DRESSEL DIVERS
Dressel Divers is a PADI 5-Star company with more than two decades teaching scuba diving programs, and thousands of certifications under their weight belts. Because of this history, they come up when potential students ask us about our programs. Here are some details we found online that we can share here. However, we would encourage you to conduct your own research.
WHAT THEY ADVERTISE TO THE PUBLIC
Dressel Diver’s website lists their non-diver to Divemaster “Platinum Package” for $2454 USD.
Listing “Scuba Diver” as an included program is illogical. A non diver who enters into a Divemaster Internship will start with Open Water, not Scuba Diver. The PADI Scuba Diver course is a subset of the PADI Open Water Diver course. Even PADI states on their website that “Diver certification begins” with Open Water. The only reason you’d do Scuba Diver is if you quit the program before doing your Open Water dives. We cannot think of a rational reason to list it, other than as a possible marketing ploy to give the impression of added value.
If you look at the website, it lists Free Nitrox with an “*” next to it.
The provision to this states, “Students wanting to take advantage of our FREE NITROX offer were available must be nitrox certified. NITROX COURSES AVAILABLE!” In other words, they would like to sell you additional course. That’s the nature of business, so don’t be surprised by it or take it in a negative way. Normally, the Nitrox Speciality course is $180 to $200 USD worldwide.
We provide the speciality at no additional cost and are among very few Professional Development Centers that do.
We include the actual Nitrox certification at no additional cost during our Divemaster Internship and during our scuba Instructor Course! No need to already have it, and no need to spend another $180-$200 USD just for the basic speciality either. It’s our gift to you. That’s a significant savings. Just one more way we provide real added value, not the illusion of it.
WHAT WAS SHARED BY EMAIL
This is an email sent to a potential student that was shared with us. According to one of their Course Directors (the highest rank with PADI) who works for Dressel, the actual cost of their program is $3702 USD from non-diver to Divemaster. That does not include housing.
In the email provided to Dive Mentor, it is clear that Dressel Divers does not provide free housing or accommodation of any kind. Therefore, this will be an additional expense you should consider. You should search their website for housing details. We did, and found nothing we could use to determine costs. However, we know Mexico well and can advise you that the average cost of Hostels or Hostel-Style housing is around $15 USD per day. It may be possible to get a discount for longer stays, but this is a good rule of thumb. If you are there for 6 weeks, that’s an additional $630 USD. This brings your total to $4332 USD at least.
It’s not listed, because it’s not an actual course you are required to take. PADI’s own site lists it as a subset of Open Water.
According to Dressel Divers, the additional $900+ USD is for extra dives. If you do the basic math, it’s an additional $30 USD for the dives needed to build up to your required 60 for Divemaster. Contrast that to our program and you will find that we include all required dives at no additional cost; it is included in the program fees. Make sure when you are checking out programs you ask about the costs of dives. See our Divemaster Internships for more details.
We provide all students, including Divemaster Candidates, with clean, safe, hostel-style housing during their program at no additional charge. Want to hear what others say about it? Why not read the Testimonals.
No matter how nice we are in presenting facts, some people will assume that is the case. As we have no association with Dressel Divers or their Instructors, we have no reason to believe that they are anything other than a professional company. You will need to determine that yourself. We encourage you therefore to fully investigate any program (including ours) you are considering attending, so you can make an informed decision.
DO YOUR RESEARCH FIRST
We can’t say which program is right for you, but we do believe you will be better off if you research programs and ask the right questions. Of course, we are biased because we believe we have one of the best programs around. As a non-profit, we focus more on you rather than making money. So make sure to do your due diligence, and it will save you a lot of time, money, and frustration.
People will post different experiences. Some will be happy, some will not be. That is the nature of both business and the internet. But this video is an excellent example of what you can expect from the Dressel Diver’s Divemaster Internship, based on a first hand account by an actual Intern. Pay close attention to the times, what they do during the day, where they stay, and even the reason they don’t wear their uniforms while traveling to and from the Hotel. We suggest you READ the comments posted under this guys video and make your own mind up. Dressel Divers may have the program you are looking for; they may not. The only way to determine that for yourself is to do research.
There are also plenty of reviews out there, so make sure to look around.
To be clear, just because someone writes a bad review online doesn’t mean the program is bad. Dressel may have a good program. None of our staff have ever attended any of Dressel’s programs, but we have worked with students who have. This is just information that should be considered. The source is irrelevant. We obviously have our own program, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be honest about what we see in other programs or share details provided to us. When we disagree with a program like Dressel, we use what we don’t like or do not approve of to make sure we do things differently.
This link is another good example of why we tell people to do their checks.
Listen, don’t just listen to us. Check things out. There are people who have worked with them, and they are the people you should listen to.
No. They are Interns, and by law are not allowed to work. In some countries, it may be a gray area. However, in Mexico where the video was taken it is illegal. You must have a permit to work in Mexico. This is why the Intern who took the video said their Interns do not wear their uniform on the streets, because they can be arrested. Not a risk worth taking.
A massive amount of their time is spent on nothing but sales, but that is not shared with most candidates up front. We have nothing wrong with the concept, only that it isn’t disclosed in Dressel’s advertising. If you do their program, expect to be on your feet for long hours every single day.
They say it is free, but there is a lot more to it than that. At a minimum, you will spend many months working for them. Ask before you assume it’s really free. We totally understand the idea of a work-exchange Internship. However, it’s important to know the facts up front.
From what we have been able to find, yes. And you are supposed to walk around and talk to anyone and everyone about it, except for people who are sleeping around the pool. Watch the video. It’s pretty good information.
We have students who have come to us who have asked if they could talk to previous Interns at Dressel and got nowhere. This may or may not be the case, but you should definitely ask. We have real reviews listed, with the actual names of the people who’ve trained with us. You can read those testimonials and make up your own mind about us. We are confident if you reach out to any of them, you will get honest reviews. We’d strongly encourage you to find people who have trained with any program, so you can learn good information from people who’ve actually done it.
INTEGRITY AND CHARACTER MATERS
We believe honesty, integrity, and transparency matters. We’re more than an educational organization. We do so much more than provide vocational training. We offer more than camps, summer adventures, and internships. We mentor teens and adults so they can improve their lives and the world around them by being TRUSTWORTHY in all that they do and say, RESPECTING others, accepting personal RESPONSIBILITY, dealing FAIRLY, and CARING enough to become change agents as global CITIZENS. Everything we do and everything we offer is built upon this foundation.
Trustworthy
Trustworthiness concerns a variety of qualities like honesty, integrity, reliability and loyalty. When others trust us, they don't feel you need to be monitored to assure you meet your obligations and keep your word. It means they believe in you and hold you in higher esteem. This is why it is important to live up to the expectations of others and refrain from self-serving behavior that can quickly destroy our relationships.
Respect
Respect is fundamental in creating civil society. It prohibits violence, humiliation, manipulation and exploitation. It reflects notions such as civility, courtesy, decency, dignity, autonomy, tolerance and acceptance. People are not things, and everyone has a right to be treated with dignity. While you do not have an ethical duty to hold all people in high esteem, we should all treat everyone with respect. Even those we fundamentally disagree with. Respect is really about us. We have a responsibility to be the best we can be in all situations, even when dealing with unpleasant people.
Responsibility
Ethical people show responsibility by being accountable, pursuing excellence and exercising self-restraint. They exhibit the ability to respond to expectations. It means being in charge of our choices and, thus, our lives. It means being accountable for what we do and who we are. It also means recognizing that our actions matter and we are morally on the hook for the consequences. Our capacity to reason and our freedom to choose make us morally autonomous and, therefore, answerable for whether we honor or degrade the ethical principles that give life meaning and purpose.
Fairness
Fairness involves issues of equality, equity, impartiality, proportionality, openness and due process. The basic concept seems simple, even intuitive, yet applying it in daily life can be surprisingly difficult. Disagreeing parties often tend to believe their position is the only one that is fair, but true fairness implies adherence to a balanced standard of justice without relevance to one’s own feelings or inclinations.
Caring
We do not exist in a vacuum and most of us are surrounded by others every day. If we weren't, there'd be no need for character at all. Caring is at the very center of ethics and ethical decision-making. It is impossible to truly be ethical, and not care about the welfare of others. Unfortunately, many people consider themselves ethical and yet lack a caring attitude towards individuals, often treating them as nothing more than instruments of their will. They rarely feel an obligation to be honest, loyal, fair or respectful except insofar as it is prudent for them to do so, a disposition which itself hints at duplicity and a lack of integrity. A person who really cares feels an emotional response to both the pain and pleasure of others. The highest form of caring is the honest expression of benevolence, or altruism.
Citizenship
Citizenship is much more than being a member of the country you were born into. And while it does include civic virtues and duties such as knowing and obeying the law, a good Citizen gives more than they get. It means being aware of what's going on not just in your back yard, but around the world. It means taking the initiative, participating in meaningful service projects, and doing more than your fair share to bring about positive change to make society work for current and future generations.
OUR DIVEMASTER INTERNSHIP
Dive Mentor’s core mission is fulfilled by helping new divers become professionals in the industry. If you’ve always wanted to become a Dive Guide, Divemaster, or Scuba Instructor our comprehensive Professional programs are exactly what you’ve been looking for. Our pricing structure is transparent.