Professional Association of Diving Instructors
| Abbreviation | PADI |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1966 |
| Headquarters | Rancho Santa Margarita, California, United States (Americas and Latin America Office) |
Region served | International |
| Membership | ~128,000 dive professionals, 6,600+ dive centers and resorts |
| Leader | Drew Richardson |
Parent organization | PADI Worldwide Corp. |
| Affiliations | DSAT PADI AWARE Emergency First Response Current Publishing |
| Website | www |
The Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) is a recreational diving membership and diver training organization founded in 1966 by John Cronin and Ralph Erickson. PADI courses range from entry level to advanced recreational diver certification. Further, they provide several diving skills courses connected with specific equipment or conditions, some diving related informational courses and a range of recreational diving instructor certifications. They also offer various technical diving courses. As of 2020, PADI claims to have issued 28 million scuba certifications. The levels are not specified and may include minor specialisations. Some of the certifications align with WRSTC and ISO standards, and these are recognised worldwide. Some other certification is unique to PADI and has no equivalence anywhere, or may be part of other agencies' standards for certification for more general diving skill levels.