When Matt Morgan left school, he knew what he wanted to do. A native of Devon, on the south coast of England, he had been surfing for a number of years before leaving school.
"I did two courses of one year each in Bicton College," says Matt. "The first year was a certificate in outdoor recreation. There was a lot of theory in that one. We did first aid, risk assessment, emergency action and things like that."
The second year was more practical and Matt managed to gain qualifications as a surf coach, a lifeguard, a sailing instructor and a kayaking coach.
Now working as an outdoor pursuits instructor in Delphi Adventure Centre in Mayo, Matt is enjoying the challenges of the job.
"It's important to have good people skills," he says. "You need the practical skills and qualifications but it's good to have confidence and enthusiasm. I suppose you have to get on well with kids and it's important to have a cool head on you."
No two days are the same. The growth of the adventure sports industry means that instructors are as likely to be looking after groups of bankers on a team-building day as children on a school tour.
A typical day for Matt starts at 8.30am with a staff meeting at 9am that organises what the instructors will be doing for the day.
The first activity of the day lasts from 10am until just before one when people have lunch. The second activity starts at 2pm and lasts until about 5pm. Another meeting can signal the end of the working day unless he is on the rota to coordinate evening games until 10pm.
"The rota is versatile and there are a good few instructors so you don't end up working too many evenings," he says.
There are a number of outdoor instruction courses throughout the country. Matt advises students who are interested in the career to find out as much as possible about the options available.
"Talk to people who have done it and contact adventure centres. A lot of centres have in-house training."
The qualifications travel well. "It's great," says Matt. "You can go wherever you want to. People will employ you all over the world."
Well-known and experienced instructors can get a lot of freelance work from different centres.
It's early days but Matt is enjoying his job in Delphi. "I like the fact that I'm outdoors and that I'm having fun," he says. "Sometimes I'm outside surfing or whatever and I think: Wow, I'm getting paid for this!"