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Ruth Draper
28 year old Ruth was working for a marketing company in Oxford when she decided she wanted a career change.
"I was pretty skint at the time but determined to re-train so I could have the outdoor lifestyle I wanted."
"I took out a career development loan to pay for the Dive Instructor course with Flying Fish - which was actually a pretty straightforward application process. I didn't have to start paying the loan back until after the course and then I set the amount to suit my income!"
Ruth headed out to Flying Fish Australia to start her Dive Instructor Professional Traineeship with Flying Fish.
"It was a great course, brilliant instructors and excellent tuition all the way through. The variety of dive sites in Sydney is great - seeing my first grey nurse shark at Magic Point was definitely one of the highlights of my course! We also headed up to the Great Barrier Reef for a liveaboard - amazing marine life."
Ruth also enthused about living in Manly. "Manly is the best place to stay. Fantastic nightlife, amazing beaches - we went surfing at weekends. There was a good mixture of people on my course and the accommodation was nice and close to the dive shop."
Ruth graduated as a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor and got a job straight away working for a private luixury resort in the Seychelles.
"My first job in the industry - teaching diving in a stunningly beautiful, exotic location - not too shabby!"
At the end of the season, Ruth followed her heart and returned to Sydney to meet up with fellow Fish graduate, Marcus Squires. Yes, another Flying Fish romance!!
"Marcus was working as a Yacht Instructor for Flying Fish Australia and I went out to work in the Sydney office for six months. It was fun meeting all the new dive students and being able to give them some first hand advice."
At the end of the summer, Ruth and Marcus decided to look for a job together in the northern hemisphere.
"We are lucky, our combined skills are very compatible! With Marcus's qualification as an RYA Yachtmaster (he can skipper a boat up to 200gt) and my OWSI qualification, it was easy to find work as a couple on a big boat. We're heading off next week to St Tropez to work on a luxury yacht, sailing and diving for the rest of the season before heading out to the Caribbean - for more sailing and diving!"
"There are far more jobs in the industry than qualified instructors" advises Ruth. "If you want to work, definitely go for your instructor tickets, don't settle for Divemaster because your earning potential is so much more as an instructor."
"The lifestyle is unbelievable and you really do work in exotic locations. Teaching is the most rewarding job I've ever had ...."
