Indo Ocean Project Reviews

The time I spent at the Indo Ocean Project at Nusa Penida was incredible.
The staff were amazing, so friendly and willing to teach and guide at all times; especially Mette, Anne, Arya and Rinaldi. They will push you to become a better diver and ensure you do more than the bare minimum so you are a competent but also a confident diver.

Nusa Penida is a beautiful place to dive and also a great place to stay and explore. You also get to meet some amazing other interns whilst at the internship so you are learning with like minded people.

Moreover, you get to be involved in some great conservation projects such as mangrove planting.

I highly recommend this internship if you are looking to advance your career in diving or if you are interested in conservation.

The program was very well organized and structured. The working load was always manageable. It was enough not to get bored on a island where you cant do anything else except diving, but not as much to sink into work.
The place itself is very remote in between the jungle and the ocean. Housing is primitive. You have to be an outdoor-person to feel comfortable. I loved it to spend the whole day outside with all the different sounds of the nature. Of course there were also some inconveniences as mosquitos or the frequent power failure. But it was a good experience to learn how little you actually need.

The staff and instructors in the program were AMAZING! They provided guidance and support every step of the way. I always felt I could reach out for advice and sometimes a shoulder to cry on. The program was incredibly challenging, but so rewarding.
I enjoyed the diving and getting used to handling strong currents. It paid off for me in a later dive!
The living conditions are very primitive and you’re sharing with lots of people. So, be prepared. You live, eat, sleep and dive with these people! Being flexible is a must.
The temperatures are hot and humid, so it can be physically exhausting. Just communicate with your instructors and they’ll try to help you rest. Take care of yourself and enjoy the ocean!

To be diving in one of the premier spots in the world was incredible. Special shout out to the all of the Indo Ocean Project Staff especially the two Italian beauties Mario and Sel!!!!

The course itself was well organized from start to finish. I was in the research internship part of the program and it helped open the door into the beautiful world of conservation.

The Raja Ampat location is quite remote. So if you're not used to shared dorms and bathrooms, mosquito nets on the beds, and having basic amenities around, you can still choose from the other locations. But I loved every minute of it!

The locals are super friendly as well, and having all your meals for free was great!

IOP divemaster and scientific diver internship really pushed me to become and better diver and scientist. I give huge credit to Rinaldi, one of the marine biologist at IOP, who pushed me to become better at fish ID everyday as I originally struggled with this but by the end of my internship leading fish ID survey’s was one of my favourite tasks. I really like how IOP make you do far more than the bare minimum to become and divemaster and I truly felt super comfortable in the water and confident as a leader after my 3 months was up. I will always remember this internship being a huge stepping stone into understand what I wanted to get out of life and my degree. Thank you for everything!

One of the best experience in my life! The Indo Ocean Project staff were friendly, professional and always ready to teach something new!!!
I recommend this experience because was a continue improvement: both professional and personal.
During the internship you can meet new people, new culture, learn from different background and from yourself. Indo Ocean Project will be the best also for you!
And the last but not least: Nusa Penida is beautiful for diving 🤩 🌊
Thank you Indo Ocean Project ❤️

I arrived in Raja Ampat on 8 Oct to start the Divemaster program with IOP. It was a bit too much to take in the first time I arrived, considering the basic facilities in place for the IOP interns. We were hosted at the Scuba Republic Base Camp in Waisai, Waigeo island, Raja Ampat. My initial thoughts were that it was going to be a long 7-8 weeks here.
Fast forward 7 weeks later, and now back in the comforts of home, I have nothing but fond memories of my time with the IOP team in Raja Ampat.

The people that run the IOP program in Raja Ampat i.e. Selene and Mario are top-class Diving Instructors, and coupled with the academic background in Marine Sciences, they made the whole 7 weeks there filled with so much learning.

Apart from the required SSI, PADI content, what was good for me was the experience sharing from Sel and Mario in handling real-life diving situations. Be it equipment issues, people not feeling well, a difficult 'diver', personality issues and so on. The informal sessions on top of the course content were what I found valuable. A lot of support also from the IOP staff at Raja i.e. Shae, Mike and later Jon. Being a senior intern from day-1 (I'm 52 years young) was one of the concerns I had when I arrived, but everyone there was very supportive, and I had no problems fitting in early on and really be part of the family. But seriously, there was a lot of content to absorb, and this was no holiday camp. Assignments and knowledge reviews were frequent and had to be submitted on time. Those in Raja would know what "BRUV LUV" means very well by now :).

Looking back, I came home a much better diver than when I started. The Divemaster certification allows me to pursue opportunities to further my training to work with disabled people that want to experience diving. The learnings on the science content makes me more knowledgeable on the different fish species identification when I'm in the water ( I've had the opportunity to see a Red Emperor Snapper hiding under a coral (go guess if this a Snapper or Emperor!). The workshops and practical session with corals will allow me to participate actively on future coral restoration work in Malaysia.

The final week was the hardest for me at least, starting with the Stamina test, the final Skills sessions and the Stress test (doing the equipment exchange underwater with a buddy 2 sizes smaller than me was a definite challenge !).

I ended my 7 weeks with a fantastic party! The customary "Snorkel Test" to finish of the program was one I would not forget in a long time.

To Mario, Sel, Shae, Jon.. A big thank you to guys. Thanks for taking care of us interns and ensuring that we were always motivated, making the learning sessions on land and in the water enjoyable, interesting and most importantly SAFE.

I spent two months in Bira with the Indoocean project, and it was one of the most amazing experiences I ever did.
I really loved to be part of the IOP family, sharing all the moment with the other interns and the staff..
I learned a lot of new stuff about the marine environment that I did not know and that I will remember because was really well explained.
I also loved to do my divaster with IOP.
The staff is really competent and really good people - I’m really glad I had the chance to meet them.

I chose the IOP in Bira at Blue Planet Dive Resort beacuse it was a bit remote and in an area that is not so easy to reach, and I was right with my choice: pristine house reef, amazing sunsets, amazing people, nice village and super dive resort with amazing owners. Moreover you may have the chance to see Mobulas, Whalesharks, Threshershark and Hammerheads, without having the dives sites crowded by many boats, since there are only few dive center in the area :D

If you are looking for a new experience, don’t hesitate to apply, you will not regret it :-)

I was looking for a place to do my Dive master internship and I found out about Indo ocean project from a prior intern and I am more than happy to be a part of this project. The instructors are super nice and they train you to be the best. The project gives you a head start in the conservation world. You dive everyday with a purpose of giving something back to the ocean even if it is a tiny effort. No dive is just a dive at the Indo ocean project. You are always doing some type of surveys, research, collecting trash from the ocean, maintaining and planting coral nurseries. With Indo ocean project you get much more than the bare minimum in every aspect of dive master training. I would love to be a part of the project again in future and contribute in whatever way possible.

I did my zero to hero program with IOP. I started out from scratch with 2 dives under my belt and I finished my program as a divemaster with over 100 dives. It is really difficult to put into words the incredible journey that the program had to offer. Even though I had no marine biology background, I had no problem keeping up with the program. The staffs are wonderful and are extremely knowledgeable. My instructors from reeflex also really helped me out with my certifications. My confidence and skills improved so much with time. All the research and science blew my mind. This program was a wonderful start to my diving journey and I fell in love with the marine life in Penida. It was incredible, challenging at times but absolutely worth it. The people, the experience and the culture in Indonesia, everything is absolutely incredible! If anyone’s thinking of doing their divemaster and research program, this is the right place.
I would say, the only thing that they could improve upon is the stay, with things getting fixed on time.