Becoming an instructor
So you’re thinking of becoming a driving instructor?
You’ve certainly come to the right place - the DIA is the world’s largest association of driving instructors.
Teaching people to drive can be a very rewarding experience, but as with any industry you have to be realistic about its positive and negative aspects.
You may have seen an advertisement in a national or local paper, complete with promises of high hourly tuition fees and an income of £30k a year, for doing little more than sitting in the passenger seat while someone else does the driving.
You may have seen an advertisement for a franchise package, where you have the backing of a large instructional organisation. The advertisement might not say so, but you could end up having to pay a substantial weekly franchise fee.
Perhaps, as the growing number of radio and television advertisements imply, you see becoming a driving instructor as some kind of soft option, where scores of learner drivers pay you to be told when to use their indicators.
Sadly the truth isn’t quite so rosy.
It isn’t particularly easy to become a driving instructor – the pass rate for the final part of the government’s test for driving instructors is currently less than 28%. It’s a chilling statistic: for every 100 people who have paid thousands of pounds to be trained as driving instructors, almost three-quarters of them fail.
And even if you do qualify, there are no guarantees that there will be enough work in your locality to earn a living anyway.
Having said all that, it is of course perfectly possible to succeed as a driving instructor, to make a reasonable living for yourself, and perhaps even to start up your own driving school business.
You still have to be careful, however - there are many companies and organisations out there only too pleased to sign you up, train you to become an instructor, and take your money. Unfortunately, if that training isn’t up to scratch you will fail the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) tests. And without that DSA licence you’ll never become an instructor.
The DIA will help you avoid pitfalls like this, and help you decide whether it is worth the time, effort and cost that it will take to become a driving instructor.
The official DSA starter pack (known in the trade as ADI 14) application forms and a list of ORDIT-qualified ADI trainers can be downloaded from the DSA's website. A 24-page booklet published by the DIA that will guide you through the process of becoming an Approved Driving Instructor is available free from DIA. To get your copy please send a self-addressed, stamped envelope (C5 size) to DIA (Int.) Ltd, Safety House, Beddington Farm Road, Croydon, CR0 4XZ.
If you are seriously thinking about becoming a driving instructor, it will be very much in your interests to join the DIA.
We are an independent organisations that exists to help people become driving instructors, and promote and protect the interests of driving instructors throughout their driver-training careers.
In the meantime, we wish you well in your search for a new career, and look forward to being of assistance to you in the future.