Do I Really Need A GED To Go To Trucking School?

I know lots of truckers without a ged... but every school I've tried to call around me requires me to get my ged.

I believe most if not all do. Also most large companies require at least a GED these days to be hired. Most schools and companies do not want to spend money or waste time on students and employees that may not finish school. With a GED or High School Diploma their is at least some history that you have the basic language, writing and math skills to accomplish finishing their training and succeed when you are hired. Why not just get your GED? Not only will it help you get into a CDL school, it will also give you better options when it comes time to select companies that accept you. Only so many companies will hire people straight out of school, they tend to be the larger carriers. I have sent out several applications to these larger carriers and everyone of them require a GED. So if you are committed to becoming a driver I would really look into getting your GED. Please I hope it's not coming out to preachy, I have a brother you is probably the smartest person I know who never graduated school. Knows computers better than anyone I know and I have seen how it held him back from getting hired in his field.

I believe most if not all do. Also most large companies require at least a GED these days to be hired. Most schools and companies do not want to spend money or waste time on students and employees that may not finish school. With a GED or High School Diploma their is at least some history that you have the basic language, writing and math skills to accomplish finishing their training and succeed when you are hired. Why not just get your GED? Not only will it help you get into a CDL school, it will also give you better options when it comes time to select companies that accept you. Only so many companies will hire people straight out of school, they tend to be the larger carriers. I have sent out several applications to these larger carriers and everyone of them require a GED. So if you are committed to becoming a driver I would really look into getting your GED. Please I hope it's not coming out to preachy, I have a brother you is probably the smartest person I know who never graduated school. Knows computers better than anyone I know and I have seen how it held him back from getting hired in his field.

I went to and passed with 98% on all tests through central/swift without a GED or high school diploma

I went to a private school in Oregon and the students that didn't have a GED or Diploma just had to take some test they had. They said it was easy common sense type questions.

I went to swift in 2012 without a GED or High School Diploma.

Currently employed with Gordon and still have neither.

Not trying to bring a post back from the dead or anything.....but im in the same situation needing the same information.

but my question to david is, Did you tell them you have your GED or diploma...and they just never asked for it? or did you come out and say i dont have a GED or diploma?

I went to swift in 2012 without a GED or High School Diploma.

Currently employed with Gordon and still have neither.

In my entire life I only had to supply my HS diploma once for a job....and it wasn't even my federal job. I don't eve. Remember prime asking which high school I went to

Hi rainy, thank you for your response. its been the same way for me as well through out my working life.

Given that none of my jobs have really been jobs that "require" it but they always ask on a application. and the way i was taught all my life was say yes "I graduated" ....and if they ask for a diploma then im SOL on that job. no harm no foul kinda thing. im not uneducated, i did my time in high school but fell short on credits when came graduation time...tried for the state proficiency test (GED basically) and didnt make it, only cause i was young and dumb and to busy worried about friends, parties etc.

But here we are, 15 years later and im trying to make something of my self. I know the right thing would be to just go get my GED squared away but at this moment it feels like just another hoop to jump through. and time is not on my side so the quicker i can get in to a sponsored training program the better. Im just wondering if for once in my life should i come clean and say "no" to the graduated high school on my application....or do what ive done for years, just lie and pray hahahahaha

And its funny you said prime didnt ask you for a diploma....but my search of this subject started from a you tube video where a prime trainee said they had to show there diploma at hire. im just wondering for those that dont have one or GED and are in this industry....are we coming clean on that? or just riding it out

In my entire life I only had to supply my HS diploma once for a job....and it wasn't even my federal job. I don't eve. Remember prime asking which high school I went to

This might come from the fact that some insurance company specifically ask the companies if they ask for written test before hiring

I know the right thing would be to just go get my GED squared away but at this moment it feels like just another hoop to jump through

Chris, you've gotta make this happen, man. You've got waaaaay too long to live with that kind of cloud hanging over your head for something so simple to achieve. Don't do that to yourself. Grab the bull by the horns and make it happen - get your GED. You'll feel like a million bucks and you'll never have to give it a thought again.

And believe me when I say this, getting your GED will be easier than almost anything you'll have to do in trucking. If a person can't find the motivation to get their GED then the trucking industry would be way more work than they could handle. But I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and say it isn't laziness that has kept you from getting your GED, you're just procrastinating. You don't feel like doing it because it's kind of a pain and you wish it would just go away.

I'm really bad about procrastinating. I have a relentless work ethic but when I don't enjoy something I can put it off a very long time, quite an unreasonable amount of time in fact. It gets to the point that putting off the problem makes a bigger problem than solving the original problem would have been.

I say get your GED and your CDL. Talk about turning your life's prospects around on a dime! You would go from begging for $10/hr warehouse jobs to a new trucking career making $40,000 or so right off the bat, and over $50,000 within a few years.

That's how you do it. I hope you'll consider that.