The special license you need to get to drive a yellow taxicab is called a hack license and having it can be a valuable asset for anyone who needs steady work.



So, for example, what if you live in or near New York City and are looking for taxi classes and organizations that can help you with the paperwork and prepare you to pass the city exam so you can start working?

You will need to attend mandatory taxi driver training classes and then study so that you can learn the various landmarks, highways, bridges and routes needed to correctly carry passengers to various destinations throughout New York City. If you can do this, then you will be eligible to get the yellow cab driver license.

Over the past two decades, as taxi driver training has become part of most major US city requirements, a number of self described educators have begun to provide a variety of tutoring services for persons seeking to obtain the operators license.

In New York City, the taxi tutoring industry has its base due to a requirement that all applicants for the New York City Yellow Cab License must successfully complete an English proficiency exam as well as pass the map reading, geography and rules exam.

With almost ninety percent of the yellow cab driver applicants being immigrants, English training definitely becomes an important part of the live classroom training needed to pass the exam. The English proficiency factor is also very evident when comparing test scores on the geography and rules portion of exams for persons with higher versus lower levels of English proficiency.

One of the licensed yellow taxi tutors schools for the past decade has been the American Master Cabbie Taxi Academy, a designated provider of mandatory training for yellow cab drivers. Since its inception in 1996, the Academy has focused on the English proficiency by offering tutoring programs. The programs are designed specifically to enhance and expand available training for the industry with specialized English tutoring components.

As with any good thing, there are imitators. Over the years, some one man companies working out of small offices have attempted to present themselves as legitimate taxi training schools. Among a number of quality issues that arise from unlicensed schools is that they all approach the training from an ethnic standpoint. An Indian tutor courts Indian prospects and a Bangladesh tutor courts Bangladesh prospects and so on.

In their presentation or sales pitch, they explain that they can teach in the language of the student. This surely sells a few extra classes, however, it does not mean that the quality of the instruction is acceptable. There is no official organization overseeing the operation and if the student has a business problem with the unlicensed operation, there is no agency to complain to for recourse. This kind of place is simply not legally licensed.

It also means that classes are typically not provided seven days per week or that a full time office staff does not exist to provide support services such as scheduling exams, medical appointments and drug test scheduling. Most importantly, it does not provide the continuity of necessary services provided at one location which should be expected.

The one man company type will typically sell its services based on language and at the same time implies that it is connected to the official city licensing apparatus. This claim simply is not true and should warn the prospective student that separating them from their money may be the objective. The student should ask if everything required by NYC can be obtained from this kind of place or must the licensing test and required classes be taken elsewhere.

What is important to remember is if you are interested in driving professionally in New York City, do business only with licensed schools. These are organizations that are required to meet high quality standards in the yellow taxi tutoring training provided to all students. When you do business with a school that is properly licensed by the city, you have assurance that the instruction you will receive is relevant and that it will prepare you for achieving success with the license test.