West Virginia Supervised Driving: Planning Your Teen's 50 Hours

Before you start: what the law asks for

W. Va. Code 17B-2-3a sets the standard. Before any Level 2 license is issued, the applicant must have completed a course the State Department of Education has approved, or logged 50 hours (at least 10 at night) on the DMV's certification form.

The same statute says county school boards do not have to offer driver education, which is why most families take the 50 hour route. Teens who choose the log have no required number of professional lesson hours.

Before you start: choosing the people in the passenger seat

At Level 1 the person beside your teen must hold a license and be 21 or over, unless it is a driver ed or driving school instructor working in that role. Whoever it is must be clear-headed, sober, and the only other front-seat occupant.

The signature on the 50 hour form can come from you, a legal guardian, or some other responsible adult older than 21. So a grandparent, an older sibling or a family friend can share the driving, provided whoever signs can honestly vouch for the total.

• Supervisor holds a license and is 21 or older
• Supervisor sits in the front passenger seat, alone up front with the teen
• Two non-family passengers in the back, at most
• Seat belts on everyone; the teen has zero alcohol in their system

If you would rather use a course

Completing a course the State Department of Education has approved makes the signed log unnecessary. Under-18 applicants may hand the examiner a Driver's Education Certificate per the skills testing checklist, and the GDL page describes a Driver Education Card that works the same way.

Plenty of West Virginia high schools still teach driver education, often for credit and cheaply or free. Private driving schools offer in-car lessons too, but the statute is satisfied only by a course the State Department of Education approved, so before you pay, ask the provider to confirm in writing that the DMV takes its completion paperwork.

A course is not a reason to stop practicing. Examiners look for skills you only build with hours on the road, so many families do both.

Through the permit months: keeping the log

The paper version is the DMV's 50 hour certification form, which many families know as Form DMV-10-GDL. Write each session down the same day, flagging the dark ones; trying to reconstruct months of driving from memory the evening before the test rarely goes well.

RoadReady tallies hours on your phone, and lesson plans come through the DMV's partner, the Parent's Supervised Driving Program. At the test, though, only paper counts: your signed form or a drivers ed certificate.

Worked example: three 40 minute drives a week add up to about 2 hours. Over six months, roughly 26 weeks, that is around 52 hours, so the minimum permit period and the 50 hours line up if you drive consistently.

Through the permit months: the 10 night hours

Ten hours must happen at night, yet a permit holder can drive only from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. Between November and February darkness falls long before 10 p.m., which makes winter the natural season for night practice.

Spend those sessions on what new drivers fear most: unlit country roads, deer near the shoulder, valley fog and the glare of oncoming high beams.

On test day: the Level 2 road skills test

Your teen can test at 16 or older after 180 conviction-free days on the permit with the hours or the course complete. As of October 2026 each attempt costs $7.50, and a failed test means a one week wait before the next.

Pack the permit, your signed log (or the drivers ed certificate), a licensed adult and an inspected car, plus its insurance and registration cards. A dead bulb or out-of-date card can stop the test before it starts.

After the test: driving on Level 2

A pass brings the Level 2 intermediate license. Your teen may drive alone between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. At other hours a supervisor of 21 or older comes along, with exceptions for emergencies and for driving to or from a job, church or a school-sanctioned event.

For twelve months there are passenger limits too: zero non-family riders under 20 at first, rising to one after six months. On Level 2, a first moving violation sends your teen to an approved driver improvement program; a second means suspension or revocation lasting until 18, possibly beyond.