Any driving instructors here?

[Tdcp]

I'm 37, out for 50 hours for a dead end job that isn't much more than minimum wage. I hate it. I'm thinking about training to become a driving instructor but the thought also terrifies me. Well the thought of laying out 2k that I don't really have and then not passing / not being up to standard or hating the job!

What is being an instructor really like? Do you like your work? Is it worth it?

Trainee driving instructor here. I’ve been teaching a couple of months and training for my part 3. It’s a mixed bag really. I love seeing people progress and enjoy the difference I’m making. I also pondered about training to be a counsellor and do plenty of that in this job, the psychological element to learning to drive is massive.

The bad thing is the risk, you’ve got to be a very defensive driver and have a sixth sense about what’s round the corner, as you really don’t have much time to get them to react or you react (and you don’t have a dual accelerator, I realised just how much I’ve accelerated out of trouble before). I found the risk element with two kids at home very hard initially, but now anticipate things better and know how to react better, but I’m sure there’s a point in the training where your accident risk is way higher, but you learn bloody quick with the risk!

I’ve always freelanced before and had tons of flexibility so the fact I’ve got to be out for certain hours is hard to get used to. I do sometimes fantasise about firing up Illustrator and going back to my old industry just so I can sit and not have too much pressure!

if you’re spending £2k you’re probably looking at the big franchises training who play a numbers game, the pass rate for part 3 is something like 35% and many trainers believe it’s because the big franchises don’t have hands on training in the same way. When I’ve got through part 3 I’ll have paid the best part of £5k to set up (trainer was £4350 but one of the best) so I’d question the quality for £2k.

Its fairly fast retraining, approx a year so long as you pass everything (I’m hoping to keep my passing first time record up with part 3). Earnings depend on area and how much you work, whether you pay into a franchise, car costs etc.

Loads of groups on Facebook for more research, although some do get very heated in discussion!

Thanks a ton for that, there's so much information and you've given me a lot to think about! I definitely can't afford 5k to train, 2k is almost everything I have but I understand what you've said about the quality, I thought the price wouldn't vary so much. I am concerned about the whole thing tbh, I'm not sure if being financially secure for the first time would outweigh all the bad though!

I think the problem is until you’re actually out on the road doing it you won’t know you like it. But guess it’s the same as any retraining.

I did look at doing another degree and that would’ve been way more expensive and longer.

People can and do get through part 3’s without paying what I have, you’ve got to have a very good understanding of client lead learning, and the psychology involved in that. If you’re emotionally intelligent, can build rapport easily and reasonably academic enough to learn the theory it’s not impossible.

As for earnings, think about car finance, don’t go brand new, don’t go franchise, your costs are the car, insurance (mine was £600), fuel, think about how many hours you’ll work - the demand is massive, then how much you’ll charge per hour. Most are charging £40ph + round here.

You won’t be rich, but it’s not bad money.