What Nobody Tells You After Diving School Qualification Nobody warns you about the silence. You leave diving school with your ticket, your logbook, and probably a fairly significant dent in your bank account. You pass the exams, you've done the practical assessments, and you're certified. In your head, the next step feels obvious. You're a commercial diver now, so the work should follow. Then you get home and the phone doesn't ring. Emails go unanswered. CVs disappear into inboxes that never reply. Days turn into weeks, sometimes weeks turn into months. And nobody not your diving school, not the industry, not anyone really prepares you for that part. That gap between certification and reality is what this is about. The things diving schools teach you are genuinely important, but there's a whole other education that happens afterwards, and it happens the hard way. My Route In: The Middle East Before the North Sea Before I get into this, I want to give you a bit of context on where I'm coming from. I came into commercial diving via dive instruction, and my entry into the industry was through the Middle East rather than the UK. Work came relatively quickly out there as an expat the offshore scene was more accessible, companies were willing to take chances on people, and I built up some early experience and confidence. So when I came back to the UK, I wasn't a brand new diver with no experience. I'd already been working offshore, and I thought the North Sea would follow the same pattern. It didn't. And that's where this story starts. The Unwritten Rules of the North Sea The Middle East offshore scene as an expat is a different world to the North Sea. Companies out there are used to hiring international workers people arriving without local networks, without local references, without a reputation that precedes them. They take more chances and give people opportunities to prove themselves. The North Sea is not like that. The North Sea diving industry is one of the most network-driven hiring environments I've ever encountered. Companies hire people they know, or people recommended by people they know, or people who've worked for them before and didn't cause problems. Trust is the currency, and trust takes time to build.

Divers required for an upcoming SOW. Only divers with recent experience at working between 45-50 meters. please send your CV etc to Mo. diving-operations@tesmarine.com.ng

Ok here is the next offering! We have made the first 2 modules of the guide to Nexus. What is Nexus? NEXUS IC (Integrity Client) is inspection management software used by major offshore operators and clients like: - TechnipFMC - Subsea7 - Shell - BP - Equinor - And many others - What it does: NEXUS manages the entire lifecycle of subsea asset inspections: - Asset hierarchies (what exists where) - Inspection planning (what needs inspecting when) - Data collection (recording inspection results) - Anomaly tracking (defects and their remediation) - Risk assessment (integrity scoring) - Reporting (client deliverables) As a 3.4 you will probably come across this at some point. https://beyondthesurfaceoffshore.com/nexus-training-module-1/

Mermaid Subsea Services (Co) Ltd Saudi Arabia is currently seeking experienced Air Inspection Divers with valid CSWIP 3.2U certification for upcoming offshore projects. 𝗥𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀: • Valid CSWIP 3.2U certification • Minimum 2 years offshore / subsea inspection experience • 5 x Logged MPI (Mandatory) • Air diving certification (surface supplied / Class II) • Valid offshore certifications (Medical, BOSIET, H2S) 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸: • Underwater inspection (structures, pipelines, jackets, etc.) • Offshore projects across Saudi Arabia • Start Date: April 2026 (Immediate) • Rotation: 60/60 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆: Send your updated CV and certifications to: 📩 𝗞𝗦𝗔.𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆@𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗱-𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽.𝗰𝗼𝗺 ⏳Shortlisting in progress – priority given to immediately available candidates.

Hi everyone, I’ve just finished my commercial diving course in Dunoon, Scotland, and I’m now looking to get started in the industry. I’m originally from South Africa and have been finding it quite challenging to land that first opportunity, especially with visa restrictions making things a bit more complicated. I’m keen to get my foot in the door anyway I can and I’m more than willing to travel and work my way up. If anyone has any advice, contacts, or knows of any opportunities, I’d really appreciate it.