sixweek

The need for truck drivers isn’t going anywhere. In fact, almost 20 percent more people will be needed to cruise the highways by 2020, as industries are picking up speed across all areas from energy to manufacturing.

Monique Carter knew this and didn’t miss a beat when it came to signing up for truck driving courses at San Jacinto College. Within six weeks, the single mother and military veteran had her certification and interviews lined up to hit the road.

“There is definitely work out there for truck drivers. The industry is always hiring,” said Carter, who works for Tri-county Towing. “Everyone I trained with got a job.”

According to Dr. JD Taliaferro, the industry is growing by leaps and bounds. “Everything is transported by truck, from what you wear to what is in your wallet – it has all been on a truck at some point in time,” said Taliaferro, director of applied technologies and trades.

Yet, times have changed over the years for drivers with new regulations and company requirements for the job; in result, revealing a need for formal commercial truck driver training.

“You just can’t apply to be a truck driver without the training and certification,” said Taliaferro. “There are a lot more regulations to meet these days, and you have to have a clean driving record, a physical, and a clean background check.”

The San Jacinto College commercial truck driving program is offered through the Continuing and Professional Development division. The program’s curriculum covers general knowledge of truck driving, air brakes, doubles and triples, tank vehicles, hazardous materials, and pre-trip knowledge. The program also enjoys a near 100 percent job placement rate.

“The instructors are top of the line and have many years of commercial trucking driving experience,” said Taliaferro. “We actually do a lot of road work, with each student receiving approximately 200 miles of behind-the-wheel driving and pulling empty and loaded trailers.”

Another advantage to training for truck driving at a community college is the competitive low program cost, which pays for itself with a few months on the job.

“Companies trust us; we have a long list of companies who visit our students regularly during their training to recruit,” said Taliaferro. “We are a regular stop on the recruiting trail.”

Fore more information about the San Jacinto College truck driving program, visit the website at www.sanjac.edu and search for truck driving.

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Jeannie Peng-Armao