A severe shortage of OTR ("over the road") truck drivers, also known as "long haul" drivers, has made truck driver training virtually free (to the student, anyway) and guarantees a job waiting after truck driver school -- if not sooner.
The goal of truck driving schools is not only to get you your Commercial Driver's License (CDL), but also to make you competent to handle a tractor trailer (CDL Class A) or small rigs like dump trucks (CDL Class B). Obviously, that's a hands-on experience -- you can't get complete CDL training online.
When checking out a CDL school, always consider the following:
1. How old is the equipment at the trucking school? (You want to learn how to use the most modern rigs.)
2. What is the ratio of students to instructor in the truck? (4:1 is typical in most truck driving schools; some go as low as 1:1.)
3. Is there a limit to the number of students in each class at the truck driver school?
Here are the most effective solutions for starting your truck driver training:
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
Find a trucking school in your area
There are large truck driving schools with locations in many cities and towns, and many more local truck driver training programs that are easy to find through online directories.
I recommend: Infoporium has a directory of trucking schools by state, as does
Truck Schools USA.
SAGE Technical Services has training locations nationwide.
Find a trucking company willing to cover your CDL training
Given the shortage, many of the larger trucking companies have taken to training their own drivers, or sending drivers to a nearby CDL school and covering the tuition. In such arrangements, the driver is actually a paid employee of the trucking company while going to school. After CDL training, the driver owes the trucking company a year or so of employment in return for the training.
I recommend: Con-way offers free truck driver training to its new drivers and pays them a salary during training; they have locations in most states.
Contract Freighters, Inc. offers a tuition reimbursement program for its new hires (no matter where they trained), as does
USA Truck.
Driver Solutions is a CDL school that contracts with trucking companies to provide free training to their new drivers.
Look for truck driving school certification
The Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI) has developed uniform skill performance, curriculum, and certification standards for the trucking industry, and certifies entry-level truck driver training courses. Always look for PTDI certification to ensure that the courses you take meet these standards.
I recommend: The PTDI has an
online directory of certified truck driving schools. If a school claims certification but is not listed in the directory, email PTDI, using the link on the website; the directory may be out of date.
Check out the local job market and it may help you find truck driver training
Reviewing job listings in your area not only helps you assess your opportunities and pay potential, but may help you find a local company willing to pay for your CDL training.
I recommend: TruckerTrucker.com has an online national directory of trucking jobs, as does
EveryTruckJob.com. Find more resources for
truck driving jobs at Business.com.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Besides the big rigs, truck driving schools can teach you to drive CDL Class-B trucks, like delivery trucks and dump trucks. The pay is lower, but the hours are better and there is less travel involved.
- CDL school (Class-A) typically takes three to four weeks. Be suspicious of a trucking school offering your CDL in two weeks; they may get you your CDL, but may not really teach you what you need to know to do the job.
- In lieu of full tuition reimbursement, some trucking companies pay part of the truck driver school tuition up front and then pay off the remainder slowly over your first year of employment.
The official source of Truck Driving Schools is the Truck Driving Schools page at Business.com
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