Despite the fact that the railroad is the smallest Class I in the country, Kansas City Southern careers still offer a wide variety of positions. The KCS is also unique in that it is the only North American Class I which now operates south of the border and actually owns a handful of Mexican railroads. Aside from these recent purchases the Kansas City Southern system has actually changed very little over the past century. It still serves Kansas City and St. Louis with points to the south in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi as has always been the case. With the addition of its Mexican lines and trackage rights the railroad is actually now quite large from its historic size reaching Chicago and southern Mexico.
With its acquisition of railroads like the Panama Canal Railway, Texas Mexican Railway, and Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana (the latter two of which are now known as Kansas City Southern de Mexico) and the KCS has a significant presence in our neighbor to the south. Because the KCS is the smallest Class I railroad in the United States landing a job with the company may prove to be a bit more challenging than with the others, partly due to the fact that at least half of its system is now located in Mexico (unless you have an interest in working south of the border). If you are interested in a position with the railroad, however, I do know that they have a top notch operation with an excellent reputation (I state this opinion based solely on what I have read about the railroad).
While the KCS may be the smallest Class I railroad in terms of revenue generated (for instance, it earns about eighteen times less annual revenue than leaders Union Pacific and BNSF Railway) it actually covers a wide region today. The historic Kansas City Southern operated roughly between Kansas City and eastern Texas/southern Louisiana. However, today's system stretches to St. Louis, Mississippi, and as far south as Veracruz and Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico. If you are searching for a job with the Kansas City Southern here, however, you will most likely be working for the company's American lines. As such, if you accept a job in maintenance or transportation expect to work wherever the company may need you.
If you may not be aware of what "Class I" railroad means, it is simply a term, set by the Association of American Railroads describing the largest (in annual revenue) such companies in North America. At one time there were more than 100 of these companies while today there are just seven. For more information about Class Is please click here. Unfortunately, KCS does not feature a detailed career page like most other Class Is. As such, I am unsure if they offer college students things like graduate programs, scholarships, or summertime internships. However, let me stress that if you have an interest or are considering a career in transportation or maintenance the job can be overwhelming at times with long, long hours on the job and away from home. Despite this the pay is excellent as are benefits and retirement.
For more information about Kansas City SOuthern careers please click here to visit the railroad's official careers page. Also, to search for Kansas City Southern careers please feel free to use the search box below from Indeed.com, one of the leading online career resource guides.
Finally, if a career in railroading is right for you but would like to learn more about what it takes to work in the industry you might want to consider the book Working on the Railroad from noted author Brian Solomon. Solomon's book details the history of working in the railroad industry and the difficulties and hardship employees faced back then as well as today. After reading this book you should have no doubts about whether working in the industry is something you are truly interested in. In any event, if you're interested in perhaps purchasing this book please visit the link below which will take you to ordering information through Amazon.com, the trusted online shopping network.
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