coach divers.
Academic presentations
Structure engaging lessons and explain dive theory in a clear, practical way.
Confined-water teaching
Organise teaching sessions while maintaining control, positioning and safety.
Skill demonstrations
Break scuba skills into understandable steps and demonstrate them at teaching quality.
Student supervision
Recognise developing problems and manage students calmly and proactively.
Coaching and feedback
Identify performance issues and provide feedback that helps students improve.
Professional standards
Understand training administration, documentation and the responsibilities of an SSI professional.
Same entry requirements as the main ITC
These requirements ensure every candidate arrives with the diving experience and professional foundation needed to focus on learning how to teach.
Be at least 18 years old.
Hold an SSI Divemaster certification, or a qualifying instructor-member or leadership-level certification in good standing from a recognised training agency.
Have logged at least 100 open-water dives.
Provide documented diving experience in night diving, deep diving and underwater navigation.
Hold an Enriched Air Nitrox certification.
Have completed recognised CPR and First Aid training within the previous 24 months.
Submit a physician-signed medical clearance completed within the previous 12 months, with no subsequent change in medical condition.
Have been a certified diver for at least six months.
Provide documentation for any relevant non-SSI entry-level, advanced, rescue and leadership certifications.
A packed five-day teaching adventure
The exact sequence may change with candidate needs, conditions and the wider ITC schedule, but your training normally follows this progression.
1
Orientation and professional preparation
Course orientation, candidate expectations, Science of Diving development and a review of demonstration-quality scuba skills.
2
SSI programs and water fitness
Explore SSI structure and professional responsibilities, review Open Water Diver and Scuba Skills Update teaching, and complete required water-fitness development.
3
How to teach
Develop academic and in-water teaching techniques, plus workshops covering introductory programs such as Try Scuba and relevant youth-development activities.
4
Presentations and administration
Work through professional administration and deliver evaluated academic presentations from entry-level and continuing-education content.
5
Practical teaching and final review
Complete confined-water teaching presentations, review Assistant Instructor programs and finish the required examinations and performance review.
What comes with Assistant Instructor status?
Active-status SSI Assistant Instructors can take on valuable teaching responsibilities while continuing to work within current SSI standards and the required level of instructor supervision.
Developing your teaching role
- Teach and certify permitted introductory or skills-update programs within current SSI standards.
- Conduct eligible academic teaching sessions.
- Assist with pool, confined-water and open-water training.
- Supervise and evaluate permitted student-skill repetitions.
- Build real instructional experience alongside active SSI instructors.
- Continue into the remaining Instructor Training Course.
What still requires instructor completion?
- Independent delivery of the complete Open Water Diver program.
- Issuing Open Water Diver certifications.
- Independently conducting entry-level open-water training dives.
- Teaching skills reserved for an appropriately qualified instructor.
- Broader independent teaching responsibility available to an Open Water Instructor.
Everything needed to begin teaching
Your package combines digital learning, instructor-development workshops, practical presentations and professional training materials.
Assistant Instructor package
Confirm current inclusions and any applicable SSI crossover or registration fees before booking.
Choose your training block
Assistant Instructor training is scheduled alongside selected Ocean Tribe Instructor Training Courses.
Assistant Instructor FAQs
Is Assistant Instructor the same as Open Water Instructor?
No. Assistant Instructor is the first stage of SSI instructor development. It gives you valuable teaching responsibilities, but you must complete the remaining ITC requirements and required Instructor Evaluation before becoming an Open Water Instructor.
Can I complete Assistant Instructor now and finish the ITC later?
Yes. The program is ideal for professionals who want to begin developing teaching skills but are not yet ready to complete the entire instructor pathway in one continuous block.
Do I need teaching experience before starting?
You do not need to arrive as an experienced teacher. The course develops presentation, demonstration, supervision and feedback skills through guided practice and evaluation.
Why are the entry requirements the same as the main ITC?
Assistant Instructor training is part of the Instructor Training Course pathway. Candidates therefore need the same professional diving foundation before beginning instructor development.
Can instructors from another training agency join?
Qualifying leadership-level or instructor members from recognised agencies may be eligible. Ocean Tribe will review your certifications, experience and professional standing before confirming the correct pathway.
Ready to begin your journey from dive leader to dive educator?
Join the Ocean Tribe professional team in Diani and start building the skills, confidence and experience needed to teach the next generation of divers.
