Skydiving or parachuting is an activity priced for its recreational, competitive, and practical values. It involves breaking one's free-fall using a parachute. Military personnel are trained to sky dive for a variety of reasons. Individuals learn how to sky drive for the thrill and excitement it provides. Because of the popularity of sky diving, a lot of sky diving schools have increased. The credibility of a lot of these diving schools are always in question, especially the newer sky diving schools.

Since skydiving may be extremely dangerous when not done right, it is very important to choose a reliable and certified skydiving school. It is also equally important to shop around for sky diving schools and compare their services, methods, and rates first before deciding on enrolling in a sky diving course. Check for the certifications offered by national and international sky diving school associations and also verify the credentials of the instructors and the programs that the school teaches. It is also a safe bet to check the equipment and devices that they use prior to enrollment.

Before even jumping, sky diving schools first practice the necessary skills needed for skydiving. This may be done through the use of vertical wind tunnels when practicing free falls and through skydiving simulators when practicing parachute control. Sky diving schools may offer a range of courses ranging from the most basic course to the most advanced. They may also promote different ways of teaching individuals how to skydive. Tandem skydiving entails that the skydiving student be connected via a harness to his/her teacher or tandem master who controls the jump from exit, freefall, and landing. This method is very popular among first-time skydivers as it gives the students a feel of the entire skydiving routine.