Looking Into Schools, Price Difference, What Companies Will Hire?
Topic 12304 | Page 1
Nruck has questions:
Hi, I'm looking into going to truck driving school.
My big concern right now is whether there's a difference between a $1,000 program, and a $4,000.
Why are there such big price differences?
Also, if I fork over money for a program, what are the chances that a company won't take somebody from that school?
Like anything in life that has value, you usually get what you pay for. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I am sure others can chime in on this but I am not aware of any school that costs only $1000. $4,000 is about average. Regardless, you might want to check out Trucking Truth's Truck Driving Schools and Company-Sponsored Training . These links will provide you with multiple CDL school choices. Taking a look at How To Choose A School will further assist in making a decision that is right or you.
If you haven't already looking into Trucking Truth's High Road Training Program will provide an excellent base of knowledge enabling you to pass the CDL Permit exams.
Good luck and let us know how we can further assist you.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Company-sponsored Training:
A Company-Sponsored Training Program is a school that is owned and operated by a trucking company.
The schooling often requires little or no money up front. Instead of paying up-front tuition you will sign an agreement to work for the company for a specified amount of time after graduation, usually around a year, at a slightly lower rate of pay in order to pay for the training.
If you choose to quit working for the company before your year is up, they will normally require you to pay back a prorated amount of money for the schooling. The amount you pay back will be comparable to what you would have paid if you went to an independently owned school.
Company-sponsored training can be an excellent way to get your career underway if you can't afford the tuition up front for private schooling.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Nruck in reading your recent posts I think reading Brett's Book and reviewing Truck Driver's Career Guide will help you develop a better base of understanding moving forward and likely answer many of the questions you are grappling with.
Hi, I'm looking into going to truck driving school.
My big concern right now is whether there's a difference between a $1,000 program, and a $4,000.
Why are there such big price differences?
Also, if I fork over money for a program, what are the chances that a company won't take somebody from that school?
Most schools will tell you which companies hire from them. Also, the companies will tell you which schools they recommend or hire from.
It does schools no good to train people who can't get hired. Word would spread very quickly.
Hi nruck in my experience truck driving schools and company training are pretty close to the same thing. Both train you to pass the test and get your license. Some companies have tuition reinbersment, Some do not. I don't know of any truck driving school out here that will do training for 1k 2500 is low and average seems to be 3900 to 5000 with one place offering 7000 . as for getting hired I would call what ever company's you want to work for and ask them if they hire from the trucking school you are looking at. Good luck
Yes, I would definitely start researching the company you are interested in and call and talk to their recruiter. They will be able to tell you what driving schools they will accept from and which ones they will not. If you start looking at schools first, at least look for ones that are certified by the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI). In my area, Central North Carolina, a lot of your top companies hire from the local community colleges that offer a PTDI certified course, my company included (Epes Transport - Greensboro, NC). Good luck!
Yes, I would definitely start researching the company you are interested in and call and talk to their recruiter. They will be able to tell you what driving schools they will accept from and which ones they will not. If you start looking at schools first, at least look for ones that are certified by the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI). In my area, Central North Carolina, a lot of your top companies hire from the local community colleges that offer a PTDI certified course, my company included (Epes Transport - Greensboro, NC). Good luck!
Thanks, I'll look into that.
People say they can't believe there are schools that charge $1,000, but there's supposedly 3 schools around me that charge (according to a website) betwen $800 - $1,500.
It's a bit confusing to hear "You get what you pay for" and then "A license is a license" basically from people.
But I suppose it's like people are saying, call up trucking companies, and check certifications.
I worry about asking the schools themselves because they don't have the incentive to be honest. They have incentive to make money.
Nruck is confused:
It's a bit confusing to hear "You get what you pay for" and then "A license is a license" basically from people
.
You do get what you pay for. A school offering training for $1000 is likely not going to prepare you the same way a school costing $4000 will. If you scroll to the middle of this thread I sent you several links on schools that you can review that should help you in this process. Here they are again:
You definitely need to talk to the schools you are considering. More than one person suggested that...we are offering advice based on our collective experience.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Company-sponsored Training:
A Company-Sponsored Training Program is a school that is owned and operated by a trucking company.
The schooling often requires little or no money up front. Instead of paying up-front tuition you will sign an agreement to work for the company for a specified amount of time after graduation, usually around a year, at a slightly lower rate of pay in order to pay for the training.
If you choose to quit working for the company before your year is up, they will normally require you to pay back a prorated amount of money for the schooling. The amount you pay back will be comparable to what you would have paid if you went to an independently owned school.
Company-sponsored training can be an excellent way to get your career underway if you can't afford the tuition up front for private schooling.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
People say they can't believe there are schools that charge $1,000, but there's supposedly 3 schools around me that charge (according to a website) betwen $800 - $1,500.
I believe what your seeing is the upfront (out of pocket) cost, not the full price of tuition. One of the schools I'm looking into has an upfront cost of only $300-$400. The run a credit check & potentially approve you for what is known as a "bridge loan" which covers the rest of the tuition until you complete the program & get hired on by a carrier, and are then able to pay back the balance of the loan.
I feel obligated to chime in here. The school I'm attending cost me about 80 bucks out of pocket. I was awarded a workforce and hope grant which covered everything. Out of pocket would have been 1200 bucks. We don't have an advanced facility with simulators and brand new tractors, our classroom is a small building beside the range and is run by 2 guys with decades of experience. I feel that we ( only 8 of us) will do just fine. And as an added bonus or 2, he is certified by the state to administer the cdl test so we will be prepared for test day, its also 30 min from my house. This was the best option for me, I'm sure everyone else will have different situations. So all in all yea you probably get what you pay for, but all the mega companies and a few smaller ones send recruiters to this school starting Monday actually.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.New Reply:
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Hi, I'm looking into going to truck driving school.
My big concern right now is whether there's a difference between a $1,000 program, and a $4,000.
Why are there such big price differences?
Also, if I fork over money for a program, what are the chances that a company won't take somebody from that school?