Why Truck Driving School Could Be Beneficial To Your Career

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truck driver training schoolBecoming a truck driver requires a huge alteration to your way of life. You will no longer punch a time clock or work a 9 to 5 job in the office. You will go to sleep hundreds of miles away from where you wake up each day and you will work well over 40 hours per week. However, this career can be one of the most rewarding choices you have ever made, if you approach it correctly. One of the ways you can make this career more rewarding is by opting to attend a truck driving school.

Truck driving school is a great way to learn everything you need to know in order to be prepared for a 30 day stint in a trainer’s truck at your new company. It will not teach you everything you need to know to become a truck driver, but it will prepare you for your CDL tests and your first few weeks as a trainee at the carrier you choose to go with. The benefits of choosing a truck driving school over simply renting a truck and obtaining your CDL are numerous, so this article will not explain them all. Instead, let’s focus on some of the most important ones.

Truck Driving School Can Help You Find A Job

Choosing to attend a truck driving school can help boost your career by helping you find your first job before you actually graduate. This can save you weeks of searching through advertisements and online directories for the right carrier for you. Many schools offer scholarship programs where certain carriers agree to shoulder the cost of the school, provided the student will agree to work for them for a set amount of time. This agreement usually consists of a one or two year contract. The cost for a professional truck driving school can range from $2,500 to $7,000 depending on which one you choose to attend, so having someone else foot the bill is a great way to begin your career debt free.

Lifetime Career Services

Some truck driving schools offer more than just a first time job placement service for their students. While Pam, USA, Swift, and other companies often recruit brand new drivers from these schools, there are hundreds of other carriers looking for experienced drivers. Because of the need for drivers, many of these carriers contact schools to inquire about former students who have gained experience and may be looking for work. Your school can help you keep your career on track by helping you find a new carrier should the one you’re currently driving for not work out. This is a great service if the company you’re working for decides to do a layoff, or if you simply wish to further your career under a different banner.

Lower Insurance Costs

If you’re a driver who just can’t stomach the thought of driving a governed company truck, then you may want to consider attending a driving school for the long term financial benefits. Aside from the great benefits listed above, graduating from a certified truck driving school can help save you money on your insurance premiums. Most schools now teach the Smith Driving System, which is the world’s foremost defensive driving course for CDL holders. When you graduate this part of your training you will receive a certificate which you can submit to your insurance company. Many insurance companies will reduce your premiums because you have participated in this course. This can also affect your insurance costs for your vehicles you use on an every day basis, as well as for your new big rig.

Lifetime Friendships

Truck driving school is to truck drivers what college is to most other careers. Here you can gain the rudimentary skills you need to safely operate a big rig, while also developing friendships that will last a lifetime. Your instructors will pour their heart and soul into your training, if they really care about what they do. Your fellow students will come to rely on you to help them sharpen their skills and learn the material in the classes. You will find that many instructors will become mentors to whom you can turn for advice years down the road. They have already been where you’re at, and the knowledge they have can prevent some major heartache for you as a driver.

Truck driving school is not the best choice for every new driver out there. For some guys, a CDL is all that stands between them and getting a job with the family business. For others, a CDL is simply an accomplishment they wish to add to their life. However, for a serious driver who really wants to give his career a boost, truck driving school is a great way to obtain a CDL and lay a solid foundation for that career.

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Joshua C. Rarrick is a former truck driver who now spends his time writing and designing websites. As the owner of Sites-n-Syllables he offers world class web design and SEO services to a wide variety of clients. As a writer, he owns Tiny Apple Bytes, a blog dedicated to Apple Inc products and stock movements. He also writes about a wide variety of subjects from trucking to politics. When he is not writing, he enjoys spending his time fishing and playing with his twin girls.

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