Itinerary

Surf Instructor Course Breakdown

If you want to properly master the art of surfing and turn your new found passion in to a career (or at least a fine gap year job) then this is for you. Not only do you get to spend 3 months surfing and living in great beach side surf shacks, but ultimately you can be paid to surf for a living!

Total Surf instructor Course. Duration: 3 months

1st month

• Understand surf safety and ocean awareness
• Understand surf conditions and wave selection
• Ability to catch unbroken waves
• Ability to ride across the face of unbroken waves
• Ability to get out the back of breaking waves
• Improved fitness and ocean knowledge
• Understand surf equipment and its uses

2nd month

LEVEL 2

• Demonstrate surf fitness
• Ability to perform a bottom and top turn on unbroken waves up to 1 meter
• Demonstrate correct wave selection
• Demonstrate ability to ride right and left breaking waves (forehand and backhand)
• Demonstrate ability to negotiate rips and currents

3rd month

LEVEL 3

• Apply first aid techniques
• Perform an ocean rescue
• Ability to swim 500 meters in under 10 min.
• Apply advanced resuscitation techniques
• Ability to instruct a surf lesson
• Perform a risk assessment on the surf lesson area
• Ability to create surf lesson plans
• Perform cut backs & re-entry’s in 1 meter waves
• Ability to link maneuvers on unbroken waves
   

Help with finding work after the course

After your 3 months of training, it will be time to find work (if you want to) you will recieve assistance in this with the large network of surf schools (although this is not guaranteed, your chances will be good). You will then be able to teach others to learn to surf and earn money by working on the beach and in the ocean! Job assistance is provided in Australia, but your qualification is internationally recognised, yoy can take it with you and earn more on your onward travels, previous Xtreme Gappers have gone onto Fiji, Bali, New Zealand and some have return to the UK to teach.

But I have never surfed before...

You can start the surf instructor course at any level even without surf experience. You do have to love the sea, because this will be your classroom and you will have to surf alot, but hey its fun!

The last month involves a lot of coaching skills.

This qualification enables you to work as a surf instructor in Australia. Perfect for a working holiday spent on the beach! If you do not wish to become an instructor but just want to surf a lot... Have a look at our Surf dude course in Australia.

Extra Activities when not in the water.

Yes you will be having surf lessons 5 days a week, at least 4 hours a day, but on your time of there is also other stuff to do. Take time to get to know the crew, get involved in the games and activities. Experience kayaking, skydiving, music around the camp fire and much more. On the beach can be as exciting or as relaxing as you like. We travel with volleyball equipment, footballs and other fun stuff. The surf academy is also a very social place, as alongside the Surf instructor programme it is also a main stop for Oz Experience buses, meaning every week hundreds of backpackers stop by and yes, it can be a bit of a party!

If you are looking for a little peice and quiet, you have a surf house away from the riff raff to hang out and chill with other academy students. There tends to be 7 to 10 students training at anyone time, so you always have friends to hang out with.

Meals

Three times a day you will have the best fresh and healthy food you could wish for. Surfing makes you hungry. In the mornings there will be cereal, milk, fresh fruit, toast, jam, Marmite etc. For lunch there will be all kinds of salads, beans, meat, spaghetti and in the evenings there will also be fresh salads, pasta, meat, rice, deserts you name it! All freshly prepared for you!