The PADI Advanced Diver Certification is obtained by taking the PADI Adventures in Diving course, often times called the Advanced course. The names are a little confusing and could lead someone to believe that they need to already be an advanced diver or have significant dive experience.

The Advanced Diver certification can become a barrier to diver continuing education. Most PADI Specialty courses do not require an Advanced Diver certification.  As a matter of fact, if you complete 5 PADI Specialty courses you will have earned your PADI Advanced Diver certification without having taken the Advanced Course!

Most PADI Specialty Courses can be taken immediately following your Open Water Diver certification course.  Some of them can even be integrated into an Open Water Diver certification course!

The Master Scuba Diver rating places you in an elite group of respected divers who have earned this rating through both significant experience and scuba training. When you flash your Master Scuba Diver card, people know that you’ve spent time underwater in a variety of environments and had your share of dive adventures. 

Technical training requires a diver to become an expert on a variety of different topics including gear selection, rigging, and maintenance, decompression theory, dive contingency planning, and proper attitudes toward safety and team diving.

Technical divers also have diving skills that far exceed those of recreational divers.  If you want the challenge of mastering these mental and physical skills then you might be a candidate for technical diving.