How Long Does It Take To Be a Truck Driver

Are you looking for your next career move and wondering, “how long does it take to be a truck driver?” Truck driving can be an incredibly lucrative career that rewards hard work and dedication. If you’re currently at a crossroads in your professional career, you may want to consider truck driving as your next venture. One thing to consider, though, is that truck driving requires a CDL. To get a CDL, you need to receive training and eventually take a test. So, how long does it take to be a truck driver? Only 3 weeks! Keep reading to learn how you can be a truck driver in 3 weeks. 

How Long Does It Take To Be a Truck Driver: What You Need to Know

If you’re looking to become a truck driver and move your career forward, there are a few things you might want to know before doing so. Getting your CDL can be a fun and rewarding experience, but it helps if you’re informed about the process beforehand!

Getting Your CDL

When you’re concerned about “how long does it take to be a truck driver,” your first step is getting your CDL. There are plenty of places to do this, but none of them quite measure up to the success that Truck Driver Institute has been able to supply to its students. 

Truck Driver Institute’s CDL program takes just 3 weeks to complete. Upon completion, 86% of Truck Driver Institute students have received job placements and are well on their way to becoming professional truck drivers.  If you’re only interested in researching the time it takes to become a truck driver, feel free to stop here and get enrolled. If you’d like to learn more about what it takes to become a driver, though, feel free to read on. 

Responsibilities of a Truck Driver

While “driving trucks” is an answer that’s both obvious and true, there is a lot more to being a truck driver than just driving trucks. Truck driving can be an incredibly versatile and diverse career that allows you to touch different facets of the logistics industry.

• Keep an eye on truck health: While you aren’t required to maintain your own truck, you’re going to be the one spending the most time with it. It’s important for any truck driver to keep an eye out for anything that may indicate issues within the truck and report them immediately. 

• Navigate: Truck driving can bring you all across the country, and even across borders if you’re open to the opportunity. Because of this, it’s important that professional truck drivers be able to find their way around. Drivers will be using maps, navigation systems, intuition, and everything at their disposal to ensure that they’re going the right way on the road and will get to their destination on time.

• Check loads for accuracy: Truck drivers are often the last point of quality assurance when picking up loads to deliver elsewhere. Your logistics clients will be relying on you to oversee and assist with the loading and unloading of products, ensuring that each load has the specified amount of items and that they make it into your truck safely.

• Paperwork: Paperwork may not be everyone’s favorite task, but it can be a nice change of pace for many truckers who spend long hours on the road. Trucking and logistics as a whole is a precise business, and everything must be kept track of with accurate paperwork and records.

• Adventure: You probably won’t find “adventure” listed within many official truck driving job descriptions. It’s just as important as the other skills and tasks listed prior, however. An adventurous spirit is a great thing to have as a truck driver, as your horizons are only limited by how far you’re willing to go. You can choose to be a trucker that handles more local deliveries, but many adventurous truckers will benefit from taking jobs that require travel across the country.

If you’re still interested in learning more about the truck driving role, check out Monster’s page on typical tasks and duties for a professional driver.

Perks of Truck Driving

What’s a job without its perks? Many drivers value their career not just for the adventurous nature and flexibility it can offer, but also for the various perks that come along with truck driving.

• Passengers: Whether your passenger is human or not, truck drivers are generally free to bring along a passenger- sometimes more than one- in the cab with them. If you’re interested more about bringing your pet along with you, check out our blog post titled, Top Trucking Companies With Pet Policies.

• Education: Compared to many professions, a truck driver’s education is relatively inexpensive and much shorter. Earning your CDL with Truck Driver Institute takes just 3 weeks, and from there you’re free to start your truck driving career.

• Versatility: Truck driving is one of the more versatile and flexible careers out there. Truckers can choose the maximum distance they’d like to drive for trips, how often they drive, and how often they’re able to return home. This versatility makes trucking a great career choice for anyone that values work/life balance or wants to dictate their work schedule.

• Importance: Are you someone that values a career with a high impact on society and other people? Good news for you: the logistics industry typically makes up 10% of the GDP of the United States. Logistics accounts for 10% of all value created by workers in the entire country. It’s hard to find an industry with a higher impact than that.

Get Started With Truck Driver Institute

Instead of wondering, “how long does it take to be a truck driver,” get started on your new career with Truck Driver Institute. Getting your CDL can take just 3 weeks with us, and 86% of our drivers have found job placements upon graduation. Truck driving can be one of the quickest ways to embark on a new career journey, and doing so with Truck Driver Institute is the most efficient way to do it. Contact us today to get started, or visit our website to learn more about your future career.