Education · 1 of 5
The path
No degree. The railway hires you, trains you, and certifies you. Getting hired is the hard part.
- 1
High school diploma
Grade 12
Grade 12 is the normal requirement. You also need to be 18 or older and pass a medical, hearing, vision and drug screen.
- 2
Get hired as a conductor
Months of waiting is normal
Almost everyone enters the running trades as a conductor first. Postings go up at the big freight railways, short lines and passenger operators.
- 3
Conductor training and qualifying
About 5 to 8 months
Paid classroom and on-the-job training, then a certification exam. The federal rules set a pass mark of 80% in the required subjects.
- 4
Work the road as a conductor
2 to 5 years, sometimes longer
You build seniority. Promotion to engineer depends on how busy your terminal is, which can be a couple of years or many.
- 5
Locomotive engineer training
About 6 months
Classroom, simulator and supervised time at the controls, signed off by an examiner. Then you are certified to run the train.