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Scientific Diving
Training at Florida International University
Instructors: |
Professor, Biological Sciences |
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FIU Diving Safety Officer |
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FIU Boating Safety Officer and Assistant DSO |
Textbook for the class: FIU Scientific Divers Safety Manual. You must all read this thoroughly before the Final exam
The Dive Safety Program at FIU trains and certifies FIU faculty, staff and students as Scientific Divers following the standards of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences.
Scientific Diving can be taken at FIU
for academic credit at either the undergraduate or graduate level. The training
can also be taken as a non-credit course for FIU employees and volunteers who
need certification as a scientific diver for their work. Note that all students
in this class must be either employees or students at FIU. For those from other
institutions wanting to take the class, they must register at FIU as a
non-degree-seeking student and enroll in either the graduate or undergraduate
academic classes listed below.
Currently, the undergraduate class (Scientific Diving, BSC4473C, 3 credits) and the graduate class (Workshop in Scientific Diving, OCB6927C, 2 credits) are generally offered during the academic Fall, Spring, and Summer A terms. Admission to the class requires permission of the instructor since space on the vessels used for training is limited. FIU students, please check with your advisors about the applicability of these academic classes for your program. Currently, Biology majors can use this class as an elective in the major, while Marine Biology majors can use this class to satisfy the Marine Biology Field Experience area requirement. Graduate students in the Department of Biological Sciences generally can count this class as one of their required workshops if their research committee so approves it as part of their course of study.
Program requirements and
prerequisites
1. All prospective scientific divers must possess at least a recreational open water SCUBA certification from a recognized program (like PADI, NAUI, SSI, etc)
2. In addition to the class tuition (if the academic class is being taken for credit), for Fall semester 2022 students will pay a lab fee of $927 that covers equipment rental, certification fees and vessel charter. There is a discount on this fee if internal funds (grant funds, E&G accounts) are used to pay the lab fee, that rate is $629. Please note that student financial aid is NOT considered internal funds for this purpose, and this lab fee does not show up on your student financial account in the online Student Portal. All students MUST register and pay their lab fees here. Note that we must have a record of giving you permission to register here before you do so. There can be no refunds of the lab fee if weather prevents the boat from leaving the dock because of unsafe conditions during dive week. If weather limits our diving during the dive week, we will work to make alternate dates available for additional training dives at no extra cost.
3. Students must pass a diving medical examination prior to the beginning of in-the-water training, at their own expense. The forms you need for the diving medical exam can be found in the appendices of the FIU Scientific Diving Safety Manual.
4. Students must also fill out an FIU diver qualification questionnaire.
5. As part of the class, all prospective scientific divers are required to pass a swim test. Without swim aids, students must be able to:
Competencies required for certification
as an FIU Scientific Diver:
Grading policies
For the academic classes, the final grade will be calculated according to student performance on the on-line module quizzes and in-class, closed-book final exam. On-line module quizzes must be completed by the stated due date; late assignments will be penalized 10% for each day they are late. The average quiz grade will count as 60% of the final grade, and the final exam will count for 40% of the grade. Letter grades will be assigned using a 10-point scale, with 90% and above receiving an A, 80% and above a B. and so on. It is possible to pass the academic class and not receive certification as a scientific diver if the student is found medically unfit for diving or if they cannot demonstrate all the required swimming skills and competencies.
For workplace skills certification, students must pass all quizzes with a minimum score of 80%, score at least 80% on the cumulative final, be found medically competent to dive, pass the swim test, and complete the 12 training dives during the class field trip while displaying competence underwater.
Class Schedule and assignments. Red text indicates in-person meeting of the class. On-line learning modules can be found on the American Academy for Underwater Sciences E-Learning platform. Once registered for the class, the FIU DSO will generate permission for students to access this platform.
NOTE: Because of class size in the Fall 2022 semester,
students will be assigned to 2 groups for in-pool work and diving field trip.
Date |
Location |
Time |
Topics |
Saturday 14-Jan |
MMC
Campus, WC130 |
09:00-16:00 |
FIRST
CLASS MEETING Class organization and CPR, AED, First Aid and Oxygen Administration |
16-Jan |
on-line |
Introduction to
Scientific Diving |
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20-Jan |
on-line |
AAUS Regulations and
History |
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23-Jan |
on-line |
Diving Physics |
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27-Jan |
on-line |
Diving Physiology |
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30-Jan |
on-line |
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Navigation |
3-Feb |
on-line |
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Breath-hold Diving |
Saturday 11-Feb |
BBC Campus: FIU BBC pool |
10:00 - 13:00 |
Swim Test, SCUBA Diving
Evaluation, Check Out Dive (Pool). NOTE: You MUST have a completed dive
physical turned in to the DSO by this date) |
17-Feb |
on-line |
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Decompression Theory |
20-Feb |
on-line |
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Decompression
Management Tools |
24-Feb |
online |
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Scientific Method |
6-Mar |
on-line |
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Data Gathering Techniques |
10--Mar |
on-line |
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Safe Handling and Filling of Scuba Cylinders |
13-Mar |
on-line |
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Dive Rescue |
17-Mar |
on-line |
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Dive planning |
20-Mar |
on-line |
Diving Injuries and Emergency Care |
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24-Mar |
Zoom session |
09:00-13:00 |
Review for final exam, Zoom (details will be sent to students) |
31-Mar |
On-line Final Exam DUE |
E-learning Final Exam |
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31-May to 4-June (after semester is over) |
Florida Keys Dive Training
trip, Aquarius Reef Base, Islamorada |
Techniques for underwater
research SCUBA Diving Evaluation, Check Out
Dive (Open Water) Diver Rescue / Bottom Recovery (Open
Water) Accident Management / Injured Diver on
Deck (Open Water) NITROX Diving (Open Water) Underwater Navigation, Identifying /
Marking Research Sites (Open Water) Saturation Diving Orientation (Open
Water / Aquarius Interior Dive) Designing an underwater sampling plan Assessing coral reef structure Monitoring seagrass meadow structure Fish identification of Caribbean coral
reef and seagrass environments Assessing fish community structure |