Do your PADI IDC with Angel in the Philippines

Take your IDC in the Philippines with Angel Navarro, Platinum Course Director

About Angel

Angel grew up in the Pyrenees Mountains of Spain and worked as a mountain guide and ski instructor before starting his own adventure sports company.  This proved to be very successful and Angel received awards from the Spanish Tourist Board for his work with this.  But after a few years building up the company he started looking for a new challenge.  So he sold the business and went travelling and it was while in Thailand that he fell in love with scuba diving.  This was the perfect challenge for him – to work his way around the world doing something he loved.
And since then, Angel has been doing just that, and making a pretty good job of it too.  He has worked and dived in more than ten countries including Thailand, Malaysia, Australia, Mexico, Honduras, Curacao, UK, Spain and Galapagos.  He is now based in the Philippines on the beautiful island of Malapascua.

Angel loves teaching IDCs but realizes the importance of teaching diving to “real” students too and continues to teach the whole range of PADI courses from DSDs to Specialties and Divemasters.  Before moving to the Philippines he would also take working holidays working as a Divemaster or Instructor, and there’s nothing like loading boats, filling tanks and cleaning toilets to keep your feet firmly grounded!
Angel has trained more than 1000 divers, and also has more than 1000 professional-level certifications under his belt, making him one of the most experienced and respected Course Directors around.  As well as being a PADI Platinum Course Director (the status of which he has been awarded for 4 consecutive years).  Angel is also a TecRec and Trimix Instructor Trainer, PSI Tank Inspector, Hyperbaric Chamber Operator and Instructor Trainer for the International Association for Handicapped Divers (IAHD).  Angel is passionate about his work with disabled scuba divers and is able to teach Instructors to become IAHD Instructors.

Angel speaks Spanish, English and French fluently and has conducted multi-lingual IDCs since becoming a Course Director.  Before coming to Malapascua, he was teaching IDCs in Utila, Honduras, and in the Galapagos Islands.  He works with his partner Jo who is a Master Instructor, and they have a son, Marc, born in 2009.

What is the philosophy of your company?

Angel’s view is that an IDC should not just aim to get you through the IE, but should give you enough real-life tips and expert coaching to fully equip you for life as an Instructor.  At Exotic Dive Resort, Malapascua, Angel’s IDCs are 16 days in total – including a 3 day preparation program and the EFR Instructor course - and are scheduled to end a day or two in advance of the Instructor Exams.

Sixteen days may be a little longer than some courses offered by other IDC facilities, however it means that Angel’s schedule will be more relaxed, giving you more time to prepare your presentations, or for Angel to focus on any individual counseling that may be required.   There will also be plenty of opportunity to go for some real dives to unwind and enjoy the pristine reefs and unique marine life around Malapascua.
Angel’s IDCs include workshops in knot-tying, lift bag exercises, CESAs and descents, as well as the 3 day preparation program where you can refresh and polish your dive theory knowledge as well as your demonstration quality skills.

And at the end of his IDC program Angel holds a two-day “mock” IE which includes all the components of the actual IE and works to the same timetable to make it as authentic as possible.

Quality is of utmost importance to Angel and Exotic Dive Resort.  While there you will receive the best service from the resort and receive the best instruction.  Angel feels a personal responsibility to the future students of his IDC candidates to create not just competent instructors, but the best instructors in every way.

Why should you take your IDC with Angel and Exotic?

Experience.   Having taught over 1000 students as well as over 1000 at professional level, Angel can pass on all the tips and tricks of the trade, and with his background in business management he can help those candidates who are thinking of starting their own dive shop too.  Angel appreciates the need to build on the skills and knowledge learnt during your IDC by team-teaching real students alongside more experienced instructors after you qualify.  For that reason we offer all our candidates a FREE 6-week instructor internship after their IDC.

During your free internship you will work alongside our team of instructors gaining valuable experience of the real world.   Being part of the Exotic team will also give you the benefit of witnessing how one of the most successful dive resorts in the Philippines functions.

Consistency and value.   Whilst he has some highly qualified Master Instructors who will assist on his IDCs, Angel will be in charge from start to finish.  In this time he has ample opportunity to work on each candidate’s own strengths and weaknesses, thus ensuring that those weaknesses are gone before the end of your IDC.  Many other IDC facilities that employ freelance Course Directors just bring in the Course Director to teach the last few days of an IDC which can lead to inconsistencies in teaching and well as giving less value for the candidates in return for their investment.

The Thresher Shark!  Malapascua is reputedly the only place in world where divers can regularly encounter these majestic sharks at recreational diver limits.  So by coming to Exotic you can experience something really special.

Unlimited Diving. Yet another great reason to choose Exotic as your PADI IDC destination.  As the original dive shop on Malapascua we were the pioneers of the thresher shark encounters and wrote the original thresher shark specialty course that has been endorsed by PADI as a distinctive specialty.  During your IDC you will be able to dive at the famous thresher shark sites for a chance to see these majestic creatures, as well as many other great dive spots.

Our tranquil setting.  Exotic’s stunning white-sand beach, away from the crowds, and with its natural shade and hammocks, will ensure that all our candidates can find the necessary peace and quiet to be able to focus and enjoy the course.  All-night parties and streets of bars are not what you need during your IDC!

Job Opportunities.  If you will be looking for work as an Instructor after your IDC, you couldn’t be better placed.  There are many up and coming dive locations in the Philippines and you are always just a cheap flight from the world’s dive hot spots of Thailand, Malaysia, and Australia.

Support.  Angel’s help doesn’t end once you pass your IE.  Angel will give you advice and assistance on how to prepare an attention-grabbing CV and what potential employers are really looking for in an instructor.  Plus, Angel has extensive links and contacts within the global dive industry who know that he produces competent instructors and who ask him for recommendations on a regular basis.  Even once you get yourself a job, we offer ongoing support and advice to all our candidates, wherever they are in the world. Read more about our IDCs on the site at the bottom of this page.

Has anything funny happened during your IDC courses?

I remember when I was teaching an IDC in the Galapagos Islands and one candidate couldn’t stop giggling during her mock rescue demonstration.  The reason was that there was a sea lion nibbling at her fins that wouldn’t let her go!  Sea lions were often additional guests in open water presentations there.

Usually there is one candidate during an IDC who is a bit of a “character”.  But during my last Spanish-speaking IDC I had Jose, the one-eyed pilot from Zaragoza who had the group in hysterics whenever he opened his mouth!

What do his IDC students think of Angel?

“I didn’t actually know Angel before I arrived for my IDC so I wasn’t sure what to expect. The first thing that was clear was that he knew his stuff and he was there to teach me two things:

• How to pass the IE and, more importantly,
• How to be a good scuba diving instructor

I suspect too many IDC’s are set up for the students to learn how to pass the IE without enough time spent on how to use that knowledge in the real, teaching world once you are done. Angel has ample experience to work out what your individual strengths and weaknesses are and helps make sure that those weaknesses are essentially gone by the time the IE comes around. His teaching is subtly personalized even when you’re in a group.

His professionalism and enthusiasm were apparent for every second of the IDC and he was like an expectant father when we were waiting for our results of the IE. He was more excited and nervous for us (the students) than any of us were. We were in the water so we knew he had prepared us exceptionally well. We knew we had all passed.  With the training and preparation he gave us, there was no way we would crack under the pressure”.
(Martin Gilliland, PADI Instructor -IDC January 2011)

What else do you like (not diving related)?

Anything outdoors.  Angel likes to climb the odd mountain whenever he has the opportunity – the last one was Mount Cotopaxi in Ecuador.  He currently spends his free time playing in the ocean with his future Bubblemaker son, Marc.  Oh, and football (definitely not playing!) – Barcelona FC is his team.

What does Angel love about being a Course Director?

I love getting the emails from Instructors who did their IDC with me – sometimes years ago – who take the time to write to me to tell me about their teaching experiences (not always good ones) and how what they learnt from me during their IDC really helped them.  That always leaves me with a warm feeling inside!

 

What does the future hold for Angel?

Angel has been the resident Course Director at Exotic since January 2011 and his plan is to develop the IDCs and professional-level courses, and for the resort to become a PADI Career Development Centre soon.  Exotic Dive Resort certainly has the facilities, location and the professional, experienced staff to make it a perfect choice for Divemaster and Instructor candidates who want to become dive professionals that stand out from the crowd.  They have plans for Digital Underwater Photography workshops and multi-media editing suites, coral reef check courses as well training in working with disabled divers.

Click on the photo to the right to view a photo gallery from a recent IDC class

 

 

Where are we?

IDC Address
Malapascua Exotic Island Dive Resort
Logon, Daanbantayan Cebu 6013, Philippines

Email Address: info@thegoprofamily.com
Website: www.thegoprofamily.com
Facebook::  Malapascua Exotic Island Dive Resort