Getting hired
Updated September 28, 2026
A good truck driver resume matches the driver application every carrier must collect under federal rules. List every driving job with start and end dates, the equipment you ran, your license class and endorsements, and a short record summary.
Carriers check what you write. When your resume and your application tell the same story, the check goes faster.
This guide comes from a car-haul carrier that hires contract drivers. It shows what the federal application asks, what to put on your resume, and a sample you can copy.
What Carriers Must Ask You
Before you drive a commercial truck for a carrier, you must fill out and sign its driver application. Federal rule 49 CFR 391.21 lists what that form must ask. Your resume should answer the same questions.
The federal application, line by line
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EmployersEvery employer in the last 3 years, with dates and why you left
ResumeEach job with month and year in and out
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CMV jobsEvery employer you drove a CMV for in the 7 years before that
ResumeAll your driving jobs, back 10 years
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EquipmentThe kinds of equipment you have driven, such as tractors and semitrailers
ResumeThe trailers and freight you ran at each job
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LicenseEach commercial license or permit you hold, with its state, number and expiration date
ResumeClass, endorsements and the state that issued it
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RecordAccidents and traffic convictions (other than parking) in the last 3 years, and any license suspension or revocation
ResumeA one-line record summary you can back up
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AddressesWhere you have lived for the last 3 years
ResumeYour current city and state is enough
49 CFR 391.21(b)
You also sign a statement that everything on the application is true and complete. The carrier must tell you that it will contact your past employers. Then it checks your safety record with the DOT-regulated employers you had in the last 3 years, and pulls your driving record from each state that licensed you. Our guide to DAC reports, PSP and MVR explains those checks.
What to Put on a Truck Driver Resume
Keep it to one page if you can. A recruiter should see your license, your years and your equipment in the first few seconds.
- Contact line. Name, phone, email, and your city and state.
- License. CDL class, endorsements, and the issuing state. Our guide to CDL endorsements lists what each letter means.
- Medical card. Say your DOT medical certificate is current. The DOT physical guide covers the exam.
- Every driving job. Carrier name, city and state, month and year you started and left, and what you hauled.
- Equipment and freight. Trailer type, freight type, and regional or over the road.
- Numbers you can prove. Miles, safety awards or clean inspections only if your old carrier would confirm them.
Leave out your Social Security number, date of birth and full license number. The application asks for those, so they do not belong on a resume you hand around.
Work History: Dates, Gaps and Reasons for Leaving
Dates matter more than anything else on a driving resume. The carrier will ask your past employers when you worked there, so write the months you can prove.
- List every carrier. Include short jobs. The application asks for every employer, so your resume should too.
- Explain gaps in one line. School, family, a medical leave, or a job outside trucking. The federal form asks for employers, so list non-driving jobs too.
- Have a reason for leaving ready. The application asks for it at every job. Keep it short and true, such as “carrier closed” or “moved to a local job”.
“Verifiable” experience means experience your past carriers can confirm. If a carrier you drove for has closed, still list it with the dates. Our car-haul experience FAQ explains how carriers verify it.
Skills for a Truck Driver Resume
Skip vague words like “hard worker”. Name things a safety manager can picture:
- Pre-trip and post-trip inspections
- Coupling and uncoupling
- Backing and tight dock work
- Electronic logs and hours of service
- Cargo securement for your freight type
- Mountain, winter or city driving
For car-haul jobs, add the skills only car haulers have: loading and securing new vehicles, running a truck package (the rack that carries cars over the cab), and the number of cars your rig carried. Car hauling is a specialty, so car-haul carriers look for those lines.
Sample Truck Driver Resume
Here is a one-page sample for a CDL-A car hauler. Copy the layout and swap in your own facts.
Fictional sample: names, carriers and dates are placeholders
Sam Placeholder
City, ST (555) 555-0100 sam@example.com
License
Class A CDL, issued by [state]. DOT medical certificate current. Clean MVR, no preventable accidents in the last 3 years.
Driving experience
Car hauler, OTRMar 2023 to present
[Car-haul carrier], City, ST
- Haul new vehicles from plants and rail yards to dealers on a 9-car rig
- Load and secure vehicles on the trailer and truck package
- Run electronic logs and daily inspections
Car hauler, regionalJun 2021 to Feb 2023
[Car-haul carrier], City, ST
- Delivered used vehicles to auctions and dealers on a 7-car rig
- Reason for leaving: carrier closed
Company driver, dry vanApr 2019 to May 2021
[Truckload carrier], City, ST
- Over-the-road dry van freight in the lower 48 states
Skills
Vehicle loading and securement, backing in tight lots, mountain and winter driving, pre-trip inspections.
Notice what is not there: no pay, no rates, no personal ID numbers. Put each carrier’s real name and dates on yours.
A Short Cover Letter
Most driving jobs do not need a cover letter. If a posting asks for one, three sentences are enough:
“I have [number] years of Class A driving, including [number] years hauling cars on a [number]-car rig. My record is clean for the last 3 years, and my medical card is current. I would like to talk about running freight with your team.”
Interview Questions to Expect
Expect questions about the same things the application asks. Be ready to answer these plainly:
- Why did you leave each job?
- What happened with any accident or ticket on your record?
- What equipment and freight have you run, and for how long?
- Do you have gaps in your work history?
- Are you ready to run over the road?
Have your own questions too: the freight, the equipment, and how pay and settlements work.
Applying to Accelerated
Accelerated uses an online driver application called IntelliApp. It takes a few minutes from your phone, and you do not create an account.
- What it asks: 3 years of address history, your license number and 3 years of license history, up to 10 years of employment, and 3 years of accidents and violations.
- Have ready: your CDL, your DOT medical certificate and proof you can work in the US. We run your MVR, so you do not need it in hand.
- What we ask for: 3 years of CDL-A driving and 1 year of verifiable 9-car experience.
- What happens next: a recruiter reaches out and walks you through the freight, the equipment and the next steps.
Write your resume first. Then copy the same dates into the application, so every line matches.
Resume ready? The application takes a few minutes from your phone.
Truck Driver Resume FAQs
What should a truck driver put on a resume?
Your CDL class and endorsements, your medical card status, and every driving job with the carrier name, dates, equipment and freight. Add a one-line record summary and skills a safety manager can picture, like inspections and securement.
How many years of work history should a CDL driver resume show?
Show all driving jobs from the last 10 years. The federal application asks for every employer in the last 3 years, plus every employer you drove a commercial vehicle for in the 7 years before that.
Do truck drivers need a resume if carriers use an application?
You still must fill out the carrier’s application. A resume helps anyway: it gives you your dates in one place, so the application is fast and accurate, and some postings ask for one.
Should I list a carrier that closed?
Yes. List every carrier you drove for, with dates, even if it closed. Write “carrier closed” as the reason for leaving.
Should I put pay on my truck driver resume?
No. A resume shows your license, your experience and your record. Talk about pay with the recruiter.
Haul Cars With Accelerated
We run OEM plant, port and rail freight with contract drivers, and we have hauled for the automakers since 1999. With 3 years of CDL-A driving and 1 year of verifiable 9-car experience, apply today. Contract drivers get a $5,000 sign-on bonus, paid in the first month.
Want the full list first? See what we require.
Sources
Last checked September 28, 2026. The sample resume is fictional. Requirements and application steps are from our careers page on that date.