Occupational SCUBA to 30m (Part 1)

PADI / SSI tickets qualify you for recreational diving only. You can't legally work underwater on them in Australia. ADAS Part 1 is the entry-level commercial qualification recognised under AS/NZS 2299, covering DCIEM tables, nil-vis work, surface comms and emergency procedures that a recreational ticket never touches.

Four weeks of full-time training, on-site at our Burra facility. Most students roll straight into Part 2 after, eight weeks total, because employers generally hire from Part 2, not Part 1.

You can, but only on the lower-hazard end of the industry. Part 1 is well suited to scientific, environmental and inspection diving to 30 m: marine research, biological surveys, hull and structure inspections, environmental monitoring. What you cannot do on a Part 1 alone is operate powered tools or carry out construction work. Those tasks require the surface-supplied gas, two-way comms and topside team that Part 2 (SSBA) provides. That’s why roughly 95% of our students take the Combined SCUBA and SSBA to 30m (Part 1 & 2) course: it opens up every diving job to 30 m, not just the low-hazard ones.

Scientific and environmental diving (marine biology, reef and seagrass surveys, water-quality sampling) and visual inspection work to 30 m. It's deliberately scoped to the less-hazardous end of commercial diving — no powered tools, no construction, no cutting or welding, and no aquaculture work (which sits under SSBA in Australia). If your career goal is any of that higher-hazard work, you'll need Part 2 (SSBA) on top.

A current AS2299 commercial divers medical from a SPUMS-listed doctor (Australia and New Zealand Hyperbaric Medicine Group). It's separate from a standard GP medical and must be done before day one. We'll point you to the closest SPUMS doctor when you enrol.

To 30 m on scuba, in real working conditions at our Burra quarry, including planned nil-visibility dives so you learn to work by feel. We don't simulate; the conditions are the conditions.