How to Know if You’re Ready for Truck Driving School

How to Know if You’re Ready for Truck Driving School

Are you concerned with how to know if you’re ready for truck driving school? Perhaps you’re nervous about the requirements of driving large vehicles or worried about the rules and regulations involved with operating large vehicles on public roads. Whatever the case, Truck Driver Institute has your back. You can go from never having touched a commercial vehicle in your life to driving for the nation’s largest and most successful trucking companies in just three weeks with TDI. Read on to learn more about trucking school.

How to Know if You’re Ready for Truck Driving School: Entrance Requirements

If entrance requirements have you wondering how to know if you’re ready for truck driving school, don’t worry. Admission requirements for CDL school are very minimal, and chances are that you’ve already met them. They include:

  • A current drivers’ license: A commercial vehicle is just a really big car. Before you can learn to drive a truck, it makes sense that you’d need to know how to drive a car, right? Luckily, around 89% of US adults are licensed- chances are, you are as well.
  • Be 18+: The age requirements for obtaining a CDL contain some nuance. While you can enter and complete CDL school so long as you’re above 18, you must be 21 before you can legally cross state lines. This means that while you can start your trucking career as young as age 18, your options will be limited until you are 21 and over.
  • No recent DUIs: While not all traffic violations or felonies disqualify you from obtaining a CDL and becoming a trucker, it’s important that you have not obtained any DUI charges within the last 5 years.
  • Passing the DOT physical and drug screening: It’s important that drivers are of sound health while operating large vehicles on public roadways. Learn more about the DOT exams here.
  • Proof of citizenship and passing a background check: If you’ve ever been hired for a job before, chances are you’re no stranger to providing proof of citizenship and completing a background check. Specific requirements regarding acceptable proof of residence and citizenship may vary from state to state, so it’s important that you consult your state’s individual government or government-affiliated resources to receive the most accurate information.

As you can see, the requirements to obtain a CDL are fairly lax, and chances are that you already meet them all. For more detailed information regarding these requirements, consult our blog post on the subject.

What Is Trucking Like?

Once you’ve assured that you meet the requirements necessary to become a truck driver, you may be concerned with what the trucking lifestyle is actually like.You may have preconceived notions of the life of a trucker: long days and nights, weeks away from home, and other misconceptions that come with the profession. Don’t get us wrong; being a trucker can still mean significant time away from home or long days on the road. Truthfully, however, it’s significantly more diverse than that. Being a trucker means:

  • Freedom to choose your schedule: More accurately than the stereotype of spending long amounts of time away from home, trucking actually allows you to pick and choose how much time you wish to spend on the road or how far you want to travel. The beauty of trucking as a career lies in the fact that it has a place for those that want to travel far distances and those that want to return home daily.
  • Personal agency: Are you someone who works best alone, or values time to yourself? Being a trucker still means working in a team, make no mistake; when you’re on the road, however, you’re most often alone in your cabin, listening to whatever music, podcast, audiobook, or even silence that you see fit. This makes trucking a great carer for those that enjoy spending time to themselves and always having rights to the aux cord. 
  • Job security: Truckers are some of the most sought after professionals in the country. In fact, 72.2% of domestic shipping is done by truck. This means that by becoming a truck driver, you’re putting yourself in a position that is indispensable to the US economy as a whole, and your profession will always be in demand.

In short, trucking and the logistics industry as a whole has a spot for just about everyone. Learn more about becoming a trucker by reading through our blogs on the subject.

How to Become a Truck Driver

Now that you’re familiar with what it takes to be a trucker, you’re ready to start your journey to become one. That journey starts with obtaining a commercial drivers’ license (CDL). A CDL is required to operate commercial machinery and vehicles, and will be required for any trucking job you may pursue.

To get a CDL, individuals most often learn the skills required through a CDL training program. At Truck Driver Institute, we offer a CDL program that lasts just three weeks, and has an over 80% acceptance rate: this means that upon graduation, over 80% of our students have already received placement at some of the nation’s top trucking companies. 

If you would like to learn more about earning your CDL and becoming a truck driver, read our blog post titled “How to Change Your Career Path to Truck Driving.” Whether truck driving will be your first, second, or thirty-second job, the industry is always looking for motivated individuals to join its ranks and move the US economy forward.

Learn What It Takes to Be a Truck Driver With Truck Driver Institute

Are you still interested in how to know if you’re ready for truck driving school? Look no further. Truck Driver Institute has all the resources necessary to evaluate if truck driving is right for you. If you decide that you want to become a truck driver, we can have you driving in just three weeks through one of our 11 campuses nationwide. If you’d like to learn more, contact us directly or visit our website.


Get Started

Get your Class A CDL in our friendly, supportive CDL training program. TRAIN with experienced instructors – multiple good-paying, secure job choices with benefits available for eligible graduates. EARN $700 – $1000+ / week to start as a truck driver. Get started today by filling out the form below. We look forward to hearing from you!