How many lessons does it take to learn to drive? What a great question! There is no simple answer to that question. Every student is different! They have different backgrounds, different natural skillsets, and learn in different ways and at different rates. But, we’ve compiled some good approximations below.
All of these estimates are based on the assumption that the student will get SEVERAL HOURS of practice between each lesson to hone the skills that are taught. If the student is unable to practice between lessons for any reason, plan on MORE lessons and closer together! Learning to drive is like learning to do anything else, it takes constant practice.
PLEASE, be honest with yourself about the practice that you (or the student that you are responsible for) will be able to get. There are a lot of excuses for not practicing, and we hear them all. None of the excuses help! Whether it’s student time constraints (sports practice, homework, part-time job, studying for exams, etc), parent time constraints (working too late, too tired, other kids to deal with, FEAR, or just the “parent/teen dynamic”… we get it), or even simply no licensed driver available to practice with the student… accept this reality. Failure to accept this reality simply costs you more time and money.
Common Example: You schedule 6 lessons for a beginning driver with the intent of practicing between lessons. We do a lesson every 1-2 weeks for a while and get through 4 lessons. Little or no practice happens between lessons. We encourage practice before scheduling another lesson. 3 weeks goes by. Or 4 months. Little or no practice happens over that time. Then we get the 5th lesson, and we’re back to square one. Reteaching what we taught on the 2nd and 3rd lesson because the skills were not cemented in place by practice. The 6th lesson ends up being more catching up, and still no practice. We’ve done 6 lessons, but the student’s total driving experience adds up to those 6 lessons (9 hours) plus maybe another few hours. It takes a lot more time than that to learn how to drive! Needless to say, even after 6 lessons, this student is still very much at a beginner level. So they end up taking more a few more lessons. And the pattern repeats. And they take more lessons. And by the time they’re done, they’ve done 12-15 lessons or more (total of maybe 20-30 hours of driving experience when the state requirement is 50+) and they might barely be ready to pass their license and drive on their own.
Better Example: If, for whatever reason, you question your ability to get practice, accept it! Plan your lessons accordingly. Go ahead and buy 12 or more lessons, and schedule them 2-3 per week. Maybe even schedule some back-to-back lessons to give us a 3-hour block to work with! Then, in a matter of 6 weeks or less, you’ll likely have a student that is much more confident and ready for the world.
RECOMMENDED NUMBER OF LESSONS