UASBC Education

What is the UASBC's education program?

The UASBC offers its own custom courses. Our flagship course is Underwater Archaeology for Divers (UAD).

UAD gives sport and technical divers the knowledge, skills, and ability to conduct research, search for and survey shipwrecks and other submerged cultural heritage sites and document the results. The course is a 20-hour, two-day course, with a 2-hour pool session and an open water survey dive. The course is designed to introduce students to the essential skills required to undertake basic underwater archaeological recording work. The course also covers principles of underwater archaeology, basic survey techniques, an overview of sites around the Pacific Northwest and the legal aspect of underwater heritage sites. The course includes 3 hands-on sessions where divers practice their skills in the pool and in open water. Upon completing the course, divers receive an Underwater Archaeology Certificate of Achievement.

Learning Modules

Module 1: Introduction to Underwater Archaeology
Learn what it is to be a citizen scientist! This part of the course covers the history and science of underwater archaeology.
Module 2: Wreck Site Formation
What does a shipwreck site look like? Learn about how ships sink and why wreck sites change over time.
Module 3 Researching Shipwrecks in the PNW
Underwater archaeology starts and ends above the water.  This module teaches students how to conduct research to answer questions about underwater cultural heritage sites, like What wreck is this? and How do we search for a lost ship?
Module 4: Visual Searches, Remote Sensing & Position Fixing
Learn all about searching for and locating underwater sites in this module, which covers diver searches, remote sensing technology and basic position fixing.
Module 5: Survey procedures and methodologies
Become proficient at mapping underwater archaeological sites. This part of the course teaches students basic underwater mapping techniques and how to choose the right technique. We also cover how to turn your data into beautiful maps!
Module 6: Laws governing wreck protection salvage and underwater archaeology
Do you ever wonder about the laws that protect underwater archaeological sites? This module focuses on heritage legislation in British Columbia and Canada, but students will learn about their role in heritage protection globally. An additional course module is available for students from the United States Pacific Northwest.
Module 7: Dive Planning & Safely
Learn how to bring an underwater archaeology project together. This course module covers project planning, the responsibilities of a project leader, and diving and boating safety.
Module 8: In Situ Preservation, Recovery and Treatment
Preserving underwater heritage sites and artifacts is a core skill for any underwater archaeologist. Learn techniques for preserving artifacts in situ and the challenges of conserving artifacts that have been removed from underwater sites.

The Underwater Archaeological Society of British Columbia’s exploration program is core to the organizations mandate.

Underwater Archaeological Society of British Columbia
c/o Vancouver Maritime Museum
1905 Ogden Avenue
Vancouver, BC, Canada
V6J 1A3

Email: info@uasbc.com
Phone: (604) 123-1234