Course overview

Become a dive professional with the PADI Divemaster course on Maafushi, leading certified divers and assisting instructors across the Maldives' South Malé Atoll. Working from a budget local island with a calm house reef and easy day-boat access to sites like Maafushi Corner and Kandooma Thila, you build the stamina, dive-theory knowledge and leadership skills needed to guide divers in warm 27-30°C water. The Divemaster rating is your first PADI professional certification and the gateway to instructor training.

What you’ll learn

• Lead and supervise certified divers on guided reef and atoll dives
• Assist instructors with student divers in confined and open water
• Demonstrate the 24 dive skills to a professional standard
• Master dive theory: physics, physiology, equipment, decompression and the RDP
• Plan dives and conduct site, current and emergency briefings
• Map a dive site and run divemaster-conducted programmes

Prerequisites

• Minimum age 18
• PADI Advanced Open Water (or qualifying equivalent)
• PADI Rescue Diver and current Emergency First Response (CPR & first aid)
• At least 40 logged dives to begin and 60 to certify
• Diver medical clearance signed by a physician within the last 12 months

What's included · What's not

Probability of sightings · month-by-month

What you're likely to see each month, based on historic operator logs.

Day-by-day itinerary

1. Day1
   Theory & assessment

   Dive-theory study and exams, plus water-skills and stamina assessments on the house reef.
2. Day2
   Skill demonstration

   Refine the 24 core skills to demonstration quality and practise the diver-rescue exercise.
3. Day3
   Practical workshops

   Site mapping, deep-dive and search-and-recovery scenarios on atoll sites such as Banana Reef.
4. Day4
   Leadership internship

   Guide certified divers and assist students on Maafushi Corner and Kandooma Thila under instructor supervision.
5. Day5
   Final evaluation

   Complete divemaster-conducted programmes and the final professional assessment to certify.

Verified through iDive

Every partner school in the iDive network is vetted on safety, instructor credentials, equipment standards and student feedback. Talk to a iDive dive pro on WhatsApp for current availability and reviews specific to Maafushi.

Frequently asked questions