Grass being "greener" doesn't always equal pay. I tried for years to transition from military public affairs to civilian public relations with no luck. To keep up, I began to volunteer at my local small town paper. They starve for experience, and I will eventually trade for ad space. Because I am free, the local youth football league asks for me every week. Eventually, things will pay off because my name is out there....Sure we have to earn money, but our hobbies can pay too....

John; I have been involved in the transportation and tourism industry for 30+ years. Because of the severe lack of trained drivers, companies have been forced to provide training for what-to-be-drivers. There usually are catches to the programs as for an example, you have to work with the company "X" amount of time to pay for courses and training, so it is just like any other school grant that puts you into debt before you even get a check.

Most of the good programs will prepare you for the test to obtain your CDL, and will provide you with work afterwards, but there is no pay will going through the school.

There are a lot of things to consider before making a commitment to a professional driving job. Truck driving has gone through some very major changes over the last 5-years, but one thing to keep in the back of your head, is that there will never be a job shortage for good qualified drivers. There are many changes in your life however that you are going to need to commit to, like long days, being away from home anywhere from 5-28 days every month. Other aspects of the job includes living in a confined space, having to take showers in truck stops, and always eating out.

Even though you might make as an example .35 per mile, if you travelled between 3200-3700 miles per week your base income would be between $1216.00 - $1'295.00. Now lets say that you take a shower everyday at $5.00 per shower, and $25.00 per day for meals, in the course of a week, you would spend $210.00 just for basic living expenses, so now your adjusted income might be between $1006.00 - $1085.00 per week before taxes, and then whatever the deal is to the company for your training which will be deducted every week until paid, and so you have to ask yourself if the price you pay (being away from family and friends / long hours / and dealing with the jerks and traffic everyday is really worth it to you? and no matter what your decision might be, there are many companies out there that will make you a owner / operator, or lease driver. My advice is to make sure that you totally understand all the technical things about the industry before you attempt it, road and fuel taxes, permits, insurance, operational cost factors, these are all things that can sink you very quickly. Many companies like Prime as just an example, has someone that will make sure that you remain in compliance and get the bills paid, but they will charge you for those services.

Another avenue that you might find as a better fit, especially if your training is more into Public Relations, you might look into driving Luxury Motor Coaches for tour groups. This job takes a different type of driver, one that is very customer service oriented. Very seldom do your driving days exceed 225-miles, and it doesn't require your body to getting beat up everyday like it does in a truck. You stay usually with the group and do whatever the group does, and your meals and lodging is all included. Every night you sleep in a really good 3-5 star hotel, and each day can be very different. If the group is going white water rafting you can go at no cost, scenic flight over the Grand Canyon, you go at no cost. Its a great life style, but the down side is just like any professional driving job, you will spend much time especially during the spring / summer / fall seasons on the road, but the money can be very rewarding.

As an example, a company that I recently worked with, paid their drivers $160.00 per day, plus $35.00 per day for food cost (which you never spend usually because meals are given by the vendor), and then tips and kick backs. Tips can average between $3.00 - $5.00 per person per day, so on a (7)-day tour with 52-passengers, tips can be between $1092.00 - $1820.00 (and this is paid in cash to you). On a trip that I recently took, my total income with my hourly wage / tips / kick backs from venues totaled just over $6'000.00 for the 10-days

My only point is that there are so many different types of work that evolves around professional drivers, and the opportunities in the transportation industry are wide open.

If you are really good in sales and public relations, you might look into becoming a freight broker, or working for a company if you don't want to be gone for extended times, working and training for a company that offers regional line hauls.

In closing, my only point here is to open your eyes to all the possibilities that are involved in the transportation industry, and making a decision for yourself that will work for your individual circumstances, but take a closure look at the Travel and Tourism industry. This industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that's grows and grows every year, and the opportunities are endless.

Hope this helps a little, and if you ever have any questions or need help, don't hesitate on contacting me at kevin@westernpremiertravelservices.com

Good Luck

Most trucking companies don't train for CDL licensing specifically. You can get hired if your pursuing a license and the bigger companies usually facilitate a truck for the practical or road test. They provide corporate driving and safety training which may vary between different companies. Go for it cause I hear theres a big demand for truck drivers right now.