PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer
Prep Price: 25,000 THB
BOOK ONLINEMaster Scuba Diver Trainer Instructor Internship in Thailand
- 5 PADI Instructor Specialty training courses
- Team teaching 2 PADI courses alongside experienced PADI Master Instructor
The PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer (MSDT) program is made up of two parts:
Part 1 – ‘Prep’ course – consisting of 5 PADI Specialty Instructor courses
Part 2 – the Instructor Internship program – a team teaching Internship allowing you to earn your first 25 PADI Diver level certifications as a PADI Instructor. Each additional course taken costs
Who can enroll on the MSDT?
A renewed PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor (OWSI)
What will you learn?
The MSDT Prep & Internship program has two distinct sections.
What is the MSDT Prep Course?
During the MSDT Prep course at IDC Koh Tao, scheduled over 5–6 days, you will learn how to effectively organise, conduct, and market PADI Specialty Diver courses across five different specialty areas. This program is designed to build on your existing Instructor skills while expanding your teaching capabilities and confidence in delivering a wider range of courses.
Throughout the program, you will complete Knowledge Development presentations similar to those undertaken during your PADI IDC and Instructor Examination (IE). These sessions are focused on refining your teaching style, improving your delivery, and ensuring you can confidently present specialty-specific content. You will also complete a detailed standards review, tailored to the PADI Specialty courses you have selected, ensuring you fully understand course structure, requirements, and best practices.
In addition to classroom-based learning, the course includes practical in-water workshops linked directly to each specialty. These sessions allow you to practice and refine the key skills you will be teaching, ensuring you are comfortable demonstrating and supervising them in real diving conditions. By combining academic development with hands-on experience, the MSDT Prep course prepares you to deliver high-quality specialty training and take the next step in your professional diving career.

What is the MSDT Internship?
Once the Prep is completed its time for you to start Part 2 – the ‘team teaching’ Instructor Internship. Teaching all levels of the PADI System of diver education you build on the knowledge and skills gained during the PADI IDC.
Team teaching alongside our team of experienced PADI Master Instructors, you slowly build confidence and all round teaching abilities dealing with REAL life students participating in REAL life PADI courses.
Step by step, we allow you to teach more as you progress through each course, building confidence and competence teaching medium sized groups of diver level students.
Our ultimate goal is for you to become a confident and competent dive educator, organized and timely, able to teach the entire PADI system with the necessary experience that prospective employers are looking for. This program is sure to make you a more employable PADI Instructor!

What’s included?
- 5 PADI Instructor Specialty training courses
- Team teach 2 PADI courses alongside experienced PADI Master Instructors **
** Additional team teaches, subject to availability will be charged at 3,000THB per course
PADI Materials – please bring the following materials with you. You received these as part of the IDC Crew Pack
- PADI Specialty Course Instructor Manual (CD-Rom)
- PADI Guide to Teaching (Paper version or CD-Rom)
- Diving Knowledge Workbook
- PADI Quizzes & Exam Booklets [Open Water, Rescue Diver, Divemaster]
- Open Water, Advanced, Rescue Diver, Divemaster course Instructor Cue Cards
In addition you’ll also need a copy of the PADI Instructor Manual. As of 2010, the Instructor is available as a free down load for all PADI Members that are renewed from https://www.padi.com/mypadi/
2026 PADI Fees
There are a number of application and examination fees that must be paid directly to PADI as part of your professional development.
- PADI Specialty Instructor Application: AUD $145 per specialty
(Minimum of 5 specialties required)
Standard Total: AUD $725 - PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer (MSDT) Application: AUD $195
At IDC Koh Tao, we aim to provide as much value as possible throughout your training. When you submit your application with five specialties at the same time, one of the specialty application fees is waived, meaning you only pay for four. This reduces your total from AUD $725 to AUD $580, giving you your fifth Specialty Instructor rating at no additional cost.
In addition, when you complete both your IDC and MSDT Prep program with us, your PADI MSDT application fee is also waived. This is part of our commitment to supporting your progression and helping you move into the next stage of your professional diving career with reduced overall costs.
To be certified as a PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer, you must also have a minimum of 25 PADI certifications. Gaining real teaching experience is a key part of this process, and additional team teaching opportunities are highly recommended. Two team teaches are included as part of your program; any additional team teaches are subject to availability and are charged at 3,000 THB per team teach.
We strongly believe in performance-based training. Our philosophy is not focused on simply achieving certification numbers during your program, but on developing you into a confident, capable dive educator. Quality of teaching, professionalism, and real-world experience are what truly set you apart in the dive industry.
Ideally, you will have the opportunity to team teach across all PADI core diver-level courses, as well as a selection of the specialty courses you are qualified to teach. This well-rounded experience ensures you build both the confidence and competence required to succeed as a professional instructor and progress toward higher-level ratings.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to complete MSDT Prep and an Internship?
The Master Scuba Diver Trainer (MSDT) program is broken into two separate sections that can be done together or separate.
The first section is conducted over a 5/6-day period and focuses on Specialty Instructor Training.
In the first part we break down the Instructor Specialty outlines and review the standards in order to teach the course.
This covers all knowledge development, water work and promotional techniques.
The second part focuses on gaining real life teaching experience. You assist members of our Senior instructor team in teaching a range of PADI Courses.
How do I get real life teaching experience as an MSDT?
During your MSDT internship you will be assisting some of our experienced instructors, teaching real life entry level courses.
We conduct the full range of courses within the PADI system. This gives you lots of opportunity to work with a diverse group of students and seasoned instructors.
We encourage you to get involved with numerous types of courses from the PADI Open Water Diver Course to the PADI Rescue Diver Course.
Additionally, you can choose to get involved in our Pro-level training and take part in Divemaster Workshops. This allows you to gain teaching experience in a diverse range of PADI courses.
Can I choose what Dive Instructor specialties to take?
We offer a wide range of instructor specialty training and we allow you to choose from our available options.
Your Course Director can help to guide you through this process and help you to choose the right specialties.
Certain specialties require additional prerequisites. For example; the Enriched Air Diver Instructor course requires you to have the student level certification.
If you do not hold this particular specialty diver level certification, you take the diver level course in conjunction with our specialty instructor training.
We do teach quite a lot specialties at student level. Some of our most popular PADI Specialties include:
- Deep Diver
- Wreck Diver
- Enriched Air Diver
- Sidemount Diver
We suggest you choose specialties that are either in high demand by potential employers, or in areas in which you are passionate about.
Can I join the team-teaching program if I already hold 5 specialty ratings?
We do get candidates that come to us having already completed their Specialty Instructor Training.
In this case, we recommend that you complete the second part of our MSDT program, that deals strictly with assisting student level courses.
This is a great choice for an Inactive Instructor who wishes to refresh their knowledge and skill level.
We can look at your previous teaching history and choose the courses that would benefit you the most to assist on.
You also have the option to complete additional Specialty Instructor Training, or you can focus on assisting the specialties for which you hold the Instructor rating.
Can the MSDT Instructor rating help to find me a job?
The PADI MSDT rating will improve your chances of finding a suitable job within the dive industry for a number of reasons.
The MSDT rating enhances your skill and knowledge level in addition to demonstrating a commitment to continued training.
Having the ability to teach specialty courses complements your entry level course teaching credentials.
Many customers want to take student level specialty courses in addition to the Open Water course or Advanced Open Water course.
In dive centres around the world, most dive centre operators require instructors that can teach the most popular specialty courses, such as Deep, Nitrox and Wreck penetration courses.
In some cases such as working on live-aboards, you may find that having the MSDT rating is a pre-requisite to employment.
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HOW TO FIND US
IDC KOH TAO
9/94 Moo 2,
Mae Haad,
Koh Tao, Surat Thani
84360 Thailand
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +66987044736














