Need some info regarding truck driving as a career...

Hello Tag, and welcome to TheTruckersReport! You'll find a wealth of info on this site as you probably have already discovered. And welcome to the U.S.A ! I'm not yet in the trucking industry as I am still in school. So far from lending you my "expertise", I'll give an opinion and invite others to do same.

There are major national trucking companies that will sponsor your training to get your CDL. But they'll naturally require you to sign a contract obligating you work for them for a period, usually at least a year, before your "debt" is paid off. This would leave you vulnerable to any of a number of abuses newbies sometimes suffer, lousy miles being the most common. But you may find the challenges to be managable and the employment satisfactory. So if you stick it out it, your training would be "free". But if you break your contract either volluntarily or by company termination with good cause, you'd be on the hook for what THEY claim is the value for your training. This is often times greatly exagerated in comparison with the cost/effectiveness of the training you might find at a local community college etc. So conventional wisdom dictates paying for training yourself, but as you stated, not a viable option for you right now. But I would suggest you really consider all your options in terms of finding your own financing and getting your CDL on your own. My school's pretty decent and only costs $1,700. Your LOCATION would be helpful for others to offer assistance. And of course you've seen the section here dedicated to all things school. Either way, if you are determined and work hard, you will succeed!

Other things you can do for your betterment would be working and establishing credit. This would greatly influence a companies decision to take you on as a wannabe-newbie.

Be safe, have fun, and good luck!

Also, how'd you make yourself blink like that?

 

Welcome! I am another person who is considering trucking as a potential career opportunity. My advice: read, read, read, and then read some more about trucking. This site has great information. Another interesting place is this one: http://www.newbiedriver.com/

If I were you, I wouldn't look into becoming an o/o until you have a solid knowledge of - and experience in - the trucking industry.

 

Which country did you come from, Tag, and did you drive trucks there?

Can't answer many of your questions as I live in Canada, but am also an immigrant. One thing I'd say, and I can't stress it enough, is do not rely on GPS. It will get you into trouble. Use it in conjunction with your atlas, but don't let it drive you. It's a tool; nothing more.

 

You realize this is a 3 year old thread right?

 

No. I didn't realize that, Thanks for the info.

 

I think we all have done it