Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) diving lecture, in conjunction with the SCUBA diving lab is a course designed to qualify students as National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI) Open Water Divers. Open Water Diver is an NAUI entry-level SCUBA certification course. It provides the fundamental knowledge and skills to SCUBA dive. Upon successful completion of this course, students are considered competent to engage in open water diving activities without supervision, provided the diving activities and the areas dived approximate those of training. This course is a pre-requisite for more advanced and specialty SCUBA diving training.

Additionally, this course provides training and practical application for “soft skill” development, to include critical thinking, planning and organization, problem solving, and emotional intelligence. SCUBA diving is a complex sport which requires physical fitness, specific knowledge (theory, equipment, locations, activities), and the use of life support equipment (regulator, tank w/compressed gas, buoyancy compensator, etc.). Diving activities require location, trip, and dive planning; self and buddy equipment checks; solving problems (expected and emergency) on the surface and underwater, and communicating effectively (surface and underwater).