Mock tests and test day: planning the last weeks
Mock tests, warm-up lessons and the driving test itself: how driving instructors can schedule the final weeks before a learner's test so nothing clashes.
6 min read
Once a learner has a test date, plan the last weeks backwards from it: one or two mock tests as their own bookable service, regular lessons in between, and on the day itself a warm-up lesson followed by the test, both booked by you in your calendar so no one else can take that time. Learners can book mock tests online like any lesson; the test-day booking is yours to make, because only you and the learner know the date and time given by the test centre.
The final stretch, step by step
| When | What | Who books | Example slot |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3–4 weeks before | Mock test | Learner, online | 60 min |
| Weekly until the test | Regular lessons | Learner or you | 60–120 min |
| 1 week before | Second mock test | Learner or you | 60 min |
| Test day, before the test | Warm-up lesson | You | 60 min |
| Test day | Accompanying to the test | You | Test length plus travel |
Timings are examples: adapt them to your learners and to how tests work where you teach. On Book, each service has a name, an optional description and a price, and each slot belongs to one service with its own start and end.
Mock tests as their own service
A mock test isn't a normal lesson: you follow a test-like route, stay quiet, and give feedback at the end. Make it a separate service, so learners know what they're booking and you know what to prepare. In the description, say who it's for, for example "learners with a test date or ready to book one", how long it lasts, and that feedback is included.
Ask learners to write their test date, if they have one, in the booking note. You receive an email for each new booking with the note, and can plan the route for a test centre they'll use.
Open mock test slots where they make sense
A mock test works better in conditions close to the real test: similar time of day, similar traffic, near the test centre. If your learners take tests on weekday mornings, open mock test slots on weekday mornings too, and repeat them on those weekdays until an end date. If you teach learners who use different test centres, create one mock test service per centre, so the description can give the meeting point and the booking tells you which routes to prepare.
Blocking the test day
The test day is a long block: picking up the learner, a warm-up drive, arriving at the test centre, the test itself, and the drive back. As soon as the learner gets their date, protect that time:
- delete or don't open other lesson slots during that block;
- create a slot for the warm-up lesson and book the learner into it yourself;
- create a "Test day" slot covering the test and travel, and book the learner into it too, with the test centre and time in the note;
- enter the learner's email so they get a confirmation and a calendar file for both.
A slot with one place disappears from your public page once booked, so no one else can take that time. With calendar sync on Google, iPhone or Mac, the test day also shows up in your own agenda next to the rest of your week.
When the test date moves
Test dates can be moved by the test centre or by the learner. When that happens, reschedule the warm-up and test-day bookings from your bookings list, and move the second mock test if the gap no longer makes sense. Book doesn't email learners about changes, so confirm the new plan with them directly. Then reopen the lesson slots you had closed on the old date, so other learners can book them.
After the test
If the learner passes, the calendar needs nothing more. If they need another attempt, agree a plan together and book the next lessons and a new mock test before they leave the car. If the learner has booked lessons after the test date that they no longer need, cancel them from your bookings list and let them know.
Book costs €5/month, everything included: unlimited bookings and services, no commission, no contract. It doesn't book tests with the authorities, take payments or manage lesson packs.
Can learners book their test day through my page?
Should mock tests be priced differently?
What if two learners have tests the same morning?
Can a parent book a mock test for a teenager?
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