Hirschbach Paid CDL Training Program Review

You want a career that pays a fair wage, comes with real benefits, and doesn’t hand you a five-figure school loan before you’ve earned a single dollar. That combination sounds too good to be true, which is exactly why so many career changers give the Hirschbach Paid CDL Training Program a hard second look. Hirschbach runs its own training, covers the tuition, pays you while you learn, and points qualified graduates straight toward a full-time driving job.

Hirschbach Motor Lines has been moving freight since 1935, which puts it at more than 90 years in the business. It’s a veteran-owned carrier, refrigerated and dedicated freight are its bread and butter, and its training happens where the work actually happens. For anyone thinking about trading an unstable job for a trade with a future, that kind of staying power counts for a lot.

The program is built for people starting from zero. You don’t need trucking experience walking in the door. You need a Class A learner’s permit, a clean enough record, and the willingness to learn a skill that companies across the country are actively paying to teach.

A Paycheck Instead of a Tuition Bill

The biggest wall between most people and a trucking career is money. A private CDL school can run five figures, and you’re expected to pay it before you’ve proven the career even fits you. Hirschbach flips that math by paying for the training itself and paying you a wage while you sit in class and climb into the cab.

There are no out-of-pocket training costs. Hirschbach covers your travel to the school, whether that means a bus ticket or reimbursement for driving yourself in. During the on-site portion you get a private hotel room for your entire stay, plus three meals or meal vouchers every day.

A common worry is getting locked into a long, punishing contract. Hirschbach doesn’t do that. There’s no non-compete, but there is a financial agreement that covers the cost accrued during your training time, and the length of that commitment depends on whether you run solo or team after you finish.

That structure lowers the risk for someone leaving a steady, if disappointing, job to try something new. You’re not gambling your savings on a school and hoping it works out. You’re being paid to find out whether you like the work, and the training you complete belongs to you no matter where your career goes next.

How the Three Phases Connect

The Hirschbach program moves through three phases, and each one is designed to hand you a specific set of skills before you move on. You don’t skip ahead. Every trainee completes a Skills Validation before advancing, so nobody hits the highway carrying gaps they didn’t fill.

Phase One is four weeks of on-site CDL training in either Dubuque, Iowa or Kansas City, Kansas. It blends classroom instruction with hands-on work on the range, and it pays $475 per week while your lodging and meals are handled for you. This is where the fundamentals get drilled until they feel automatic.

Phase Two puts you on a truck for roughly six weeks of behind-the-wheel hours with a trainer riding along. Pay during this stretch is $90 per day on the truck. You’re driving real routes, hauling real freight, and getting corrected in real time by someone who does this for a living.

Phase Three transitions you into a team driving position for 13 weeks with a $1,600 per week pay incentive. By this point you’re logging serious miles and earning while you build the experience that unlocks solo work. The three phases together carry you from a permit in your pocket to a paycheck that reflects a working professional driver.

What You Study in the Classroom

Before you ever release the brake on a loaded rig, you learn the rules and reasoning behind everything a driver does. The classroom portion isn’t busywork. It’s the foundation that keeps you legal, safe, and employable, and it covers the theory the federal government requires every entry-level driver to master.

Federal Regulations and Hours-of-Service Logs

Trucking runs on rules set by the Department of Transportation, and you learn them early because they shape your whole workday. You cover how long you’re legally allowed to drive, when you’re required to rest, and how those limits protect you and everyone sharing the road. This is the framework that governs when the wheels turn and when they stop.

You also learn to work an electronic logging device, the system that records your hours automatically. Understanding how to read it, correct it, and stay compliant keeps you out of trouble at inspections and scale houses. Instructors walk you through common mistakes so you don’t repeat them once you’re on your own.

These regulations can feel dense at first, and that’s normal. By the time you finish the classroom weeks, hours-of-service math and log management become second nature rather than a source of stress.

Trip Planning, Routing, and Freight Documents

A professional driver is part navigator and part record keeper. You learn to plan a trip from pickup to delivery, accounting for fuel stops, legal parking, weigh stations, and the clock ticking on your available hours. Good planning is the difference between a smooth run and a scramble.

You also get comfortable with the paperwork that follows freight everywhere it goes. Bills of lading, delivery receipts, and load documents all have a purpose, and handling them correctly protects you if a shipment is ever questioned. Instructors show you what to check and when to flag a problem before it becomes your problem.

Since Hirschbach runs a heavy share of no-touch freight, much of your paperwork revolves around confirming loads rather than handling cargo by hand. Learning that rhythm in the classroom means fewer surprises once you’re the one signing for a trailer.

Safety Culture and DOT Inspection Readiness

Hirschbach describes its safety approach as All In to Zero, the goal being that every driver and every motorist gets home safely. That mindset starts in the classroom, where you learn defensive driving habits, hazard awareness, and how to make smart decisions when conditions turn ugly. Safety isn’t presented as a set of restrictions. It’s presented as the thing that keeps your career and your body intact.

You also learn what inspectors look for and how to prepare so a roadside check goes quickly and cleanly. Knowing your equipment, your documents, and your rights takes the anxiety out of getting waved onto the scale. Preparation turns an inspection from a threat into a routine stop.

The drug-testing standard is worth understanding up front, since it reflects the seriousness of the job. Screening includes both urine and hair follicle testing, and a clean result is part of qualifying for the program and the road.

Skill-Building on the Driving Range

The range is a controlled lot where you put your hands on the truck without traffic to worry about. It’s where clumsy first attempts become clean, repeatable movements. Everything you’ll be tested on for your CDL gets rehearsed here until you can do it under pressure.

The Pre-Trip Inspection Routine

Every driving day starts with a pre-trip inspection, and it’s one of the first things you learn to do correctly. You walk the tractor and trailer in a set order, checking brakes, tires, lights, fluid levels, the fifth wheel, and dozens of other points. Doing it the same way every time means you catch small problems before they strand you or endanger someone.

This routine is also a graded part of the CDL exam, so instructors drill the sequence and the spoken callouts until they stick. You learn not just what to look at but what you’re looking for and why it matters. A driver who inspects well is a driver who breaks down less and passes inspections more.

By the end of range training, the pre-trip becomes a habit you carry for your entire career. It’s a few minutes that saves you hours, and it signals to everyone around you that you take the job seriously.

Backing, Alley Docks, and Tight Turns

Backing a 70-foot combination vehicle is the skill that humbles almost every new driver, and it’s where the range earns its keep. You practice straight-line backing, offset maneuvers, and the alley dock, which mimics sliding into a loading bay. The truck turns opposite to what your instincts expect, and repetition is the only cure.

You also learn to use your mirrors, get out and look when you’re unsure, and set up your approach so the hard part becomes easy. Instructors coach you through the angles until you can read the trailer’s response and adjust smoothly. What feels impossible in week one starts feeling manageable by week three.

These are the exact skills you’ll use every day at customer docks and crowded truck stops. Getting them right on the range, where a mistake costs nothing, is what makes you confident when the lot is full and someone’s waiting on your bay.

Coupling and Uncoupling a Trailer

Connecting a tractor to a trailer, and separating them safely, is a core part of the job you’ll repeat constantly. You learn to back under a trailer, lock the fifth wheel, connect the air lines and electrical cord, and confirm the connection is solid before you move an inch. A trailer that isn’t locked in is one of the most dangerous mistakes a driver can make.

Uncoupling gets the same careful treatment, since dropping a trailer wrong can damage equipment or hurt someone. You practice the sequence, the safety checks, and the tug test that proves the coupling holds. Instructors watch for shortcuts and correct them, because shortcuts here have real consequences.

Once the process becomes routine, switching trailers is just another part of the day. The range gives you the reps to get there without the pressure of a live yard.

Behind the Wheel on Real Roads

Range skills only take you so far. The behind-the-wheel phase puts you on public highways with a trainer beside you, hauling real freight to real customers. This is where classroom theory and range muscle memory come together into actual driving.

Shifting, Braking, and Managing a Loaded Truck

A loaded truck handles nothing like a car, and your road training teaches you to respect that weight. You learn how the truck accelerates, how much room it needs to stop, and how load shifts affect the way it corners. A trainer helps you feel these differences at safe speeds before you meet them at highway pace.

Braking gets special attention, since stopping tens of thousands of pounds requires planning that a four-wheeler never thinks about. You learn to read traffic far ahead, brake early and smoothly, and use engine braking on downgrades. Getting this right protects your equipment, your freight, and everyone around you.

Hirschbach’s fleet leans heavily on automatic transmissions, which removes a lot of the old learning curve around manual shifting. That lets you concentrate on the judgment that actually keeps you safe: spacing, speed, and reading the road.

Highways, City Traffic, and Grades

Real routes throw everything at you, and that variety is the point. You drive interstates, merge into fast traffic, work through congested city streets, and handle the long climbs and descents that mountains demand. Each environment asks something different, and your trainer is there to talk you through it the first several times.

You learn lane discipline, safe following distances, and how to position a big truck so other drivers can see and predict you. You also learn to manage blind spots, wide turns, and the moments when a car does something you didn’t expect. Confidence in these situations comes from doing them with a coach, not from reading about them.

Weather is part of the curriculum whether you want it or not. Rain, wind, and reduced visibility all change how the truck behaves, and learning to slow down and adjust early is a habit that saves careers.

Fuel Stops, Scales, and Daily Road Life

Driving is only half the job. The road phase also teaches the daily rhythm of life on the truck: where and when to fuel, how to route around weigh stations you’re required to enter, and how to find legal, safe parking before your hours run out. These logistics separate smooth days from stressful ones.

You get a real feel for managing your time, your rest, and your body across long stretches away from home. Your trainer shows you how experienced drivers stay organized, eat reasonably, and keep the truck livable. Small routines make the difference between burning out and settling into the lifestyle.

By the time this phase ends, you’re not a student pretending to be a driver. You’re a driver who has hauled freight across real miles and handled the situations the job actually throws at you.

The Trucks You Train On

One quiet advantage of training with a carrier instead of a standalone school is the equipment. You learn on the same class of modern trucks Hirschbach puts its working drivers in, not tired old trainers held together with duct tape. What you practice on is what you’ll drive.

Hirschbach runs a late-model fleet built around recent Freightliner Cascadias and International tractors, with newer trucks generally spanning the 2023 to 2026 model years. These rigs come loaded with driver-focused features like heated and cooled seats, large-capacity refrigerators, and lane assist sensors. Training on current equipment means the transition to your own truck feels natural rather than jarring.

Auxiliary power units come standard, so you can run your climate control and electronics without idling the main engine all night. Learning on trucks this well equipped teaches you good habits and shows you what comfortable long-haul work can actually look like.

The features aren’t just creature comforts, either. Blind spot technology, lane assist sensors, and automatic high beams are safety tools you learn to work with rather than around, and getting used to them during training makes you a sharper, calmer driver on your own. When your equipment is helping you instead of fighting you, the long days get a little shorter.

The Driving Jobs Waiting at the Finish Line

The reason to complete the program is the career on the other side, and Hirschbach offers several lanes to grow into. Each one carries its own pay structure, home-time pattern, and set of expectations. Here’s what the main driving jobs look like, along with the pay you can reasonably work toward and what it takes to qualify.

A note on pay before the specifics: exact numbers vary by route, location, experience, and performance, and Hirschbach adjusts its pay from time to time. The figures below reflect the ranges the company currently advertises for these positions.

Over-the-Road (OTR) Company Driver

OTR company drivers run long-haul freight across the country, from coast to coast and everything between. You spend real time on the road, cover the most miles, and earn on a per-mile basis for every dispatched mile you drive. It’s the classic trucking lifestyle and the fastest way to stack experience early in your career.

Solo OTR company drivers start around $0.55 per mile with automatic raises every six months up to $0.60 per mile, and the fleet advertises solo earnings averaging roughly $65,000 to $85,000 per year. That works out to a weekly gross in the neighborhood of $1,250 to $1,635 for a driver running steady miles. On top of the base rate, you can earn up to $0.15 per mile in monthly safety and performance incentives, plus stop pay, breakdown pay, layover pay, and detention pay, so your time always counts.

New OTR hires may qualify for a sign-on and stay bonus of up to $10,000, and everyone earns $800 for completing the orientation qualification process. Freight is 99% no-touch, and the fleet is pet and passenger friendly, so you don’t have to leave your dog or your partner behind. To move into this lane directly, drivers generally need a valid Class A CDL, to be at least 23 years old, and to have at least six months of verifiable CDL-A experience, which is exactly the experience the training program is built to give you.

OTR is the lane most new graduates run first, and there’s a reason for that. The miles come fast, the pay rewards drivers who stay consistent, and the variety of routes teaches you more in a year than any classroom could. It’s demanding work, but it’s also the clearest path to the experience that opens up every other option at the company.

Dedicated Company Driver

Dedicated drivers run consistent freight for a specific customer, which brings more predictable routes and more predictable home time. If being gone for weeks at a stretch worries you, dedicated work is the answer, with daily, weekly, or bi-weekly home time depending on the account. The trade for that steadiness is a route pattern that repeats rather than roams.

Dedicated company drivers earn a weekly minimum pay incentive, so a slow week never leaves you empty, and the fleet advertises dedicated earnings averaging $80,000 or more per year. That lands around $1,540 or more per week for drivers on stronger accounts. A monthly loyalty and safety incentive rewards you for sticking around, meaning your pay grows the longer you stay.

The benefits mirror the rest of the company: medical, dental, life, and a 401(k), plus paid time off. Requirements track the standard experienced-hire lane of a valid Class A CDL, age 23 or older, and six months of verifiable experience. Dedicated is a popular next step for program graduates who want to keep earning strong money while getting home more often.

For a career changer with a family, dedicated work often becomes the long-term home. You get the financial stability of a weekly minimum, the routine of familiar routes and customers, and enough time at home to actually have a life outside the truck. Drivers who value predictability over maximum miles tend to find their footing here and stay.

Team Driver

Team driving pairs two drivers in one truck so the wheels almost never stop turning, and that’s where the biggest company-driver paychecks live. While one driver sleeps, the other drives, which keeps freight moving around the clock and pushes weekly mileage far past what a solo driver can hit. Teams are available on both the OTR and dedicated fleets.

Team company drivers run on a $0.75 per mile base and average roughly $97,000 to $126,000 per year, which works out to about $1,865 to $2,420 per week per driver. There’s a weekly minimum pay incentive as well, with teams counting on $3,000 minimum per truck, or $1,500 per driver, each week. Teams also earn the same monthly safety and performance incentives, and they never make less than $75 a load no matter how short the run.

Team benefits include the full medical, dental, life, and 401(k) package, and refer a teammate and you can earn $1,200. The Hirschbach program actually moves you into a team driving role during Phase Three, so you get a real taste of this lane before you decide whether to stay in it. Standard requirements apply for continuing team work, and existing driver pairs are welcome to run together.

Lease Purchase / Independent Contractor

Once you have experience and want to run your own business, the lease purchase path lets you contract with Hirschbach as an independent operator. You take on more responsibility and more of the upside, running your own truck while Hirschbach supplies freight, discounted fuel, and support. This lane is about building a business, not just collecting a paycheck.

Solo lease drivers earn a base of roughly $1.17 to $2.90 per mile depending on length of haul, and the company advertises the potential to bring home up to $150,000 per year as a solo 1099 driver, which can approach $2,880 per week gross before business expenses. Terms are friendly by industry standards: no down payment, no credit check, and a walkaway lease. You pay a fixed $0.99 per gallon for fuel regardless of the pump price, and a full-service maintenance plan covers mechanical parts for $0.10 per mile with no out-of-pocket surprises.

Lease teams can net an advertised average of $210,000 to $248,000 per truck per year, with expenses split between partners. After a year, the Trick My Truck program through Next Level Leasing lets you spec a Freightliner Cascadia in your own colors and add-ons, with payments structured to pay off in four years and no balloon payment at the end. This is a serious step, so it suits drivers who’ve built experience and want ownership rather than a first stop out of school.

Veteran Driver Opportunities

Hirschbach is a veteran-owned company, with founder-era leadership that includes CEO and owner Brad Pinchuk, a U.S. Army veteran. That heritage shows up in how the company recruits and recognizes former service members. Veterans move into the same OTR, dedicated, team, and lease lanes as everyone else, with the same pay structures described above.

The company backs its words with programs, including partnerships with the U.S. Army PaYS program, Veterans in Trucking, ESGR, and Troops Into Transportation. There’s an annual giveaway that custom-wraps a driver’s truck to honor their branch of service, and Hirschbach has wrapped trucks for the Navy, Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force. Community efforts like Haul the Wall and Wreaths Across America round out the commitment.

The discipline, time management, and mission focus that veterans bring translate directly to professional driving. If you’re transitioning out of the service, the structure of a paid training program and a clear career ladder can make the jump into civilian work a lot smoother.

The Rig You’ll Run Once You’re Hired

The truck you get after training isn’t a step down from what you learned on. Hirschbach outfits its working fleet with the same modern, comfort-focused equipment across the board, because the company treats the cab as your workspace and, on long runs, your home. A driver who’s comfortable and rested is a driver who’s safer and stays longer.

Expect recent-model Freightliner Cascadias and International tractors, generally in the 2023 to 2026 range for newer trucks, fully specced with inverters, large-capacity refrigerators, and 24-inch SmartTVs. Heated and cooled seats, automatic high beams, blind spot technology, automatic windshield wipers, and lane assist sensors come as part of the package. Carrier auxiliary power units are standard, so your climate control and electronics run without idling the engine all night.

The fleet is also built for fuel efficiency, with aerodynamic trucks that keep more money in your pocket at the pump. For a driver, that combination of comfort, technology, and efficiency means the miles feel less punishing and the paychecks stretch further.

What Your First Year Can Look Like

First-year earnings start the moment training does, which is a real advantage over paying a school and earning nothing for weeks. During the program you’re already collecting the phase pay: $475 per week in Phase One, $90 per day on the truck in Phase Two, and a $1,600 per week incentive during the 13-week team phase. That money bridges the gap while you build toward a full driving wage.

Once you’re running as a solo company driver, you start around $0.55 per mile with a raise built in every six months. A new driver still learning to maximize miles typically lands in the lower part of the company’s advertised $65,000 to $85,000 solo range, which puts many first-year drivers in the rough neighborhood of $65,000, or around $1,250 per week, as their miles climb. Safety incentives, accessorial pay, and any sign-on bonus can push that figure higher.

Drivers who go the team route, including the team phase built into the program, tend to earn more in year one because the truck covers more miles. The honest takeaway is that your first year rewards consistency: the more reliably you run, the faster your pay climbs from the entry rate toward the top of the range.

Earnings After Five Years and Beyond

Trucking rewards drivers who stick with it, and five years in, your pay reflects it. Those automatic raises every six months carry a solo company driver up to the $0.60 per mile ceiling, and a seasoned driver who runs steady miles sits comfortably toward the upper end of the $65,000 to $85,000 solo range. Experience means you plan trips better, waste fewer hours, and qualify more consistently for the monthly safety and performance bonuses.

Experienced team drivers reach into the $97,000 to $126,000 per year range, or roughly $1,865 to $2,420 per week per driver, thanks to that higher $0.75 per mile base and the weekly minimum. Dedicated drivers who stay put benefit from a monthly loyalty incentive that literally pays more the longer you’re with the company. Loyalty here isn’t just a nice word, it’s built into the settlement.

For drivers who move into a lease purchase after building experience, the earning ceiling climbs again, with advertised solo potential up to $150,000 per year and team trucks netting six figures well beyond that. The pattern across every lane is the same: the driver who treats this as a career, not a stopgap, is the driver whose income keeps growing.

Compare that arc to most jobs a career changer is leaving behind, where raises are small, rare, and out of your control. Here, more of your income tracks your own effort and reliability, and the tools to earn more are laid out in front of you from day one. Five years is enough time to go from anxious beginner to a driver whose settlement quietly outpaces what a lot of degree holders take home.

From Trainee to a Signed Job Offer

The whole point of a carrier-run program is that the finish line is a job, not a diploma and a job search. When you complete all three phases, pass each Skills Validation, and meet Hirschbach’s hiring standards, you graduate straight into a driving position with the company. There’s no scramble to convince a stranger to take a chance on a new driver.

The program is designed as a pipeline into Hirschbach’s own fleet, so the people training you are effectively your future coworkers. That continuity means the equipment, the routes, and the expectations you learned are the same ones you’ll work with on day one. You’re not starting over, you’re continuing.

Meeting the hiring requirements matters, so a clean record, a passed DOT physical, and a clean drug screen are all part of crossing that line. Do the work, follow the standards, and the job offer is the natural result rather than a hopeful maybe.

This is the security that draws so many career changers to a carrier program in the first place. Instead of finishing school and cold-calling companies that may or may not hire a rookie, you finish training already inside the company that trained you. The certainty of that outcome is worth as much as any single line on the pay chart, because it removes the scariest unknown of a career switch: what happens after you’re done learning.

The OTR Life: Rewards and Real Trade-Offs

Becoming an over-the-road driver changes how you live, and it’s worth being honest about both sides. The hardest part for most new drivers is the time away from home. Long-haul work can keep you out for stretches at a time, and being able to be away from home for extended periods is a real requirement, not a formality.

The road can be solitary, and you trade a predictable house-and-bed routine for a life that moves with the freight. Weather, traffic, and tight schedules test your patience, and you learn to manage your own time, your rest, and your meals without anyone looking over your shoulder. It suits people who value independence and can stay disciplined on their own.

The rewards are just as real. You see the country on the company’s dime, you answer to the open road more than a cubicle, and the paycheck reflects a genuine skill that can’t be offshored. Hirschbach softens the hard edges with pet and passenger friendly policies, 24/7 support when something goes wrong, and modern trucks that make living on the road far more comfortable than it used to be.

If home time is your priority, the dedicated lane exists for exactly that reason. Many drivers start OTR to build experience and pay, then shift into dedicated or a lease once they know what fits their life. The point is that the career flexes as your priorities change.

What Sets Hirschbach Apart

Plenty of carriers will train you, so the question worth asking is what the company is like once the training ends. Hirschbach leans hard on the idea of treating drivers like people rather than truck numbers, and its own drivers echo that in their testimonials. One company driver of five years describes being treated like family, and that theme comes up again and again from OTR and dedicated drivers alike.

The practical version of that culture is support you can actually reach. Hirschbach runs 24/7 operations and road assistance year-round, so when a problem hits at 2 a.m. in a strange town, someone answers. New drivers also get mentor and trainer programs to lean on as they settle into the job, which matters more than most people expect in those first anxious months.

There are ways to be heard and recognized, too. Drivers can join the Driver Advisory Board to shape how the company operates, and gatherings like the annual Best of the Best banquet and Driver Appreciation Week put a spotlight on the people doing the work. Add the $1,200 referral program and a genuine veteran-first streak, and the company reads less like a faceless fleet and more like a place people stay.

Benefits

Hirschbach backs its drivers with a benefit package meant to match the demands of the job. Coverage and perks vary somewhat by position and tenure, but the core offerings run across the fleet.

• Paid, tuition-free CDL training with a weekly wage during every phase.
• Private hotel lodging plus three meals or meal vouchers per day during the on-site phase.
• Paid travel to training, whether by provided bus ticket or reimbursement for driving yourself in.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage through Blue Cross Blue Shield.
• A free $10,000 life insurance policy, with optional critical illness coverage available.
• A 401(k) retirement plan with a company match.
• Vacation pay after one year, plus paid time off on dedicated accounts.
• $800 orientation completion pay and, for eligible OTR hires, a sign-on and stay bonus of up to $10,000.
• Monthly safety and performance incentives worth up to $0.15 per mile for company drivers.
• A weekly minimum pay incentive on dedicated and team positions.
• A $1,200 referral bonus for bringing another driver to Hirschbach.
• 99% no-touch freight, plus pet and passenger friendly policies.
• Industry-leading 24/7 operations and road support, year-round.
• Late-model, fully specced trucks with APUs, refrigerators, SmartTVs, and heated and cooled seats.

Requirements

Trucking is a heavily regulated industry, so the program has clear entry standards. Meeting them up front keeps your start smooth and your application moving.

• Be at least 21 years old.
• Able to read, write, and speak English.
• Pass a DOT physical and drug testing, which includes both urine and hair follicle screening.
• Have an acceptable driving record.
• Possess a verifiable work history.
• Able to be away from home for extended periods of time.
• Possess communication and problem-solving skills.
• Able to manage your time and work independently.
• Obtain your CDL learner’s permit before your training start date, which requires passing a written test at your local driver’s license office.
• Complete your DOT physical, in most cases before you test for your permit.

Once you have driving experience and want to move into or continue in the company’s standard driving lanes, the typical hiring requirements are a valid Class A CDL, being at least 23 years of age, and at least six months of verifiable CDL-A experience, which the training program is designed to help you build.

Commonly Asked Questions

Do I need a CDL before I start the program?

You don’t need a full Class A CDL, but you do need your CDL learner’s permit in hand before training begins. You get the permit by passing a written test at your local driver’s license office, and study materials for each state are available in print and online. Start studying early, because the permit is what unlocks your training start date.

How much does the training cost me out of pocket?

Nothing out of pocket for the training itself. Hirschbach covers the cost of the program, pays you a weekly wage while you learn, and handles your travel, lodging, and meals during the on-site phase. There is a financial agreement that accounts for the training cost over time, but you’re not writing a tuition check to get started.

How long does the whole program take?

The three phases run roughly four weeks of on-site training, about six weeks of behind-the-wheel work with a trainer, and a 13-week team driving phase. That progression carries you from a permit to a working driver’s role over several months. You advance only after completing a Skills Validation at each stage.

Where is the training held?

On-site training takes place at one of two locations: Dubuque, Iowa or Kansas City, Kansas. Both combine classroom instruction and hands-on range work. Your recruiter can help you figure out which location fits your situation.

Do I actually get paid while I train?

Yes. You earn $475 per week during the four-week on-site phase, $90 per day during the behind-the-wheel phase on the truck, and a $1,600 per week incentive during the 13-week team phase. You’re earning from the start rather than waiting until after you’re licensed.

Is there a contract that locks me in?

There’s no non-compete contract. Hirschbach does use a financial agreement to cover the cost accrued during your training, and the length of that commitment depends on whether you drive solo or team afterward. It’s a way to account for the free training, not a trap that ties you down.

What are the age and background requirements?

For the training program you must be at least 21 years old, able to read, write, and speak English, and able to pass a DOT physical and drug testing. You’ll also need an acceptable driving record and a verifiable work history. Once you have experience, the standard driving positions generally look for drivers who are at least 23 with six months of verifiable CDL-A experience.

Will I have a job when I graduate?

The program is built to lead directly into a driving job with Hirschbach. Complete all three phases, pass your Skills Validations, and meet the hiring requirements, and you move into a driving position with the company. The training pipeline exists specifically to fill the company’s own fleet.

What kind of truck will I drive after training?

Newer-model, fully equipped trucks. Hirschbach runs recent Freightliner Cascadias and International tractors loaded with features like refrigerators, SmartTVs, satellite radio, heated and cooled seats, lane assist, and standard auxiliary power units. You train on the same class of equipment you’ll drive, so the switch to your own truck feels familiar.

What if I’ve never spent long stretches away from home?

Being able to be away from home for extended periods is part of over-the-road work, and it’s worth thinking through honestly before you start. The upside is that Hirschbach offers dedicated routes with more frequent home time and pet and passenger friendly policies, so you can shape the schedule that fits your life. Many drivers begin OTR to build experience, then move into a lane with more home time once they’ve found their footing.

Hirschbach Paid CDL Training Locations:

Iowa Training Location
2460 Kerper Blvd
Dubuque, IA 52001

Kansas Training Location
2563 S. 88th Street
Kansas City, KS 66111