Dash to the DMV: A Step By Step Guide to Getting Your Permit/License
By Arielle Arbel, Features Editor
With all of the new difficulties and challenges people are facing with the current pandemic, getting a permit and a license seems almost impossible. To help, here's a simple checklist to follow. Taking you from reserving your permit date all the way to your road test, this easy-to-read guide is your simple solution to obtaining a license during the COVID-19 pandemic.
First, you’ll need to know what to bring to the DMV. To do this, use this link and click begin. This will bring you to a form that will end in telling you the items to bring during your permit test date (this link).
Step 5 of the form will be a review checklist. In this review, there will be a subtitle phrased “Application,” under which there will be a hyperlink to a PDF. This PDF is the form MV-44, which is the application you will need for your test date.
Scrolling all the way to the bottom of the page will bring you to a “Print Checklist” option. It is recommended to print the list to remember which documents are needed for identification purposes.
The next tab is titled “Make a reservation at the DMV” which will allow you to reserve a date for your permit.
For the following time between reserving your date and the actual test, make sure to properly prepare yourself! Take practice exams or download an app. I recommend the app “DMV,” which has a red icon color and white car.
For the day of your reservation, make sure you have everything you need. This includes all the needed forms of identification and the filled out application. Be prepared to pay a fee of no more than $136 (side note, if you fail the written exam, you can try again with no extra cost!).
Once you pass the written exam, you will receive a paper copy of your permit. This will be a placeholder until the card copy will arrive in the mail around two weeks after your permit date (another side note: remember, the mail has been backed up because of everything going on, so if it takes longer, it's normal!).
From this point on, start practicing! Anything works: a parent, a friend aged 21+, or a driving course. As long as you're safe and legal, don’t be afraid to choose what makes you feel comfortable and well educated. Driving courses by “All County Drivers Training Center Inc.” are a great resource!
*Helpful hint* When deciding whether to take a driver’s education course or simply practice with an adult, make sure you do your research for which is best for you. Simply put, a driver’s education course allows you to receive a senior license at 17, meanwhile, when practicing with an adult, you receive a junior license until age 18. A junior license restricts you to only driving one passenger who is not family-related and gives a curfew of 9-pm (exceptions include jobs or volunteer activities), meanwhile, there are no restrictions with a senior license.
Infographic by Julianna Holmes, Photography Editor
9. Before your road test date, make sure you have the MV-278 form filled out. This means either registering for a pre-licensing course through All Country Drivers Training Center Inc. or, if you have signed up for driver’s education courses, this training course will already be included.
10. To schedule a road test you need to have the following items: your permit, the identification number of the MV-278 form, and a window of 5-6 months when you received your permit. If you attempt to schedule the road test too early, the system will not let you complete the reservation, as you do not have substantial enough time on your permit.
11. Once scheduled for a road test, I strongly recommend signing up for 2-4 individual classes with All Country Drivers to better prepare you for the road test. This will help smooth out any possible issues you may be having, such as learning to parallel park or making proper shoulder checks.
On the test date, be sure you are fully prepared. Wear a mask, have hand sanitizer ready, and if you feel like it, wear gloves as well. Your safety, as well as your instructor’s safety, are of the utmost importance, so don’t risk putting anyone in danger! Bring your permit, your MV-278 form, and a filled out Certification of Supervised Driving (MV-262) form which states you have had a minimum of 50 hours of supervised practice driving, also including at least 15 hours of driving after sunset. Good luck!