Rocket Frog owner Michael Kruchawski did not like the
way we characterized his Costa Rica internship program
in last month's issue, writing that his interns don't clean
the pools or bathrooms. "We have a service that cleans the
pool, and a maid service that cleans our bathrooms . . . The
cost of the dive master internship is $740 [which includes]
all course materials, three T-shirts and use of all dive equipment
during the internship . . . Each one dives 80 to 140
dives during the six-week program . . . The interns learn
how to be excellent divemasters, how to mix gases, how
to maintain equipment, inspect and clean tanks; they learn
point-of-sale operations and customer service, seamanship
and boat operations . . . Interns require a good deal of
mentoring to be successful, and the permanent local staff
provides that guidance.
"With the exception of the Costa Ricans who wanted to
work in the recreational dive industry, none of our other
interns have sought employment diving with the exception
of one -- she moved on to become an instructor and has
since moved to the Philippines for work . . . Eighty percent
of our interns are in Costa Rica participating in the program
for a life experience! They are not seeking future employment
at this time in the dive industry, even though they
leave here fully qualified to do so."