The Truck Driving program at H. Councill Trenholm State Technical College is designed to prepare the student to operate vehicles requiring a commercial driver’s license.  A six-week Truck Driving program is offered that utilizes the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) model curriculum as the foundation for training and takes the student from the basic to the advanced operation of a tractor/trailer.  Additionally, courses taught include safe operation practices and non-vehicle activities which are not directly related to the vehicle but which must be performed by the operator.  Information is presented in an intensive question and answer format to provide the most efficient and cost-effective method for preparing a student for a commercial driver’s license.

Occupational Choices

Job opportunities should be favorable for truck drivers. In addition to growth in demand for truck drivers, numerous job openings will occur as experienced drivers leave this large occupation to transfer to other fields of work, retire, or leave the labor force for other reasons. Jobs vary greatly in terms of earnings, weekly work hours, the number of nights spent on the road, and quality of equipment. There may be competition for the jobs with the highest earnings and most favorable work schedules. 

Truck drivers and driver/sales workers held about 3.2 million jobs in 2004. Of these workers, 451,000 were driver/sales workers and 2.8 million were truck drivers. Most truck drivers find employment in large metropolitan areas or along major interstate roadways where trucking, retail, and wholesale companies tend to have their distribution outlets. Some drivers work in rural areas, providing specialized services such as delivering newspapers to customers.*

Average Full-Time Wage

Median hourly earnings of heavy truck and tractor-trailer drivers were $16.11 in May 2004. The middle 50 percent earned between $12.67 and $20.09 an hour. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $10.18, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $24.07 an hour.   Median hourly earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of heavy truck and tractor-trailer drivers in May 2004 were:  General freight trucking - $17.56; Grocery and related product wholesalers - $17.32; Specialized freight trucking - $15.61; Employment services - $14.82; Cement and concrete product manufacturing - $14.47.

Awards Available

Specialized Training Certificate in Truck Driving (Not Pell Grant Eligible)

Additional Requirements

Students entering the Truck Driving Program must have a valid driver’s license, be at least twenty-one (21) years of age for a class “A” CDL and eighteen (18) for an Intrastate class “B” CDL, successfully pass a DOT physical which includes a drug screen, and present a current Motor Vehicle Report (MVR).  While enrolled in the Truck Driving Program, students must obtain the Alabama Commercial Drivers Learner’s License and are subject to DOT random drug testing rules.  This program does not accept any “English as a second language” applicants.

Estimated Length & Cost*

*Data obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006-2007.