After My Graduation – Final Thoughts and Advice For Those Considering Truck Driving School

That brings me to my next big point. Listen to the instructors!!! Obvious advice, right? Well, one of the first days we were out driving, another student was driving while I was observing. We were at a stop light and my instructor yells “step on the brake!” His response was “I am!” The fact was, we were rolling backwards because he didn’t have enough pressure on the brake pedal. It is very stressful for the instructors when they tell somebody to do something, and the student says something like “I already am” or “I already did that” or “why?” Just do it and ask questions later! And if an instructor tells you that you’re doing something wrong, make sure you consciously make a note of what he/she said. By the 3rd and 4th week, my instructors were getting very frustrated at a few students as they would make the same mistakes over and over again. They can only tell you so many times what you’re doing wrong. After that, you have to remember on your own. It might not make sense to you, but these instructors have been drivers for a long time and know exactly what you have to do to pass the test. Just do it!

Apply early and apply often. If you go to a private CDL training school, make sure you fill out paper applications and have your training school fax them over. I noticed my applications got much more attention if they were faxed directly from my training school. Also, a pre-hire isn’t a sure thing. I recently got a pre-hire but then the company went on a hiring freeze. It doesn’t hurt to get multiple pre-hires, just in case something happens with your first choice company.  And when you send over an application, do not wait for a phone call from the company you applied to. You need to take the initiative and call them! I usually called the recruiting department the very next day after I sent in an application. I’d simply call the company up and say “Hi, I submitted an application yesterday and just wanted to make sure you got it. I also wanted to find out if you need anything else from me.” Many of these companies won’t even look at your application until you call them. If you don’t call, they will never even pull up your application. It’s very important to be proactive right now, especially during this economy.

My last bit of advice is to never get discouraged. Some people will catch on to things before others. I don’t mean to sound conceded, but I was lucky enough to have everything come very naturally to me. Everything from driving on the road to my backing skills came to me very quickly. Others in my class weren’t so lucky. The 45 degree back is what gave most students problems. A couple of my classmates were literally all over the place. They didn’t know when to turn the wheel, they’d turn the wheel the wrong way, they’d run over cones, and get very frustrated with themselves. But it seems like at some point, it just “clicks” for everyone. For some people, it “clicks” the fist day. For others, it takes a couple weeks or more. But the day it “clicks” you’re in good shape. It’s like learning how to ride a bike. You fall down 20 times before you finally figure it out, then it’s a piece of cake after that. We all had our bad days, but for the most part, once somebody “got it” they were good to go. So if you don’t get it right away, don’t even worry about it. The more you practice and the more you learn, the closer you are to “getting it.” Instructors can only teach so much when it comes to certain things, like backing up a truck. The rest just has to be trial and error. But you’ll get it eventually and when you do, you’ll be just as good as those who “got it” on day one.

All in all, going through truck driving school was one of the most fun, stressful, rewarding, and challenging experiences I’ve ever had. The day I left was actually a sad day for me. I’ll truly miss the camaraderie I had with the other students and the fun times I had with my instructors. If you’re about to start CDL training, just be sure you go into this knowing it isn’t a cake walk. It will require effort on your part. Going into training thinking it will be easy because you have the stereotype of toothless uneducated truck drivers in your mind will give you a whole new respect for everything truck driving entails. Becoming a truck driver isn’t a simple process, and it isn’t a simple job.

If anybody has any questions about what CDL training is like that I haven’t already addressed in my blog, please don’t hesitate to comment or email me. I’m more than happy to give you any advice I can. Stay tuned, because I will soon be starting with my first trucking company and go through an intense 6 week training period. That’s where the real learning will begin!

Until next time, drive safely!

TruckerMike

About Author TruckerMike

TruckerMike embarked on a career in trucking late in 2008 after deciding that life in a cubicle might not be where it's at. He's been trucking since early 2009 and is TruckingTruth's most popular blogger. You can find more at TruckerMike's bio.

View all posts by TruckerMike →