Should I train to be a driving instructor ?
Discussion
I have been in my current job role (an inbound call centre) for just over 3 years. I was actively looking for a new job role pre covid 19 but put it on hold due to my current company being very good to me and working from home full time which I love. The reality is my current job is dead end and there is nowhere for me to go. It is also quite lowly paid at £21255 a year.
I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor. I enjoy driving and many people have commented that I would be a instructor. I am a peoples person and would like to help people achieve that lifetime skill. I like the sound of the flexibility and working for a franchise initially.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor. I enjoy driving and many people have commented that I would be a instructor. I am a peoples person and would like to help people achieve that lifetime skill. I like the sound of the flexibility and working for a franchise initially.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
Captainfred said:
I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
Being a driving instructor will involve working weekends and evenings, so not exactly ideal if you are having kids. As you want your evenings and weekends free.Be very careful with signing up to a national franchise, it's very easy to get your fingers burnt and be tied into a contract that you can't leave. Find a good, local independent driving school to do your training with, most of them will be very busy at the moment so they will be your best bet for franchising too.
Youd make more learning to drive a lorry currently than a driving instructor.
Yes its expensive but its not exactly cheap to buy a new car and get dual controls put in and 5 clutches a year... I also curbed my instructors brand new cars alloys the very first lesson he had used it for... oops. Very calm man he was lol
Yes its expensive but its not exactly cheap to buy a new car and get dual controls put in and 5 clutches a year... I also curbed my instructors brand new cars alloys the very first lesson he had used it for... oops. Very calm man he was lol
hotchy said:
Youd make more learning to drive a lorry currently than a driving instructor.
Maybe. But it will take 3 - 6 months to get your HGV licence, and who knows where wages will be then, after the panic over "empty shelves at Christmas" is over.hotchy said:
Yes its expensive but its not exactly cheap to buy a new car and get dual controls put in and 5 clutches a year... I also curbed my instructors brand new cars alloys the very first lesson he had used it for... oops. Very calm man he was lol
Buy a used car to start with £5k, dual controls are around £400 fitted. You won't need a clutch any more than every 5 years if you're teaching them properly. There's more and more demand for auto lessons now too, get a hybrid that does 100MPG and charge a premium for auto and you're on a winner.Captainfred said:
I have been in my current job role (an inbound call centre) for just over 3 years. I was actively looking for a new job role pre covid 19 but put it on hold due to my current company being very good to me and working from home full time which I love. The reality is my current job is dead end and there is nowhere for me to go. It is also quite lowly paid at £21255 a year.
I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor. I enjoy driving and many people have commented that I would be a instructor. I am a peoples person and would like to help people achieve that lifetime skill. I like the sound of the flexibility and working for a franchise initially.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
A family member made the move some time ago.I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor. I enjoy driving and many people have commented that I would be a instructor. I am a peoples person and would like to help people achieve that lifetime skill. I like the sound of the flexibility and working for a franchise initially.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
1. It's hard work. Takes time to build up your customer base and reputation. Hours are unsocial.
2. You can drive, but can you teach? The two are not necessarily entwined. You need the patience of a saint.
3. You currently earn £21255 doing a (presumably) 37-40 hour week. I'd be surprised if you earn much more than that for doing many more hours during your start up period as an instructor.
I wouldn't do it, but then I'm not you.
Few thoughts below but my main issue would be that your potential earning power is very limited and is hugely dependent on factors outside of your control.
Due to the 1-2-1 nature of the job, your ability to increase revenue is limited by the number of hours you can potentially work for - unless you plan to franchise out / take on staff / offer additional services (perhaps pre-recorded pay per view video lessons?) your earning capacity is limited to the number of hours that you can work in each day.
Your client base in the main will be youngsters with very limited means so they are likely to shop based on cost alone - very hard to justify charging premium rates and easy to end up in a race to the bottom. You would also have to fit around their commitments so likely to have to offer evening and weekend lessons.
Also worth considering that self-driving cars are already here and it's only a matter of time before they expand. Maybe not a big issue now but what will a driving instructor's job look like in 20 years?
Even if the going rate in your area is say £25 per hour, and say you had 6 solid billable hours of work a day x 5 days per week, your revenue for the year would only be £34,500 (assuming you took 5-6 weeks holiday). Out of that, you would need to cover all the fuel, insurance, car hire / finance, advertising, servicing, repairs, IT / telephone etc. Assuming over the course of a day you covered 100-150 miles, the fuel alone would be circa £5k per year.
I reckon you'd be lucky to earn much more than you currently are. Obviously you could put more hours in but the basic earning potential would really put me off.
As an alternative what about training as a teacher if you like the idea of helping others achieve?
Potentially very good wages (£30 - 50k plus) and plenty of holidays, ideal if you have kids? Obviously it's a challenging job and not for everyone but I have a lot of teachers in the family and they all seem to enjoy it.
Due to the 1-2-1 nature of the job, your ability to increase revenue is limited by the number of hours you can potentially work for - unless you plan to franchise out / take on staff / offer additional services (perhaps pre-recorded pay per view video lessons?) your earning capacity is limited to the number of hours that you can work in each day.
Your client base in the main will be youngsters with very limited means so they are likely to shop based on cost alone - very hard to justify charging premium rates and easy to end up in a race to the bottom. You would also have to fit around their commitments so likely to have to offer evening and weekend lessons.
Also worth considering that self-driving cars are already here and it's only a matter of time before they expand. Maybe not a big issue now but what will a driving instructor's job look like in 20 years?
Even if the going rate in your area is say £25 per hour, and say you had 6 solid billable hours of work a day x 5 days per week, your revenue for the year would only be £34,500 (assuming you took 5-6 weeks holiday). Out of that, you would need to cover all the fuel, insurance, car hire / finance, advertising, servicing, repairs, IT / telephone etc. Assuming over the course of a day you covered 100-150 miles, the fuel alone would be circa £5k per year.
I reckon you'd be lucky to earn much more than you currently are. Obviously you could put more hours in but the basic earning potential would really put me off.
As an alternative what about training as a teacher if you like the idea of helping others achieve?
Potentially very good wages (£30 - 50k plus) and plenty of holidays, ideal if you have kids? Obviously it's a challenging job and not for everyone but I have a lot of teachers in the family and they all seem to enjoy it.
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Good point to check... Still, at 30 OP is young enough to invest a few years and obtain a teaching degree with qualified status - funding options depend on status
https://getintoteaching.education.gov.uk/funding-y...
If you want to do it because you think it'll be a rewarding job you'd enjoy and be good at then go for it. Certainly don't do it for the money. I'd be very surprised if you would earn more than you do at the moment unless you work crazy hours. Also, don't underestimate how stressful the job will be and how most people will want a lesson outside of office hours.
Definitely no chance of progression where you're working now? I was in the same boat at 30, worked in an inbound call centre for a bank which I saw as a short term solution after leaving a previous job I hated. I got my head down and took any opportunities going - training/mentoring new joiners, helping other departments and teams. Within a couple of years I was doing more interesting work for a much better salary.
Definitely no chance of progression where you're working now? I was in the same boat at 30, worked in an inbound call centre for a bank which I saw as a short term solution after leaving a previous job I hated. I got my head down and took any opportunities going - training/mentoring new joiners, helping other departments and teams. Within a couple of years I was doing more interesting work for a much better salary.
anonymous said:
[redacted]
(fixed quoting)All teachers in government-maintained state schools need Qualified Teacher Status, for which a degree is a pre-requisite. Now whilst it's technically true that teachers in certain schools (mainly private schools and academies) are not legally required to have QTS, the huge majority do - and if you don't, to get the job you do need to have shown significant experience and skill in the area you're teaching. It's most frequently seen in more vocational courses such as drama and music where you can often find really good people who haven't gone through "formal" education in their subject.
I am going to suggest, in the nicest possible way, that as the OP is a call centre agent who is considering becoming a driving instructor, that this probably doesn't apply to them.
Captainfred said:
I have been in my current job role (an inbound call centre) for just over 3 years. I was actively looking for a new job role pre covid 19 but put it on hold due to my current company being very good to me and working from home full time which I love. The reality is my current job is dead end and there is nowhere for me to go. It is also quite lowly paid at £21255 a year.
I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor. I enjoy driving and many people have commented that I would be a instructor. I am a peoples person and would like to help people achieve that lifetime skill. I like the sound of the flexibility and working for a franchise initially.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
My mother was a driving instructor and had her own business. I briefly decided that I might follow in her footsteps. The day I decided not to was when I climbed into the school car, after a fat chap had done a lesson on a hot day. As I sat there, his sweat soaked through my shirt.I am now 30 and my circumstances have changed since I started in the role. I now have a mortgage and we have plans to have kids shortly and my current role just does not fit the bill at all.
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor. I enjoy driving and many people have commented that I would be a instructor. I am a peoples person and would like to help people achieve that lifetime skill. I like the sound of the flexibility and working for a franchise initially.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
My mother and her driving school partner lived in a one bedroom flat. Often they took objects in lieu of fees, because the pupil had run out of money.
We rented a one bedroom flat to a driving instructor recently, he had no money either,
I suspect it is nowadays frowned upon to accept sexual favours in lieu of lesson fees.
On balance, then, I'd pass.
I became an ADI after taking redundancy from a well-payed job seven years ago, I just needed to do something to fill in a few years before retirement. I was fortunate; I could afford to fund my own driving school car and pay the training fees (£1k plus test costs).
Don't underestimate the time it takes to qualify. It took me 8 months to get my pink ticket (and I could go at this full-time unlike many who are holding down full-time jobs whilst they re-train). I finally qualified in 13 months from the start.
Part of the deal was to sign up to a 12 month franchise which was going to cost me £300/month in fees. Plus the franchise was promoting a first 1hr lesson for £10 which was crazy so I used to ignore all the referrals and touted for my own business. I just binned the franchise deal after 6 months and went my own way.
I was very fortunate in being located next to a large secondary school from which I got most of my students. The school allowed pupils to take driving lessons during free periods so for the most part I was working from 0800-1700hrs. After the first couple of years I just didn't want to be doing lessons after 6pm or at weekends but this does seriously dent your earning potential.
The highest net earnings I had was in year 2/3 where I was established and prepared to do weekends. I think I grossed around £32k and netted £23k.
So my conclusions:
1. you'll never get rich
2. don't forget teaching for 6-8hrs a day is equivalent to driving for 6-8hrs a day; you're never a passenger!
3. it is very rewarding and I took personal pride in measuring my own pass rate (66% first time and 96% 1st and 2nd)
4. For 5 years it worked for me but I could not have been a career ADI and would have been looking for something else if retirement hadn't been an option.
Don't underestimate the time it takes to qualify. It took me 8 months to get my pink ticket (and I could go at this full-time unlike many who are holding down full-time jobs whilst they re-train). I finally qualified in 13 months from the start.
Part of the deal was to sign up to a 12 month franchise which was going to cost me £300/month in fees. Plus the franchise was promoting a first 1hr lesson for £10 which was crazy so I used to ignore all the referrals and touted for my own business. I just binned the franchise deal after 6 months and went my own way.
I was very fortunate in being located next to a large secondary school from which I got most of my students. The school allowed pupils to take driving lessons during free periods so for the most part I was working from 0800-1700hrs. After the first couple of years I just didn't want to be doing lessons after 6pm or at weekends but this does seriously dent your earning potential.
The highest net earnings I had was in year 2/3 where I was established and prepared to do weekends. I think I grossed around £32k and netted £23k.
So my conclusions:
1. you'll never get rich
2. don't forget teaching for 6-8hrs a day is equivalent to driving for 6-8hrs a day; you're never a passenger!
3. it is very rewarding and I took personal pride in measuring my own pass rate (66% first time and 96% 1st and 2nd)
4. For 5 years it worked for me but I could not have been a career ADI and would have been looking for something else if retirement hadn't been an option.
Captainfred said:
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
After a year you will be a driving instructor.Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
After 5 years you will be a driving instructor.
After 10 years you will be a driving instructor.
I looked at it a few years ago. Started the process but got another job.
My plan at the moment is to do it once I retire from this job (although I’m only 32). Part time just to keep me busy.
Reasons why I went for the other job is I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go self employed and it’s more money (although s
te hours!).
My plan at the moment is to do it once I retire from this job (although I’m only 32). Part time just to keep me busy.
Reasons why I went for the other job is I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go self employed and it’s more money (although s
te hours!). The OP was worried about there current role being a bit dead end but this:
After 5 years you will be a driving instructor.
After 10 years you will be a driving instructor.Was my first thought.
The second was that if your wanting to start a family, a driving instructor works just about the least compatible hours with a young family that I can imagine!
The Mad Monk said:
Captainfred said:
I have been doing a bit of research and was considering training to become a driving instructor.
Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
After a year you will be a driving instructor.Has anyone else made the move ? Also what are the downsides to it ?
After 5 years you will be a driving instructor.
After 10 years you will be a driving instructor.
The second was that if your wanting to start a family, a driving instructor works just about the least compatible hours with a young family that I can imagine!
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