Earning a Commercial Driver's License, or CDL, qualifies you to drive long-haul semi trucks and smaller local delivery vehicles as well. Long-haul and local truck drivers can make great money with as little as three weeks of training and the passing of the license exam, so for unemployed workers looking for a new specialty, attending truck driving school can be appealing. If you're looking for free CDL training, continue reading to learn how truck driving companies create schools and provide paid CDL training in a variety of ways.
Free CDL Training
First of all, why would any company provide free CDL classes? For the same reason nursing homes train assistants for free, or real estate agencies pay for agents to earn a license: employment. Truck driving companies need good, reliable employees for truck driving jobs. By offering paid CDL training for qualified applicants, the companies can control the quality of drivers and improve the company's earnings and safety record.
Most free CDL training programs have some basic requirements:
- age 21 or older
- clean driving record
- able to pass a drug test
- 20/20 vision or corrected vision (glasses or contacts)
- a clean bill of health (no major conditions that could be unsafe while driving)
In addition, for truck driving jobs with CDL training schools, applicants need to be legally permitted to work in the United States. This means that you must be a U.S. citizen or a permanent legal resident.
Truck Driving Jobs
Many transportation companies create their own, on-site truck driving schools as a feeder program for CDL driving jobs. Therefore, the first step to finding free CDL training is to contact some of the larger truck companies to learn about openings.
Try the following truck driving companies:
These paid CDL courses have a small catch: you normally pay the tuition up front, then receive reimbursement as you work for the company. For instance, Swift Transportation pays you back over a 26-month period, as long as you work for them. CR England provides half off tuition, then slowly pays back the other half if you become an Independent Contractor who hauls for them.
If you don't have the money to pay CDL course tuition up front, read on for more tuition assistance programs for truck driving school.
Paid CDL Training for Truck Driving School
If you're unemployed and seeking paid CDL training to change fields, call you state's Department of Labor and ask about workforce retraining grants. For instance, in the state of New York Workforce New York provides grants for some unemployed workers, to cover education costs for programs such as truck driving schools.
Finally, some schools are eligible for federal financial aid, such as Pell Grants and student loans. Truck driving schools such as TDDS Tech in Ohio qualify for federal financial aid, so if you file the FAFSA forms and qualify for a Pell Grant and a supplemental state grant, you could get 100 percent free CDL training through this method. Ask your local truck driving school whether they qualify for federal funding.
No matter how you receive tuition assistance for the CDL, the bottom line is that finding paid CDL training is possible if you know all the different methods that are available. Between trucking companies, retraining grants and federal financial aid, you can be on the road in a matter of weeks with a truck driving job and a new career.
To learn more about other forms of free training for jobs, please read Free CNA Training, Free Home Inspector Training, Free HVAC Training and Free Home Health Aide Training to find entry-level careers with class time measured in weeks or months – not years.
Melanie Zoltan - Melanie Zoltan is a former college professor and administrator who has written for About.com, PCWorld, Brain Child, Thomson Gale, and ...
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