Question about career change, need serious opinions

[vonsay]

Hello All,

Boy is this going to sound confusing, and it probably is because I am going crazy right now trying to weigh my options.

Ok I worked in the steel mills from 1995 to 2004 (laid off). Have always loved physical work, absolutely HATE, sit down jobs and jobs that dont allow you to go pee unless you raise your hand (yes, they do exist). Was on umemployment for some time then decided to get into the medical field for the great job market.
Anyway, January of 2006, started medical assistant school, went six months before researching the pay (12.00 or less) and then said "heck no" and stopped going in June 2006.
I needed a career that was going to get me paid decently, at least something close to what I was accustomed to making at the mills (upwards of 45,000+). So I began to get a fascination with trucks and driving but didnt have money for school and was scared to do company sponsored training because of the horror stories. So I went on my own and got my permit and a friend of mine who drives volunteered to teach me the craft of big rig driving.

So August of 06, He got close enough to my home town for me to jump in and take a run with him. Things went ok but he wasnt really teaching me much. He kept saying that I could learn a lot from the passegner seat.

Next trip out more of the same, though he did let me drive a little bit but grinding gears and rolling around and around in the parking lot still wasnt much. To make a long story shorter, him and I had a bad disagreement, he ended up putting me out of the truck in PA with 70 cents and 1 cell phone bar ( I live in Chicago). I did get home in one piece but was put off by trucking because of the experience.
So I decided to transfer old medical assistant credits and get into nursing school and have been in nursing school from then until now.
I dont have a passion for nursing but know that the money is good ( 2 places that you will always have work, nursing and trucking). Sigh....... The trucking bug is still biting me in the ***** and I want to get out there! I have a 16 yr old daughter at home and a fiance who is a driver that does regional runs.

This is where I need the advice..... What would you guys do? would you stick to the nursing or go for the trucking? I am so broke in nursing school that some days I cant even get there(no gas)!
My fiance isnt making great money doing regional so he cant hold down all of the bills and take care of my expenses and his as well. I only have 7 more months of nursing but I need money!! Besides I really think I would love trucking! I would hate to bail out of nursing school, get into trucking and then discover that I really DON'T like it. Though I have been out on the road for weeks with the trainer (and some with my fiance), it is certainly not the same as driving and doing my own thing. If I get out of nursing, I will lose my spot and it will be very difficult to pick it up again. sigh.......

I have contacted a driving school that trains and then links you to companies that will take you on and repay the tuition (driver solutions). I am all ready to go and was told to show up at the hotel Sunday night. They claim that I wont have to be OTR but can hire directly on as regional and be home on the weekends (sounds suspect to me). I would need to be regional because of my daughter. She needs to see me at least on the weekends and my fiance is home weekends as well.

Whew! my fingers hurt! Sorry for the long post but seemed I needed to really break it down so all the facts are known.

Please advise, Sunday will be here soon......

[GTR SILVER]

nursing is a vocation......if you have it.... hold on to it!!!!...........BOL 8) 8) 8)

[deadgoon]

The medical field is expected to grow by 30% in the next 5 years and continue to grow after that. If your primary concern is money, nursing's not a bad option. Transportation industries are expected to grow 10% in that same time period which is also not bad. You might try selling some stuff and cutting some corners to stick it out in nursing school and then go into trucking after you graduate. That way you have the nursing to fall back on if the trucking doesn't work out.

You should also remember that in nursing you'll make as much money as your male co-workers, but as a trucker, you'll likely make less that your male co-workers simply because you're a woman.

[wildkat]

You should also remember that in nursing you'll make as much money as your male co-workers, but as a trucker, you'll likely make less that your male co-workers simply because you're a woman.

Where the heck did you come up with this BS???? I have been trucking for 27 years and have NEVER EVER been paid less than a man!

[vonsay]

Yes, I guess that holding off on trucking until after school is an option. It is very difficult to no have money for the next 6 or 7 months when I could be making money trucking. But then again, if I stick it out then I'm in a good position.

Aside from the money, the two field are sooo different in nature! Nursing is politics, politics, politics!! You get hell from the doctors because they think you dont know anything, you get hell from co-workers because it is a women dominated field and women can be a real trip! Patients families also give you pure hell!

I may not know much about trucking yet, but it seems like you are in your truck, rolling along and not having to deal with BS every hour on the hour, but I could be wrong. Am I wrong?

I didnt know, or think that women got paid less then men for driving?!? But it does seem like the pay can cap out (because there are only so many hours that a person can drive) whereas with nursing, if you are making 35 bucks an hour and thats not enough, you could always do overtime and make even more.

[Orangetxguy]

:arrow: Just a guy here, who is bored and finally clicked on this part of CAD....but....Von...if you only have 6 or 7 month's of school left before getting your license for nursing....have you tried some of the other things that are available out there, that might put some money in your pocket..short term? Like maybe waiting tables?

I know..I know..you like manuel labor..but isn't that what waiting tables is? Plus...you would be getting some decent tips..if you have a good personality.

just a thought.


BTW.....Does your fiance` make anywhere close to 45K doing the regional gig? If he doesn't..you gotta wonder why.

[wildkat]

Yes, I guess that holding off on trucking until after school is an option. It is very difficult to no have money for the next 6 or 7 months when I could be making money trucking. But then again, if I stick it out then I'm in a good position.

This is an extremely good idea....

Aside from the money, the two field are sooo different in nature! Nursing is politics, politics, politics!! You get hell from the doctors because they think you dont know anything, you get hell from co-workers because it is a women dominated field and women can be a real trip! Patients families also give you pure hell!

You think there's politics in nursing? Gal you ain't seen nuthin yet! There's politics you've never even HEARD of in this industry. You got a library for all the rules & regulations we have to follow? Better get one... you'll need it.

I may not know much about trucking yet, but it seems like you are in your truck, rolling along and not having to deal with BS every hour on the hour, but I could be wrong. Am I wrong?.

There is .... oh I don't know .... 2000000000.... :-) as many zeros as you can or want to put times the BS driving than anything else. Like the rest said, wait till your finished school. For one SCHOOL & TRUCKING DOES NOT MIX. Truthfully trucking does not mix with anything, not family, not anything, it will take over your life LITERALLY.

I didnt know, or think that women got paid less then men for driving?!? But it does seem like the pay can cap out (because there are only so many hours that a person can drive) whereas with nursing, if you are making 35 bucks an hour and thats not enough, you could always do overtime and make even more.

Women absolutely do NOT make less driving truck that a man, I have been trucking nearly 28 years..I have NEVER EVER made less than a man. That "person" has nothing better to do with his life than blow smoke...ignore him.


To borrow a quote from another driver;

You will have *NO* home life to speak of. Unless of course you consider home a place you sleep at for 36 hours or so every couple of weeks.

It's not cheap out here. You'll be buying every meal at a restaurant that can charge anything they want simply because they know we can't just pop into any old place to eat.

What hours will you work in a day? Well, there's 24 hours in a day - figure that you'll use 'em all.

Like working during the day and sleeping at night? You will - until the next day when it reverses.

Life of a truck driver....

[vonsay]

Dang gone it! you guys are really breaking it down! Thanks! I NEEDED to hear the real deal, not the fluffy stuff the recruiter was throwing my way. Speaking of recruiters, do newbies come fresh out of school doing regional runs? Or was that a line of BS as well?

Orangetxguy... point taken! Future Hubby is NOT making 45K a year. He makes about 33K.

The reason why it is so difficult to work and go to school is because nursing school is all consuming, they require students to be available Mon thru Sat. from 7am to 11pm because hours change monthly as well as hospital training hours. And that doesnt include LONG study hours. Students who try to work midnights fall off like flys because they sleep with eyes open in class and dont retain a thing. But I'll figure out something I guess. Maybe Fiance needs to go OTR for a while and make more money? hmmmm....

[vonsay]

Wildcat, you are the stuff real women are made of!! 28yrs??? :shock:

You are actually motivating me instead of deterring me! LOL!

[deadgoon]

Where the heck did you come up with this BS???? I have been trucking for 27 years and have NEVER EVER been paid less than a man!

Women in the states tend to make about 74 cents on the dollar compared to men for the same work. Especially in male dominated areas. Perhaps it doesn't apply to trucking.

[wildkat]

Wildcat, you are the stuff real women are made of!! 28yrs??? :shock:

You are actually motivating me instead of deterring me! LOL!

Yeah 28 years in Oct...somedays I HATE trucks, but mostly I love what I do, I own my truck, run my truck....all the joys...all the heartaches... LOL

I'm one of the lucky ones, I found a good man...kinda late...he didn't try to compete with my truck, he understood my dedication (I'd been trucking nearly 15 years when we married), and THAT was a huge help!

Good luck to you! It can be a wonderful life...BUT beware...once the diesel is in your blood...it's damned hard to get it out!!!

My truck:

[4roses]

deadgoon:

Women in the states tend to make about 74 cents on the dollar compared to men for the same work. Especially in male dominated areas. Perhaps it doesn't apply to trucking.

Sad as it is, this is true in some jobs, but in Trucking ... we all start out at the same rate. This is the only profession I have found that is fair to both genders.

And as for the nursing career ... it would be wise for you to finish school. It's always best to have a degree to fall back on.. You made a commitment when you started to school - If you don't finish this 1st commitment what makes you think you'd stick it out with trucking. My daughter is an LPN and I watched how she struggled while going to school and supporting her children by herself. There were times she'd sale her blood ... just for gas money. Nursing is a job that your heart has to be in it, or it won't work .... just like trucking. There's ways to make money, weekend babysitting, pet sitting, Walmart - there open 24/7 ... you just have to make be determined. No matter what you do.

When you first start out in the business you won't make those big dollars. You have to prove yourself to your company before they give out the big miles. Trucking isn't an easy job, it's lonely, tiresome, your life gets turned upside down and since you have a boyfriend at home .. it's difficult to keep a relationship going. Yes - a few women have been able to make it work for them but there's not many males that will stand by and watch their girlfriend drive off in that big truck by themselves knowing their going to be hit on by the other boys out there. ... Now saying all that .... I think it's the best job around ! But I'm single and can do as I please.

Think hard and long before you step away from nursing.

[Shawnee]

Aside from the money, the two field are sooo different in nature! Nursing is politics, politics, politics!! You get hell from the doctors because they think you dont know anything, you get hell from co-workers because it is a women dominated field and women can be a real trip! Patients families also give you pure hell!

I may not know much about trucking yet, but it seems like you are in your truck, rolling along and not having to deal with BS every hour on the hour, but I could be wrong. Am I wrong?

You sure are wrong, you don't know BS and stress until you have had to deal with a@$hole dispatchers who lie to you and try to use you in any way they can, shippers/recievers, DOT, traffic etc.

You think nursing is politics, politics, politics, just wait and see what the trucking industry is like nowdays, politics, politics, politics. We have more rules and regulations now than we have ever had. Some days I just want to go home and put a for sale sign on the truck because I have had it with the way trucking is going these days.

Trucking is not the dream job you might think it is. It is long hours, stressful, You think you have long hours of studying, in the trucking industry you will have long hours of sitting around that you are not even paid for. I like Wildkats post, I think she summed it up the best.

Just some things to think about before you decide on this as a career. You have stuck it out in school this long, I think you should at least finish it so you will have another option.

[ladykatrina]

most of the factories I have worked at are pretty equal with their pay...I think this statistic is mostly for office type jobs...women in factories can usually get guys to do a lot of their work for them as well...never saw as many horny men in my life as I saw working factory jobs.... :shock:

[ThinkingAboutTrucking]

I have to say if I'd known in advance how much going to trucking school and numerous tries in taking the test and living expenses were REALLY going to cost me, I would have never done it. I wasn't happy with my first trucking school, so I sat around a month deciding what to do, so I went to another trucking school. It took me eight tries in passing the test, as I live in a state that for a while had one of the toughest skill/road tests in the nation. Mercifully, the rules changed, and I was able to pass the test this summer. Oh, and figure in the additional hours of tutoring I paid for, and gas money, and food money, etc.

Right now, I'm waiting for a trainer. I feel like I've done my part in getting here, but the company isn't doing theirs.

As for not having the homelife, that really doesn't bother me so much. I'm with a company that allows pets, so eventually my little dog will come with me. But one thing I didn't figure in is having a boyfriend. I never, ever, EVER figured on meeting a guy seven months ago. I think he's not too thrilled with me going into trucking, but I have no choice but to follow through. I tried to convince him to get his CDL so we could run team, but he doesn't want to do that. Time will tell if we will last. It's hard, because this is my first relationship ever (I met him at the not so tender age of 39) and sometimes I feel like this is the only guy I'm going to get. My track record with men hasn't been great, so to meet this guy is like a miracle. As great as he is though, no one is perfect and I've noticed some things about him that worry me; I'm a writer and whenever something positive happens in that area for me and I tell him about it, he doesn't say anything. It's like my goals and hopes and dreams mean nothing at all to him, but if it's something HE wans me to do, he won't stop until I do it. That could cause some MAJOR problems, and has already caused me some embarrassment.

If you've come this far with the nursing, I'd stick it out till the end. No profession is perfect, but with nursing, you'll be home every night and if there's a crisis at home, you will be just across town, or perhaps just a few minutes away, depending where you work. Not so with trucking. I wish I had something marketable to fall back on, but I don't. The writing has basically gotten me nowhere, which is why I decided to try trucking.

Good luck! It's hard to know what to do. Even when you sit down and write out the pros/cons, and think you're making a good decision, sometimes your best intentions and plans end up messing up or taking a different path than what you thought they would. I never thought I'd have to go to two trucking schools and fork over extra money for practice and take the friggin' test eight times before I passed it. I became OBSESSED with passing it and I'm sure I drove some of my friends nuts, but at least I DID pass. And it was satisfying proving a former instructor wrong!

[trux]

I'm a writer and whenever something positive happens in that area for me and I tell him about it, he doesn't say anything. It's like my goals and hopes and dreams mean nothing at all to him,

As another writer once said: "To thine own self be true."

[ThinkingAboutTrucking]

Hi Trux,

Yep, that is the truth. I am not giving up on writing, but I need to eat and pay bills.

And I'm keeping my eyes open with this man. I've already had a couple of people ask me if he's treating me okay. One of those people was his mother.

[BamaMom]

In your post your wrote "I'm with a company that allows pets, so eventually my little dog will come with me." This really caught my eye as the only thing holdig me back is the idea of leaving my little Shih-Tzu. I am able to be on the road 52 weeks out of the year IF I can have my 'litte guy' with me.
Please email me when you have time [and don't mind] sharing the name of a company that allows a driver to take a dog with them.


Thanking you in advance,

~bamamom~

[Windwalker]

Sad as it is, this is true in some jobs, but in Trucking ... we all start out at the same rate. This is the only profession I have found that is fair to both genders.

Or EQUALLY UNFAIR :!:

Since you already have time invested in nursing, I would suggest, very seriously, that you finish that before anything else. Get your STATE BOARD CERTIFICATION. Then, go back into the trucking and see how you like it. See if you are going to be able to make the money you need, and have the home time to take care of the normal things there. If that does not work out, you can always go back to work in a hospital or clinic. It gives you TWO options. That's far better than a whole lot of people out here have. Right now, you have quite a financial investment in nursing. To stop now could mean throwing that away. I don't know about you, but I could never afford to throw that much away.

And, if you do decide to throw that away, can you let me know where so that I can come along and pick it up???