You might be a finely responsible young man or woman, but statistics don't lie. You have too many minor brethren that make up the majority of motor vehicle crashes.

So, to protect everyone from your relatively high odds of crashing, we rein you in, especially during your teenage years.

You'll first get this piece of paper that says "Instruction Permit" on it. You're permitted to drive, but you have to have a licensed parent/guardian or family member who's 21 years of age or older, a driver education teacher, or a driver over 25 years old who has been approved by your parent/guardian in the front passenger seat at all times. And you can't drive more passengers than there are seat belts in your vehicle. Which sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised.

This bears repeating. You can't drive alone. Anywhere. This is huge. If a cop catches you driving alone with only an Instruction Permit, it's likely that you won't get your real license until you're at least 18.

Think you're cool because you're 16 and have your Intermediate License? You can't drive between the hours of 12:30AM and 5:00AM without that parent/guardian/driving instructor/21-year-old family member/25-year-old licensed driver in your passenger seat unless you're driving to or from work or school with a waiver to do so. You also have to log at least ten supervised driving hours—two of which must be at night—before you can upgrade to your full license.

The belief is that in this probationary time you’ll be extra super extra extra cautious. And if you’re not, then you aren’t ready to be inflicted on everyone else who has to use the same roads you are hogging or crapping up.

The belief is that in this probationary time, you'll be extra super extra extra cautious. And if you're not, then you aren't ready to be inflicted on everyone else who has to use the same roads as you.

Already feeling antsy? Want to upgrade your Instruction Permit to an Intermediate License? Let's play a little game to see if you're eligible.

Instruction Permit: Choose Your Own Adventure (As Long As It Sticks to State Rules)

Let's say you've had your Instruction Permit for a while now and want to upgrade:

A. Are you 18 or older? If YES, go to B. If NO, go to C.
B. Congrats! This section doesn't apply to you.
C. Have you had your Instruction Permit for six months? If YES, go to D. If NO, go to E.
D. Have you successfully avoided incurring a moving traffic violation within the last six months? If YES, go to F. If NO, go to E.
E. Sorry kid, you're gonna have to wait a while.
F. Has a parent, legal guardian, driver education teacher, 21-year-old licensed family member, or responsible adult driver aged 25 or older certified that you have had at least 20 hours of driving practice, of which at least two were at night? If YES, go to G. If NO, go to E.
G. Have you passed a driving test? If YES, go to H. If NO, go to E.
H. Congrats! You're the proud owner of a shiny new Class C Iowa Intermediate Driver's License.