NAUI 's mission is to educate the general public in safe diving practices and develop a general awareness of the aquatic environment. All NAUI members have been trained following these standards of practice and are themselves following this credo in their interaction with divers worldwide. Becoming a NAUI leader is not only a commitment to yourself to choose the best professional education, but also a commitment to the profession, the public and the aquatic realm.

NAUI’s global reputation for the best in training and educational products reflects its core values of quality dive training through education. Many organizations specifically choose NAUI for their diver education programs including Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, United States Navy SEAL Teams and NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston, Texas (USA) where astronauts train for their space walks.

Since 1960, NAUI has been training divers worldwide in "Dive Safety Through Education" and our choice as NAUI members will always be the choice of quality versus quantity. Being trained as a NAUI leader (up to Divemaster) and then as a NAUI Instructor is an achievement you will be proud of, as are thousands of NAUI members worldwide.

Assistant Instructor Course:

This course is the perfect course for instructor apprenticeship. Graduates of the course are entitled to assist instructors in NAUI courses and programs, but are not allowed to independently supervise divers. The training runs for 6 days and is divided into 3 segments:

1. Knowledge development, where the candidate learns more about NAUI as a member, and broadens his/her knowledge to the level of a dive leader.
2. Leadership skills and ability, where the candidate develops leadership skills in the water.
3. Experience, where the candidate is assisting instructors in various courses and programs and gets the fundamentals of what teaching scuba diving is all about prior to entering Instructor training.

You must be 18 years old to enter the course, be a NAUI Master Scuba Diver or equivalent and a NAUI Rescue Diver or equivalent. The candidate must also have a minimum of 25 logged dives and be fully equipped.

Skin Diving Instructor:

This is the first level of instructor development with NAUI. The candidate learns how to train and certify Skin Divers. It is an ideal course (7 days) to work in a resort area where snorkeling and skin diving are very popular among vacationers. NAUI Skin Diving Instructors have no equivalent in the recreational diving industry and are in strong demand in places like the Carribean and southern Europe. The course is divided into 3 segments:

1. Knowledge development to instill the candidate's responsibilities as a leader.
2. Water skills development to physically prepare the candidate in the task of teaching and supervising skin divers and snorkelers.
3. Teaching methods development, to bring the candidate up to an instructor level in this specific field of action-teaching skin diving courses.

You must be 18 years old to enter the course, be a certified skin or scuba diver, and have a minimum of 25 logged skin diving activities. Scuba Diving experience is not mandatory, but definitely helpful. Life-saving or lifeguard experience is also a useful but not mandatory skill when entering this course.

Divemaster Course:

For individuals who wish to supervise and guide certified divers in their recreational diving activities. NAUI Divemasters receive the best training the industry has to offer and they are the most trusted leaders in the profession. At Earth2ocean, we train NAUI Divemasters in real situations, with real students and real customers, in order to maximize the training and bring our graduate to peak performance in their leadership abilities.

Our Divemaster courses are run on an internship basis of 3-6 weeks. During this time the candidate Divemaster will train as a NAUI leader, develop his/her knowledge, develop water skills and abilities second to none, assist in air filling, equipment maintenance, assist courses with instructors, participate in boat and shore diving operations, diver supervision, diver guiding, night diving operations, etc. This intensive program is run on specific request to keep classes small and maximize the attention to the candidates. A maximum of 3 candidates will train at a time.

To join this rewarding training program, one must be a NAUI Master Scuba Diver or equivalent, 18 years old, NAUI Rescue Diver with First Aid and CPR credentials not older than 24 months, have a minimum of 60 logged dives to enter the training and be fully equipped with appropriate dive gear.

Instructor Development:

Becoming a NAUI Instructor today is a trademark of quality, professionalism and commitment to dive education worldwide. We believe that NAUI Instructors are the best Instructors within the recreational diving industry. The NAUI ITC brings dive leaders to the highest standards of education and develops the competent diving educators our industry strives for.

During this 9-14 day training process, you will not only learn how to teach, but to be a good, competent, professional, trustful and dedicated scuba diving educator. We will prepare you for your role as a NAUI voting member and as a successful professional Instructor. You will be trained by some of the most experienced Instructor Trainers operating in Tauranga today, staff who have trained a highly qualified educator team, and who will to help you to become the successful Instructor you wish to be.

The ITC (Instructor Training course) is divided into two segments:

1. The Instructor Training Program ( ITP), which is a 7-12 day training program designed to bring the dive leader up to the Instructor level of knowledge, skills and teaching abilities. We will teach you "how to teach" beginner classes, advanced level classes and leadership classes. The training will take place in the classroom, confined water (or pool) and natural environment and you will experience firsthand the NAUI concept of "academic freedom".
2. The Instructor Qualification Program or IQP, which is usually a 2 day program will qualify you (or not) as a NAUI Instructor. The candidates will be tested on two modules of written exams, their pool and natural environment teaching abilities, their classroom presentations, their rescue and leadership skills abilities. Moreover, the entire course will evaluate the candidates with this simple concept in mind: "Would we want this candidate to teach our loved ones?"

After meeting all requirements to qualify as a NAUI Instructor, our educational team will review each candidate's general and specific performances as well as attitude to answer this very simple question and grant you the coveted rating of NAUI Instructor.

To enter the ITC, you must be 18 years old or older, be a NAUI leader or equivalent (an ITC preparatory course will be mandatory prior the ITC for non NAUI leaders), have a minimum of 80 logged dives, have First Aid and CPR credentials not older than 24 months and be fully equipped. Tanks will be provided for the course.

If you are an Instructor with another association and wish to further your diving education, we have a crossover course of 5 days (ICC), which is designed to evaluate competency of already certified instructors and welcome them as NAUI Instructors and members. This course is a 3 day training and 2 day evaluation program.

Note: All NAUI Leadership candidates must be fully equipped for the courses with standard equipment for a leader: mask, fins, snorkel, BCD, full regulator, SPG, depth gauge, alternate air source, wet suit, knife, signaling device, surface safety marker buoy with a 5m line, compass, slates and pencils. Underwater lights and spare parts are optional. Assistance can be provided in the acquisition of the above mentioned equipment if needed.