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Getting Your Commercial Driver’s License for a Trucking Career
By Sid | June 11, 2008
A Commercial Driver’s License is needed in order to operate a vehicle over 26,000 pounds. This includes truck drivers. If you are looking to become a truck driver, you too, will need to have a CDL license. Each state has their guide for the CDL licensing exam so find out what is required of you in the state where you live and will be taking the exam.
Since you most likely have gone to truck driving school to learn what truck driving is all about, more study won’t come as any surprise to you. In your classes at the driving school, the instructors will touch on the topics that you need to know to pass the exam. This requires time and study on your part.
Each year thousands of people sit for the CDL exams. And, thousands of people taking the exam do not pass the exam. What’s the reason? Well, one main reason is lack of preparation. The commercial driver’s license exam is rigorous and involves more than one part.
Candidates applying for a CDL have got to be fully prepared to sit and take it. If not, you are just wasting your time and money. Many people get time to study while in trucking school. But, even after school, taking practice exams will keep the knowledge fresh in your mind until you take the test.
Sites on the Internet offer free practice exams that candidates can take to see how they score. The tests can be taken again and again until you get the score that you desire. There is no substitute for studying the material and driving practice unless you’re wanting to find a truck service technician which would give you the opportunity to work with and around the trucks and could give you an edge over other candidates.
A general knowledge test is given to all people who sit for the CDL license. This is the only test you have to take unless you plan on applying for a job hauling specific items. Anyone who will be hauling hazardous waste, chemicals, and other types of cargo will also need to take additional exams that pertain to carrying those items. If you have air brakes in your truck, a test needs to be taken for that to be sure you can operate them properly.
Seasoned drivers recommend taking these additional tests. It only takes a little more time to take these additional exams and the benefits are immediate. You could be limiting your job offers if you are not qualified to drive certain kinds of cargo. In fact, you are increasing your marketability with the extra credentials.
This is only half of the CDL licensing requirement. After the written testing is done, comes the second part. Each applicant needs to pass a physical exam. Drivers need to be able to physically handle the job of truck driving. Drivers can be behind the wheel for ten or more hours at a time to complete their schedules. That may seem like not much of a problem but you actually have to drive for that stretch of time before you can say that for sure.
Drug screening is also done. Once a driver is hired with a trucking company, they are also subject to random and scheduled drug tests. Failure on a drug test could more than likely result in immediate termination of your job.
The final obstacle left to tackle is the driving test. Remember how nervous you were when you took your driving test in high school? This time your vehicle is heavier and longer than it ever was before.
Do yourself a favor and practice as much as you can in a rig before taking the driving test. At driving schools, students get a mix of class work and driving practice so that they are ready for the exam. Experienced driving instructors work with students as much as they need on the skills required to pass the CDL driving test and be able to move on to find a truck driving career.
If you want to be a truck driver, a CDL licensing exam is in your future. The secret to success: studying and practice.
Topics: The Workplace |
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