3 Good Options To Fix The Problem

1 - Extend the course

So many instructors these days fail to realize how simple a thought this is. If the student is not where they are supposed to be by the end of the course, you should heavily consider - extending the course. Why not?

It's so simple but so many instructors I know really struggle with this. Yes, you might have to charge the student more for the course. Yes, the schedule might be weird, and your boss could be annoyed you "messed up the schedule" perhaps. But extending the course is always an option, and more times than not, an option that is moving the student toward being a safer diver.

Sometimes people just simply need more time, never be afraid to give it to them. 

2- Certify them as a "Lesser Cert"

At least for now.

Maybe the diver is not good enough to be an "Open Water Diver" (18m to 20m Certification) - but maybe you feel confident enough in them to certify them as a "Scuba Diver" (12m Diver who must always be accompanied by a dive professional). If they have completed all the requirements for the Scuba Diver certification why not? Great way to keep them in the water until they finally increase their confidence level and maybe try for the Open Water course later. 

A lot of courses have these sort of stepping stone certifications built within them. This of course will vary by agency, but a lot of these certs exists - from Open Water all the way to Technical Diving you can find them. Don't be afraid to issue them whenever you need to. As long as it is clearly explained to the diver and the reasoning, most people are cool. 

Always stress to your students that you WANT them to keep diving, to get better and hopefully come back and do more diving with you to finally get signed off at the level they wanted.

3- Simply Do Not Certify Them

And here comes the uncomfortable one. 

Nobody likes telling people they have not succeeded. Whenever possible I would personally pick to extend the course, but maybe they have travel plans? Maybe they don't have the money to extend the course. Maybe they get sick.... these things happen. It is important thing to remember is: in your heart, their safety is your priority. 

How do I judge if I should actually certify the person? In my head it's very simple:

• If I have doubt at all - I don't certify them. If there is doubt of any kind, then I should really be doing one of the other 3 options. If I am doubting that they can safely do what I am certifying them to do - WITHOUT ME being there - I dont certify them. Always remember by the end of any course the customer should be able to independently do whatever it is you trained them to do - if I doubt that - I dont certify them. But thats me. 

OR

• Would I want this person diving with a close family member. If the answer is no, cool, I do one of the other 3 options.

1 RATHER BAD "Fix" to the Problem

.....Certify them anyway 

We've all seen it. We've all seen divers who were just awful on a dive site, being led around by an instructor who really doesn't care. Someone who always does the bare minimum, someone who kneels the students in the sand every single dive.... a not so good instructor. The not so good instructor will often times just issue them the certification because they A - Showed up and are B - Currently alive at the end of the course.

Now, I'm not saying that every single instructor who certifies an under-performing student is a bad instructor. They could just be new, unsure of themselves, or unaware of the other 3 options.