Trucking school is a great choice for anyone looking to get into a career field that is constantly moving and hiring. One thing about the trucking industry is that it is usually hiring and it also pays really well. Some jobs might pay more but if you have a trucking degree you can pretty much be guaranteed that you will never go without work. As long as there are grocery stores, warehouses, manufacturers and retail stores, there will be trucks and the need for freight to be shipped all over the country. And as long as this shipping is taking place, the need for experienced, educated truck drivers will continue to exist.
However, trucking is not just something you can jump into without some knowledge or experience behind you. Just because you know how to drive does not mean that you know how to be a truck driver! Driving a semi truck with one or more trailers attached to it is not something that comes naturally, it is a skill that needs to be learned and applied over time through experience. It also requires a special type of license and in order to qualify for that license you need a good amount of training. This is what trucking school is for. CDL school is a place where you can learn everything you need to know about truck driving. With most trucking schools, you will graduate with your license, your certification/diploma and enough experience to go right out into the workforce as an experienced driver. Sounds easy, right? Well, it is until you get to the part where you need to pay for your truck driving education!
Getting an education these days is not cheap and an education in truck driving is no different. There are a lot of truck drivers out there who have scraped and saved their money together and paid their own way through trucking school and there are those who have been lucky enough to get it paid for by a company or a rich family member. However, if you have recently been laid off or are struggling in a dead-end job just to make ends meet, you can imagine just how hard it is to afford this payment out of your own pocket! Yes, it will better your future and give you a much greater shot at a successful career but how are you going to get past the thousands of dollars it will cost you to attend? Well, here is one way in which CDL training can be made affordable for you and it is called a WIA grant.
Basically, a WIA grant is a grant available to residents of the United States that was made possible through the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. This official act replaced the Job Training Partnership Act and made it possible for workers who were laid off or seeking to improve their position in life to get the funds that they needed to pay for an education. The WIA Grant program is made up of three phases. These three phases are the “core” phase, the “intensive” phase and the “training” phase.
Getting into the first phase of the WIA grant program may or may not be difficult, depending on the shape of the economy at the time of registration. This first phase is made up of core services, which include job searches, placement assistance, outreach services and even labor market information. Basically, they will help you find a way to begin your journey to a new trade but they will do so from the beginning.
The next phase, which is the intensive phase, will take you through the process of preparing your application. In this phase, you will assess our career and make an actual employment plan. You will need to provide adequate documentation for ID purposes, as well as to support your plan. Once you do all of this, you can begin training with an occupational trainer for something like truck driving. Getting a WIA grant for truck driving school may be a bit intense but you can trust that this program will really change your life. If you want to change your professional life for the better and give yourself better opportunities for the future, then getting a WIA grant for trucking school can be one of the smartest decisions you could make. All you need to do to begin the process of applying for a WIA grant is to make sure that you meet the criteria. Then, you simply head to the One Stop Career Center and begin the application process.
WIA grants have a reputation for being very intense. They also have a reputation for having a long waiting period. It is not uncommon to wait several months for your application just to be reviewed. In some cases, this review process gets “shelved” and you are told to begin the process again. One thing that you should probably do if you are trying to get a WIA grant for cdl training is to keep all of your application information handy so that it does not take much to get everything in order if you need to apply again! Mostly, with WIA grants, it is about sticking with it and pushing onward. Those who give up will probably not get their WIA grant but those who persevere will have a good shot. You will also have a good shot if you come from a pretty low income background.
Going to trucking school is a great idea. It will equip you with the skills you need to enter a whole new career field but it will also give you control of your destiny. Graduating with a degree like this is exactly what you need to give yourself a leg up in this struggling economy. You will find that graduating with your certificate/diploma from truck driving school will not only boost your self confidence but will also give you the tools you need to earn a better living for yourself and your family. And a WIA grant can help!
So look into starting the WIA application process. It may be a difficult grant to get but you will find that the earlier you start, the earlier you will finish! A lot of people actually have doubts about WIA grants but in truth, the money is out there, you just have to be persistent and patient to get it. And hey, money is money right? If it pays for your schooling, it is worth the wait!
