SSI Deep Diving eLearning

SSI Diver Stress & Rescue — eLearning & Certification Credit Only

Become a more confident, capable, and helpful diver with the SSI Diver Stress & Rescue specialty. This essential course teaches you how to recognise, prevent, and respond to problems underwater — building your awareness, self-rescue skills, and ability to assist others in emergencies. It provides your academic training and certification credit only, allowing you to complete all theory online before booking your required in-water training with an SSI Dive Centre.

What you’ll learn online

• Recognising and preventing stress in yourself and other divers
• Identifying causes of diving emergencies before they happen
• Self-rescue techniques and managing common underwater issues
• Assisting tired, panicked, or unconscious divers
• Rescue skills on the surface and underwater
• Search patterns and recovery techniques for missing divers
• Emergency planning and coordination with rescue services
• Post-incident care and debriefing procedures

Required practical training (booked separately)

To earn your full SSI Diver Stress & Rescue certification, you must complete in-water and practical rescue training with an SSI Instructor. These sessions typically include:

• Confined water sessions to master basic rescue skills
• Open water scenarios simulating real emergency situations
• Assisting distressed divers at the surface and underwater
• Unconscious diver recovery and exit techniques
• Team coordination and rescue management drills
• Search patterns for missing divers

The in-water sessions are not included in this eLearning product and must be arranged separately with Dorset Diving or another SSI Dive Centre offering the Diver Stress & Rescue specialty.

Important

• Please confirm that your chosen dive centre offers SSI Diver Stress & Rescue training before booking your practical sessions.
• You must hold an Advanced Adventurer (or equivalent) certification and have current first aid and CPR training (SSI React Right or equivalent) before completing the in-water exercises.
• This course is required for divers progressing to SSI Dive Guide and Divemaster levels.

Free registration

Begin your eLearning today by creating a free SSI account and affiliating with our dive centre here:
Register with Dorset Diving.

What’s next?

After completing Diver Stress & Rescue, you’ll be ready to move into the professional ranks with the SSI Dive Guide or Divemaster programmes — or continue refining your skills through advanced specialties like Search & Recovery and Waves, Tides & Currents.