How to Get A Driving Job with No Experience?

keyKey Takeaways:

  • First, get a commercial driver’s license (CDL) to become eligible for more driving job opportunities.
  • Network with individuals in the industry and be willing to start in an entry-level position to gain experience.
  • You can apply for driving jobs that require no experience, such as delivery driver positions.

Delivery drivers are in great demand across the United States therefore many individuals want to enter this industry. 

But are you concerned whether you need mandatory experience to get a driving job? An experience in the field is appreciated but is not a mandatory criterion. 

You can still earn a good amount of money by being a truck driver if you just legally hold the permit to drive the requested vehicle. 

Here we will discuss a few ways to start your delivery driving career with a beginners’ tag. Let’s talk about these evident ways along with the qualifications and requirements to start with each of them. 

7 Ways of Getting a Driving Job Without Any Experience

First and foremost, you are required to obtain the license to drive the type of ‌vehicle you want to use for making your deliveries. If you are driving a light goods vehicle truck for your deliveries, a normal yet valid driver’s license will be considered for delivery driving jobs. 

But if you are using a heavy goods vehicle truck, a commercial driver’s license is mandatory for you to be a delivery driver. 

Once you acquire the license, you can start with the ways you can increase your chances of getting employment as a delivery or truck driver with no experience:

1. Apply for vacant seats

If you have shortlisted some trucking companies or eCommerce brands, then start sending out your applications to them.

The motto of your initiative should be to earn money and gain experience in the field. Because once you have the experience of being a truck or delivery driver, you can always switch to better opportunities. 

Send out your applications to the industry’s big names or mega carriers. The mega carriers have the highest demand for delivery drivers. Take your chances, and you might land the best trucking jobs available in your state or country. 

Big eCommerce brands and trucking companies have trainers in their team who will take charge of assisting a new truck driver on the field. Bigger companies readily invest in new drivers, whereas smaller companies only look for experienced drivers to save their training expenses. 

2. Apply for different types of delivery gigs

With a commercial driver’s license, you would probably intend to drive a truck, tractor-trailer, or tanker to fulfill your complex delivery operations and get more money. But you can also expand your options with low-intensity deliveries. It will help you earn good money with more driver jobs in hand. 

Delivery by light goods vehicles, motorcycles, and bicycles are also being praised since the past few years. These delivery gigs are mostly available for independent drivers, but some companies hire new drivers with fixed salaries for the jobs. 

Food delivery companies and inter-city parcel delivery jobs allow you to use smaller vehicles to complete maximum daily deliveries and earn good money. Delivery drivers can start small and earn well while gaining experience in the industry. 

In the long run, it will be easy for you to present your experience in your incremental job search. 

3. Find an independent owner/operator

You can look for an independent owner/operator who handles delivery driving jobs. If you are lucky enough, you will get one, as many of them operate in the United States. 

They can offer you many driving jobs, as they have already built their client base. All they will demand from you is a valid license and a clean driving record. They are independent owners/operators, so they might ask you to bring your own vehicle for the job. 

4. Find companies that send delivery teams with the truck

Some companies hire inexperienced drivers but are reluctant to send them on trucking jobs alone. Therefore, for the initial probation months, they send new drivers in a team with experienced individuals to assist and learn the whole process. 

The companies that often send out deliveries for more than 2000 miles follow this process of sending delivery teams on the job instead of just one person. 

5. Don’t restrict yourself 

The first job in the delivery or trucking industry might not satisfy your requirements or expectations. But with no experience, it is impossible to land your desired job on the first attempt. It is not something to feel discouraged about. 

To start is the biggest challenge. Once you have the experience, your chances of landing your dream job will increase. 

6. Join apprenticeship programs

A delivery driver can join an apprenticeship program right after getting a license. You get on-job training under an experienced delivery driver and a good stipend. Some delivery or trucking companies also have apprenticeship schools to train new drivers. 

Apprenticeship certification will make you eligible to apply for all forms of driver jobs and increase your chances of securing employment. 

7. Avail dedicated employment opportunities by big brands

Few companies offer jobs to inexperienced drivers with minimal qualifications and good pay scales. Some of these companies will ask you to use your own vehicle. Interested candidates can apply to become delivery truck drivers for:

  • Amazon Flex
  • FedEx Ground
  • UPS
  • Purolator
  • OnTrac 

How Can Upper Route Planner Help You in Your Delivery Driving Career?

Most delivery companies are now using Upper Route Planner to streamline delivery routes for truck drivers. Companies want to save fuel and time by planning out automated routes. 

Manual route planning was difficult to follow for truck drivers. There were delayed deliveries, additional fuel costs, increased vehicle maintenance expenses, and poor customer feedback due to manual routing. 

Therefore, we introduced one of the best route planning software to help businesses address these problems. 

But we also thought about the fact that independent drivers might be facing the same problems. In most cases, the company offering you a delivery gig will plan the route for you and dispatch it to your software portal. But if that is not the case, Upper Route Planner offers incredible features to independent drivers. 

With Upper Route Planner, you will not just be following a well-optimized route but also have customer details readily available on the portal. You can connect with them before the delivery to know if they are available to collect the parcel or not. The customers will get automated delivery notifications as well.

Why don’t you take a 7 days FREE trial with us? You will get access to all of our features you can implement in your delivery driving jobs. See if it turns out to help you save money and effort.

FAQs

Some of the best driving jobs with high payouts include:

  • Tanker driver
  • Tractor-trailer truck driver
  • Owner operator driver
  • Food delivery driver
  • Courier driver

Truck driving is probably a good career option for people who want to make a high income even without a college degree. In the first year of service, a truck driver can earn around $50,000 to $70,000. The earnings might differ depending on the type of driving job and the company you work for.

Summing Up

If you’re a qualified applicant with a legal driving license, then you have a lot of delivery or truck driving jobs available across the United States. Different companies demand individuals with a good driving record to speed up their delivery operations. 

Whether you are an independent owner/operator or a salaried delivery driver, you can inquire whether you are being provided with an automated route or not. Automated route planning is one of the most common requirements for streamlining delivery jobs with multiple stops. 

Upper Route Planner is being leveraged by most of the delivery businesses today. Even though you are an independent driver, you can still avail of its features and perks to reduce overhead costs and increase profits.

Author Bio
Rakesh Patel
Rakesh Patel

Rakesh Patel, author of two defining books on reverse geotagging, is a trusted authority in routing and logistics. His innovative solutions at Upper Route Planner have simplified logistics for businesses across the board. A thought leader in the field, Rakesh's insights are shaping the future of modern-day logistics, making him your go-to expert for all things route optimization. Read more.

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