This year, we have nearly 11 students on work-study programs in all of the company’s departments. The question we asked them was why did you choose to work in the trucking industry and what training led you there?
Without giving away all of their answers, it would seem that as the famous saying goes, all roads lead to transportation… or something like that!
There are many jobs in a small freight transport company. Function, tasks, schedules, the profiles that make the company function on a daily basis are very different.
When you think of road transport, you think of a truck driver. So we turned to Alexandre, who is undergoing professional retraining and who started a work-study program with us this year.
Alexandre Julien – Work-study truck driver – AFTRAL Rochefort
“I have experience as a private ambulance driver. In my previous professional life, I transported patients and had a very wide range of hours. I wanted to move on, but I wanted to find a new career where I could continue to ride. In parallel, I am also a volunteer firefighter and the fact that I have a heavy goods vehicle licence could be a plus.
Transportation seemed to me to be the sector that most corresponded to my expectations. I then contacted the AFTRAL, to better understand the sector, the possible openings and the different training courses. I quickly became interested in the vocational training certificate for truck drivers and I looked for a company that could take me on as a trainee.
I am no longer a young student, I have been in the workforce for several years. So I wanted to opt for a work-study program to maintain a certain financial autonomy and keep a foot in the door of working life.
In my eyes, the CAP road driver was the most complete and global training while taking place in only one year. Through interactions with my classmates, I realize that the range of activities in transportation is very broad. It is enriching to be able to share our experiences.
I’m still at the beginning of my work-study program, so I’m on the docks a lot, I’d like to do more with a truck or a carrier. But I’m going to take the professional title very soon as part of the CAP and the first permits to be able to drive a carrier at first. Once I have my license validated, I think I will be able to shoot more. My goal is to get to Super Heavy!
Before my training, I didn’t really have a clear idea of what a driver’s job was. I was surprised by all the notions that a driver must master: at the beginning of the training I was a little afraid of not being able to manage, the information is very dense, we carry a lot of responsibilities at the wheel and it is important to master all the standards, safety issues, techniques ….
I think that the CAP road driver is a very good basic training to start working. I hope to start working quickly while continuing to train internally. This training requires a great investment, it is a demanding training. The MRT has many similarities with the ambulance profession. I would also like to discover the work on the office side to better understand the global chain. There is sometimes a gap between the field perception and the administrative part.
At Goëvia, I had a great integration. I thought that being a driver was a lonely job. I saw truck drivers as being a bit closed-minded, but it’s the opposite! There is a commercial role and exchange with the customers and that’s great. I also discovered a lot of solidarity and a very good atmosphere in the team of drivers who help each other a lot!”
Another service, another daily newspaper. Since 1 year, Goëvia has created a new chartering service. The objective of this service is to go further in our offer of services and in the possibilities offered to our customers: multimodal transport (rail, aviation…), international access, various types, formats and quantities of goods, etc. In this department, too, versatility, initiative and responsiveness are required. This is what Chloé, a student on a work-study program, discovered when she joined Goëvia after gaining experience as a buyer during her work-study degree. She also wanted to learn more about the freight transport industry.
Chloé Barbalat – Master of Commerce, Logistics and International Trade – ISTELI Bordeaux
“After my BAC, I wanted to do short studies. I didn’t know about transportation at all. Like everyone else, I had a fuzzy picture of the industry. By asking around, I discovered that transportation is at the center of many social issues, and that it brings together major current issues. So I chose a BTS in transport and logistics, to work in the world of transport without having a very precise career plan in mind. I knew that there were a lot of job opportunities and opportunities in transportation. During my BTS, I learned a lot about this sector which became more concrete for me.
I couldn’t see myself stopping my discovery of the sector after my BTS, so I decided to extend my training via a purchasing license (with a supply and logistics module) where I could see the other side of the process. After the degree, I wanted to come back to the transport industry, because it is a dynamic and versatile environment. I chose a transversal Master’s degree: transport and logistics, but also international trade which allows me to work in all types of structures.
I still don’t have a precise idea of what I want to do, but I’m discovering more and more about the MRT sector every day and I feel good about it.
With the work-study program at Goëvia, I discovered road transport and its day-to-day operations with many challenges. In a previous internship, I was able to work in the airline industry where the pace is quite different. As I gain experience, I still want to work internationally, for example on multimodal transport issues and why not with customs issues.
I didn’t want to study for a long time, but now I’m preparing a Master’s degree. I think that the work-study program gave me the desire and the opportunity to continue: having a foot in the world of work while continuing to develop my studies was ideal for me.
Other students have taken more cross-disciplinary courses and now find themselves discovering the world of transport. Like Sara, who is studying for a Master’s degree in Human Resources Development Management at CESI Bordeaux and has been doing a work-study program at Goëvia for two years. Sara found in our growing SME a playground to develop and follow ambitious projects alongside our HR manager. Its mission is to support “social and environmental responsibility” certification and to optimize social processes using digital tools.
On the business side, the “Team Alternants” is not to be outdone! Our BTS NDRC sales representatives work every day to present the Goëvia Online solution to our customers and prospects and to accompany them so that this solution brings them time savings, fluidity and autonomy in the management of their pick-ups.
When we tell you that all roads lead to transport: we have Mathilde in our team in DUT HSE (Hygiene Security Environment) and Paul who comes from the engineering school of ESTIA to accompany our integrated Design Office.
The transport sector brings together in its teams as well as in its daily tasks a lot of versatility and diversity. In our territory and our economy, transportation is everywhere and will always be. The professions that make up the sector are varied and are reinventing themselves as transportation evolves.
It is perhaps difficult to imagine, when one does not know this sector, its richness and all the interest that it can have. But once you’ve discovered it, it’s very hard to leave! So, students of all backgrounds, think about transportation for your work-study program!
