Drivers, understandably, want someone to sit next to them who already knows what they are doing, and don’t have to guide the co-driver through their duties on a rally weekend.
This makes it difficult for an inexperienced co-driver to get a start in the sport, so any opportunity that arises, should be taken.
I fell into this category. I’d only completed two and a half stages of a route charted event, and my experience was minimal.