• Amtrak Management Trainee Program

    Management Trainee Program

    Are you a college graduate looking for a chance to work in the railroad industry? The Amtrak Management Trainee program offers a unique opportunity to gain a broad perspective and valuable experience in a series of rotation assignments throughout Amtrak.

  • Amtrak Rotational Program

    Fast-track your success. The Amtrak Rotational Program builds the next generation of Amtrak’s workforce through corporate job rotations that strengthen skills to quickly develop well-rounded employees who can meet the goals of the Strategic Pillars to support Amtrak’s Mission.

Management Trainee Program

Are you a college graduate looking for a chance to work in the railroad industry? The Amtrak Management Trainee program offers a unique opportunity to gain a broad perspective and valuable experience in a series of rotation assignments throughout Amtrak.

Program overview

Amtrak’s rotational programs provide recent graduates and early-career individuals with the opportunity to rotate within operational or corporate areas. These programs equip participants with skills and experiences that will develop their careers and contribute to Amtrak’s success.

The table below provides high-level descriptions of each program:
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Program Who should apply? Description Business area Length
Amtrak Management Trainee Program
  • External Candidates (recent graduates and early-career individuals)
  • Internal candidates
 This program is designed to give a holistic understanding of Amtrak’s operations, specifically, Train and Engines, Mechanical, Stations, Onboard Services and Engineering. Through rotational assignments, participants will gain skills and experiences to develop their careers as management professionals in Operations. Operations 12-18 months
Amtrak Rotational Program
  • External candidates (recent graduates and early-career individuals)
  • Internal candidates
 This program provides experiential knowledge of critical business functions to develop well-rounded employees who can help support Amtrak’s goals. The rotational assignments are focused within specific corporate areas and involve various experiences, including unique opportunities to learn about Operations. Non-operational departments 24 months

About the Amtrak Management Trainee Program

Amtrak’s Management Trainee Program is designed to develop Amtrak’s future leaders. This competitive and comprehensive program includes the highest quality classroom training, multiple facility visits, extensive hands-on training in the field, cross-functional assignments and rotations, first-hand interactions with Amtrak’s top Executives, and more. Six program concentrations are currently available in Mechanical, Transportation, Infrastructure Maintenance and Construction Services (IMCS), Capital Delivery, Onboard/Station Services, and Network Support. Placements at the conclusion of the program are dependent on business needs as well as the Management Trainee’s skillset and qualifications

Program structure

First Four Weeks: An introduction to Amtrak Operations and individuals. Management Trainees meet with numerous senior leaders of the company. Management Trainees and the Program Manager travel across Amtrak routes, visiting different offices, stations, Mechanical Shops, and field sites allowing the Trainees their first broad exposure to the organization.

Next Two Months: Once the orientation, tours, and mandatory trainings are complete, trainees will move into the observations phase of the program. During the observations phase, the trainees will get a high-level overview of each department. They will attend meet and greets with front-line employees and get an introduction to off corridor railroading. They will participate in roundtable discussions with department managers and supervisors and receive behind-the-scenes tours of stations and facilities.

Months Four and Five: The next phase of the program is the advanced rotation assignments. Assignments are selected for each trainee based on their hired role, previous experience, and business needs. Trainees are placed one-on-one with an Amtrak manager, to gain a more detailed understanding of each position. This phase can last up to eight weeks depending on the Trainee’s path, familiarity with the department, and whether the candidate is an internal or external hire.

Final Six to Twelve Months: The final phase of the program includes placement into an assistant manager role.  The duration of the program includes multiple assignments consisting of cross-functional and advanced rotations with field mentors. Assignments are selected for each management trainee based on feedback, previous experience, and business needs.

Applying for the program

Use the search bar above to search for the keywords Amtrak Management Trainee Program. Postings are available when Amtrak is actively recruiting for January and June cohorts.

Meet our Management Trainees

Corey is a recent graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Majoring in Logistics & Supply Chain Management with a minor in Transportation.  He started his railroad career as a freight conductor at Genesee & Wyoming and was later hired by Amtrak full-time as a Management Trainee for the June 2022 class. In his spare time, Corey loves to travel and he also loves metal music. 

Meet Corey

Kristen is a 2021 graduate of Morgan State University’s Industrial Engineering program. She started her career at Amtrak in the manager trainee program for the January 2022 class. In her spare time, Kristen likes to hike trails, play the piano, arrange floral designs and enjoys traveling to new 
places on her bucket list. 

Meet Kristen

Amtrak Rotational Program

About the Amtrak Rotational Program

The mission of Amtrak is to provide efficient and effective intercity passenger rail mobility consisting of high-quality service that is trip-time competitive with other intercity travel options.” To uphold this mission and to ensure America’s Railroad® runs safely and efficiently now and into the future, we need a dedicated team of people who can help prepare Amtrak for future challenges. 

The Amtrak Rotational Program offers recent graduates and early-career individuals the opportunity to gain cross-functional experience and exposure through challenging rotational assignments. Each rotation will equip participants with knowledge and understanding of critical business operations that will prepare them for the next step in their career.

The program aims to do the following:

  • Develop talent: Build the next generation of Amtrak’s workforce through job rotations that strengthen skills and build development 
  • Deliver results: Quickly develop well-rounded employees who can meet the goals of the Strategic Pillars to support Amtrak’s Mission 

Program structure

The Amtrak Rotational Program is two years in length with multiple rotations. Cohorts begin twice a year: January and June.

Eligibility requirements

The Amtrak Rotational Program is available to recent graduates and early-career individuals.

Program experiences

Opportunities and experiences are available to program participants in an accelerated timeframe, including the following: 

  • Exposure to leadership
  • Targeted learning and development opportunities
  • Mentors inside and outside the department
  • Exposure to Operations
  • Participation in the Amtrak Ambassador program
  • Additional department-specific experiences

Participant benefits

  • Helps you explore your interests by immersing you in the professional field of your choice
  • Accelerates development of core skills to better prepare you for the next steps in your career 
  • Fosters job satisfaction and engagement through challenging and unique opportunities not available in traditional roles

Available programs

At this time, the Amtrak Rotational Program has participants in various departments including Commercial and Finance, Human Resources, Digital Technology, Safety and Security, and Government Affairs.

Applying for the program

Use the search bar above to search for the keywords Amtrak Rotational Program. Postings are available when Amtrak is actively recruiting for January and June cohorts.