Trucking is the circulatory system of the nation. Every big city and little town relies on trucks to get their cargo from ports and major depots to the stores and warehouses that supply everyday life. However, there are no longer enough skilled truck drivers to go around. As e-Commerce skyrockets the need for both long-distance truckers and in-town delivery drivers, an increasing percentage of the population are choosing indoor jobs instead.
This means that those brave and adventurous professionals who earn their CDL (commercial driver’s license) are in an excellent spot to find a job with the perfect balance between time spent on the open road and time spent at home.
Southern Careers Institute’s Commercial Motor Vehicle Operator Training Program
At Southern Careers Institute (SCI), we prioritize training that prepares you for the workforce, not just courses that earn a certificate. Our practical, hands-on Commercial Motor Vehicles Operator (CMVO) course can help you learn to become a professional large-vehicle operator.
The course combines time behind the wheel with online coursework so that you can study on your own time and come in when you’re ready to practice driving. Once you have completed the course and feel confident operating a large truck on your own, you can take the Class-A CDL test and walk away with an entirely new career rolling out like the open road before you.
What is a CDL-A and What Can I Do With It?
A CDL-A license will allow you to operate commercial vehicles that are tractor-trailers, flatbeds, livestock carriers, and tank vehicles. Most CDL-A holders drive large cargo trucks, but there are many jobs you can hold with this certification.
Travel the Nation with a Class-A CDL
- Commercial Truck Driver & OTR (Over the Road) Shipping
- Long-Haul Cargo Truck Driver
- Short-Haul Cargo Driver
Many people get a CDL in order to see the country from end to end. If you choose to become a long-haul truck driver, you will see every state in every kind of weather and time of day. You will see sun-drenched mornings over the grassy Great Plains and misty morning mountains. You will drive through cities you’ve never visited before and haul cargo you had no idea needed hauling.
It’s a life of adventure for those who have the fortitude and appreciation of the lifestyle.
You can also choose to truck closer to home, driving a route around your home city, or daily delivery routes within local neighborhoods. These routes will make it easier to get home and see your family every night, while still enjoying time in the sunshine, on the move during the day instead of cooped up in an office or behind a service desk.
Other Jobs You Can Get with a Class-A CDL
- Fuel Truck Driver
- Heavy-Trailer Truck Driver
- Vehicle Delivery in an Auto Hauler
- Oversized Load and Flatbed Delivery Driver
- Livestock Transport
Of course, your options aren’t limited just to truck driving. With a Class-A CDL, there are many jobs you can take that require familiarity and expertise with large cargo vehicles.
Want to drive for a living, but not always in a cargo hauling trailer? There are other interesting options around town. You might deliver vehicles from the manufacturing plant to dealerships in an auto hauler or make large deliveries from home improvement stores on a flatbed to local homeowners.
If you like animals, you can become a livestock transport expert, moving cows and horses safely where they need to go in enclosed trailers behind your rig.
Benefits of the Truck Driving Career
- Travel and Road Tripping
- Competitive Compensation
- Lifestyle Perks
- Benefits Packages
Many people take up truck driving because they love to drive and to see different places, and trucking is a great way to road trip for a living. You can drive all day close to home or drive across the country taking vital shipments from factories to warehouses and stores in every state.
But there are also other perks. Due to the workforce distribution, both compensation and benefits packages have been steadily increasing. Many trucking companies now go the extra mile (pun intended) to provide healthy on-route lifestyle perks and comprehensive employee benefits for their drivers.
Partner Driving: Sign Up With Your Spouse or Best Friend
One of the best things about the modern trucking industry is that you don’t have to go in alone. Many transport companies and fleets permit partner driving. This means that if you get your CDL with a partner, you can sign up together, work in the same truck, and keep each other company. This is great for spouses, romantic couples, and even best friends who enjoy long hours together.
Long haul trucking companies particularly like people who sign up as partner drivers because you can take turns driving on long routes and reduce the time the truck must be stopped for rest breaks, and you can keep each other awake with conversation instead of distracting tech.
Flying solo? You might make a friend when you sign up, and some trucking companies will even let you bring a companion animal instead.
Discover Your Career Potential as a Class-A Commercial Truck Driver
Whether you’re planning to see coast-to-coast adventure as a long-haul trucker or are angling to become a transport depot terminal manager, a great place to start is with the CMVO course at SCI. Contact us to consult on scheduling or sign up online today to start yourself on the path to an uplifting and important job in the transport industry.
