Rubelis Presence Diver: Design Rationale, Assessment Approach and Evaluation Agenda for an Open-Water Course in Observation and Composure

This report documents the design of Rubelis Presence Diver, a two-dive PADI Distinctive Specialty for certified recreational divers that gives dedicated, supervised practice in observation, self-monitoring and composure, without introducing any new emergency or technical procedure. It explains the design rationale with reference to research on situation awareness, stress and panic in diving, stress exposure training, controlled breathing, debriefing and reflective learning; positions the course relative to the widely taught Stop–Breathe–Think–Act mantra; maps each performance requirement to the Rubelis Awareness Cycle; proposes observation anchors for more consistent assessment; recommends additional safeguards for adults and for junior divers aged 12–14; and sets out a logic model and a staged evaluation agenda. The full text is published in English on Zenodo with a permanent DOI.

The course in brief

Knowledge development is the twelve-chapter, reading-based Rubelis Beyond Diver programme, completed before the first dive. Two supervised open water dives follow:

• The Observation Dive practises deliberate stillness, close-focus observation, reading a buddy’s non-verbal state and regular self-checks.
• The Composure Dive practises a brief routine, Stop – Breathe – Assess – Act, around three mild tasks the diver is already certified to perform, chosen with reference to what the diver finds most stressful. The dive ends with a segment the diver leads and does well.

There is no written examination. Each performance requirement describes something the instructor can see or receive as a signal, and each dive ends with a debrief and a short written reflection. Nothing in the course modifies standard agency safety and emergency procedures.

Publication status and disclosures

Course status. Rubelis Presence Diver was approved by PADI as a Distinctive Specialty in October 2026, under the instructor-authored pathway. The Instructor Outline as accepted by PADI prevails over any description in the report.

Versions

Version 1.1 updates the course status and supersedes Version 1.0 (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.23671309); there are no other changes. Both versions remain accessible on Zenodo.

The report is a course design report. It is not peer reviewed and is not an empirical study; it makes no claim that the course improves safety, awareness or stress responses. It is written and published by the course author; it is not a PADI publication, and PADI has not reviewed, approved or endorsed the report or its recommendations. PADI® and other names of training-agency courses and ratings are trademarks of their respective owners.

Conflict of interest. The author is the founder and chief executive of Rubelis OÜ, which sells the Rubelis Beyond Diver programme and registration for the course. Rubelis OÜ participates in the DAN Europe partner programme, under which it may receive a referral commission for memberships, is a member of DEMA, a digital member of Green Fins and a REEF Conservation Partner. None of these organisations, and no diver training organisation, reviewed, funded or endorsed the report. No external funding was received.

Review and AI use. Earlier drafts were critically reviewed by AI-assisted reviewers working independently of the drafting; no human peer review has taken place yet. Independent expert review is the first phase of the evaluation agenda, and reviewers are invited to contact info@rubelis.com.

Relationship to other Rubelis publications

The report applies The Rubelis Beyond Educational Framework, Version 1.1 alongside supervised open-water practice delivered under agency standards. RBSA 1001:2027 covers complementary awareness education only and does not regulate underwater skills, dive procedures or diving qualifications; the in-water part of the course is outside its scope, and no conformity claim is made. The report sets no requirements of its own.

Citation

Licence

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Publisher

© 2026 Rubelis OÜ. Author: Taylan Kırali.