Diving & Scuba Classes
East Coast Divers is THE premier Scuba, Freediving, and Technical instruction location on the East Coast. We pride ourselves on creating excellent, safe divers of all ages! While our Open Water Program is one of our most popular courses, we offer tons of specialty and advanced Scuba courses for those divers who want to reach new depths. We also offer advanced Freediving training with SSI international freediving training director Nick Fazah and Technical courses with renowned Tech instructor Alex Dulavitz.
Want to schedule a course? Reach out to training@ecdivers.com with your educational goals.
The East Coast Divers Training Philosophy
Instincts & Habits
Nick and Alex have developed their training philosophy on a powerful concept: specific instincts can lead to trouble for divers. Therefore, danger can be reduced through the use of good diving habits. The ECD instructional staff is trained in recognizing key instinctual behaviors in the divers they train. They will work with each student on developing habitual behaviors that will improve their diving comfort and safety.
Learning Skills while Staying Neutrally Buoyant
East Coast Divers has been a global leader when it comes to the Training in Neutral methodology. Many training programs consider neutral buoyancy a discrete skill. They teach divers how to get neutral but teach other skills negatively buoyant with divers on their knees at the bottom of a pool. At ECD, the training starts with getting comfortable being neutral. Subsequent skills should be able to be performed while a diver is maintaining neutral buoyancy.
The methodology starts with a simple concept, maintaining your vertical position in the water column while you are scuba diving is akin to steering while you are driving. Consider this analogy. A licensed driver will correct their course automatically while performing basic tasks, like turning on their lights or tuning the radio, and more complex tasks, like navigating while looking for parking in a city. If you can’t steer the car while you’re task loaded you’re not going to be safe or comfortable driving a car. In scuba diving, maintaining neutral buoyancy is equally quintessential; you should be able to perform everything from basic tasks, like checking a gauge or signaling a team member, to complex skills, like air-sharing or photography, while you remain at the same depth.
This relates back to the instincts and habits philosophy. How can a diver be expected to be able to perform in a real-world emergency air-sharing situation if they learned to share air while they were kneeling on the bottom of a pool? Our divers train in real-world like conditions so that the habits they develop while training will guide them when the skill is needed most, in an actual emergency! ECD trained divers are regularly praised by referral instructors as being extremely well prepared for certification dives at warm-water resorts.
Become a Dive Pro
Lead by managing partners Nick Fazah and Alex Dulavitz, East Coast Divers is a professional development center for SSI Dive Instructors, Freediving Instructors, and Extended Range Instructors. If you’re considering a career in diving, look no further than ECD.
Dive Guide
Scuba Instructor Training starts with the Divemaster program – SSI’s entry level professional certification. Learn to safely lead certified divers in various environments and conditions. Divemasters exhibit proficiency in watermanship skills (in-water fitness), demonstrate progressional-level rescue skills and knowledge, and learn how to evaluate, manage, and lead a group of certified divers. Learn more here: Divemaster Program >>
Instructor Development Program
Already a divemaster? Consider taking the next step in your professional development and learn how to train new divers. Learn more here: Assistant Instructor-Instructor Training Course >>
Instructor Crossover Program
Are you currently an active instructor looking for a new opportunity? East Coast Divers is ALWAYS looking for new, passionate dive professionals to join our team. We make teaching fun and easy with lots of opportunities and leave absolute schedule control to you. Only able to teach one or two sessions from an Open Water class? No worries, we are experts at team teaching and have developed an exceptional system for instructors to be able to seemlessly pass off students between sessions. Contact Alex@ecdivers.com for more details.
Freediving Pro
Experienced freedivers have the opportunity to learn how to share the sport with others. The Freediving Assistant Instructor program is open to Level 2 freedivers! Learn more here: Freediving Instructor Development Program >>
For more information on professional programs join us for a Become a Dive Pro Meeting Night!
Equipment for Classes
Students must bring all general scuba gear required for a course – tanks, weights, BC, regulator, exposure protection, etc. We require that all students have their own personal equipment (mask and snorkel, fins/booties) for courses, this is not rentable. Specialty-specific gear is required for several of our course, please refer to the Required Equipment section on each class page for a list of the gear you will need to own for this course.
Students also have access to the popular Rent to Own program which means the money invested in rentals can go towards purchasing your own gear!
Student Discounts
We offer a 10% discount* for student gear purchases made though the shop that can be applied towards required equipment. We also offer an unrivaled 60-day return policy that will ensure that you are happy with everything that you buy. We appreciate your support of your local dive shop, which allows us to continue operations and offer the services that we do today
*some restrictions apply including Santi, K01, Shearwater, cylinders, & rebreathers
Class Calendar
ECD Class start dates are listed below. Make sure to check out the course details before you book!
All of the courses we offer can be found below! Please note that to maintain a safe, fun and productive educational environment for all our students, we do require divers to have been diving less than 2 years before taking a specialty course with an open water component, and if the course includes ocean dives, to also have previous cold water diving experience. To see a detailed schedule for an individual class, click the Book Now button on the course page and select a start date that works for you. If you can’t find space in the class you’re looking for, join the class waitlist