The GUE Fundamentals course is GUE’s most popular program. It provides all divers with an opportunity to advance their foundational diving diving skills. It also provides the non-GUE trained diver (divers who are already certified with another recognized diving agency) with a gateway into GUE training andother GUE courses such as Scientific Diver, DPV 1, and more.

Some divers use the GUE Fundamentals program as a way to improve on the less-than-optimal training they have received during traditional fast-track entry-level courses. Others see the course as a ticket to participate in GUE projects and activities. Everybody will benefit, regardless of their current level of certification or experience. Graduating this course with a pass is something to be proud of, as the quality of a GUE Fundamentals diver is recognized all over the diving world.

For many non-GUE divers, the Fundamentals program is an “aha!” moment where everything falls into place. The standardized equipment configuration and standardized procedures are only a small part of the big picture. Realizing how a team-oriented approach can free up resources and increase situational awareness that can be used to maximize safety, efficiency, and fun is often a life-changing moment for Fundamentals students, and they walk away from the course with a completely new approach to diving.

Course outcomes include introduction to GUE equipment configuration and use, trim and buoyancy, propulsion techniques including backwards kick, valve management (the course can be done using a single tank or with a double tank configuration), gas sharing, and SMB deployment.

If you wish to do the course with double tank configuration, you will have to have either 15 dives on double tanks or have completed the GUE doubles primer before the course.

You will receive access to GUE’s intelligent online learning platform which will adapt to you and only teaches you what you don't already know. You can learn at your own pace, so that you can reach a level of mastery of the theory.That translates into more time in the water and less time in the classroom. 

You will be introduced to the benefits of having a standardized equipment configuration, standardized procedures, and how a team-oriented approach to diving can be used to maximize safety, efficiency, and fun. You will build a solid diving platform, based on balance, trim, buoyancy and propulsion techniques.

This course will supplement training that you may have already received and will give you more confidence in your basic skills even if you do not desire to go on for more advanced training. The course also includes the theory and use of nitrox.

Applicants for the Basic GUE Fundamentals Course must:

• Be a minimum of 14 years of age.
• Be physically and mentally fit.
• Be a non-smoker.
• Be able to swim.
• Obtain a physician’s prior written authorization for use of prescription drugs, except for birth control, or for any medical condition that may pose a risk while diving.
• Be certified, at a minimum, as an autonomous entry-level scuba diver (or equivalent) from a recognized training agency.
• If using doubles during the course, have conducted at least 15 non-training dives in the GUE double tank configuration or hold a GUE Doubles Primer certification.
• If using a drysuit during the course, have conducted at least 15 non-training dives in a drysuit or hold a GUE Drysuit Primer certification.
• For a full list of course prerequisites, click here.

The GUE Basic Fundamentals course is normally conducted over three days. It requires a minimum of six dives and at least twenty-four hours of in-person instruction, encompassing land drills and in-water work. Additional time is required for theory (conducted online and/or in-person).

At the instructor’s discretion, GUE Performance Divers may have a portion of their training counted toward GUE Basic Fundamentals qualification.