Pay My Own Way Or "free" Company School? And Which Company Has Best Starting Pay?

2.And I get that - I mean, company needs to recoup their investment. I suppose it's the tradeoff that I'm looking at. Also you are basing your cost-benefit analysis on a for profit CDL mill charging $4k for school. I am lucky to have (what appears to be) a very good technical school near me (PTEC in St. Petersburg) which I have read nothing but good things about, and who have very high student:teacher ratio, 320 hr course, and all that good stuff, for only $2,400. My understanding is that there may even be some grants, or at worst case, very low / no interest loans available to me, which I am still looking into.

Space, I could write about basic economic forces in a competitive business like trucking (I got my MBA in 1983), almost as much as Old School does about the trucking business in general. Suffice it to say, the industry needs drivers so badly that many companies have their own driving schools and can finance your tuition at good rates. (Swift finances at -> 0% <-) Then they pay all drivers they hire at just enough to keep butts in their driver seats. The ones that last the first year get better rewards (as in higher pay). Yes, there are companies that hire the serious professionals that do have at least a few years experience. (Don't waste your time applying for Walmart's private fleet until you have a few years driving under your belt.)

There's no capitalistic "exploitation of the worker". It's all market forces. If the drivers really feel exploited, these people would quit. But you'll see there's almost 20 million drivers in the USA that do not feel exploited.

I am prepared to give this 100% dedication and live completely at the company's whims for the next 2 years or more, picking up every load available, doing whatever I can to be dedicated to the customer and the company and working as hard as I can to learn the trade and the network of roads and shippers across this whole country. And I'm a quick learner, not to brag but very bright, talented, and personable who has succeeded at everything I have ever set out to do.

If you have all this dedication for driving, you need to drop your preconceptions that have powered this thread. There are NO recruiters or company managers on this forum trying to talk you into a new career. All of us are simply other drivers who, firstly believe we have gotten on to the ride of a lifetime, and secondly, have found a web forum where we can shoot straight/ honestly, and BS is kept to a minimum. If you can't get a clear view from this forum, you need to rethink what it is you really want to do.

One thing to think about is, if you go the company sponsored route. You are training on newer equipment that is basically what you're going to be actually training and eventually driving. Most of the private schools are using some pretty old equipment and from what I found, 30 ft trailers. It worked out ok for me but ymmv. As far as miles go, I turned 3300 my first full week out and I should have 2500 plus this week. Looks like I'll be sitting out the weekend though, I sent in pre-plan request at 0600 and someone messaged me back that they forwarded it to the planners. Sent in a backup inquiry at 0900 and haven't heard anything since. LOL

I actually wanted to do a 34, just not out here in BF Wisconsin. LOL

JJ

I don't care about insurance

You don't need to care about Health Insurance, but you are required by Federal Law to have it. ( I do not want to turn this into a debate on the ACA, so please everybody don't.) Also, 40 year old people, Men, Women, weight lifters, fat, skinny are subject to the need for Medical Care. We don't get a choice to be stricken with Cancer or be involved in a horrible accident of some sort. It is also just plain responsible to have Health Insurance at any age. Would you own a home and not have insurance on it? Insurance is to cover the unforseen. Just my $.02

Space, I could write about basic economic forces in a competitive business like trucking (I got my MBA in 1983), almost as much as Old School does about the trucking business in general. Suffice it to say, the industry needs drivers so badly that many companies have their own driving schools and can finance your tuition at good rates. (Swift finances at -> 0% <-) Then they pay all drivers they hire at just enough to keep butts in their driver seats. The ones that last the first year get better rewards (as in higher pay). Yes, there are companies that hire the serious professionals that do have at least a few years experience. (Don't waste your time applying for Walmart's private fleet until you have a few years driving under your belt.)

There's no capitalistic "exploitation of the worker". It's all market forces. If the drivers really feel exploited, these people would quit. But you'll see there's almost 20 million drivers in the USA that do not feel exploited.

Shame on you for spreading the free market fundamentalist propaganda! It's the "market forces" themselves which are exploitative of the worker! Well, I don't suppose they had you reading any Marx in your capitalist indoctrination, er sorry, MBA program!

Now I'm no Marxist, but it just so happens that many of the things he said would come true are doing exactly that right now before our eyes.

People take the jobs because they have no choice! The vast majority can't afford to get off the hamster wheel of just paying money to live (rent/mortgage, taxes, food, etc., etc...). Brett has done it, I plan on doing it, but I know that I am not most people, and it sounds like Brett is not either (and again, bravo to you, Brett).

Now, does that mean I think we should all complain all the time and loudly to our employer, other truckers, and people on the internet every day? No, that just makes everyone miserable, including ourselves, and doesn't really help anything. In that, you guys around here are exactly right, it's just a wise strategy to follow in order to maintain your own sanity and be able to work and do what you need to do to earn a living each day.

But to deny the realities of the economic situation that is unfolding right before our very eyes, is just willful blindness at this point.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/10/upshot/the-trucking-industry-needs-more-drivers-it-should-try-paying-more.html?_r=0

Of course, the American working class are the most highly propagandized of any working class in any country in the history of the world, but that is another matter. Now I expect the following video to rustle some jimmies, especially around here on a trucking forum, where I suspect many still see everything fully through star spangled glasses. But that does not make it any the less true:

https://youtu.be/H-fuSeA7WBM?list=PLbDMOc_Gidy-czUGXAFhScKG0SsU-WVqt

I don't care about insurance

You don't need to care about Health Insurance, but you are required by Federal Law to have it. ( I do not want to turn this into a debate on the ACA, so please everybody don't.) Also, 40 year old people, Men, Women, weight lifters, fat, skinny are subject to the need for Medical Care. We don't get a choice to be stricken with Cancer or be involved in a horrible accident of some sort. It is also just plain responsible to have Health Insurance at any age. Would you own a home and not have insurance on it? Insurance is to cover the unforseen. Just my $.02

Yes I would. In fact, I cannot wait to do exactly that (have a home with no insurance, on my own land I paid cash for, that I built with my own two hands). Just because you would like to elect insurance, does not mean I should be compelled by the state (or lender) to do so as well. Different strokes for different folks.

If the state compels it (as per auto and now, medical) insurance, it is straight up legal plunder, exactly as Bastiat described in The Law.

This is a forum for trucking, not fancy dancy economics. A lot of this has already been covered in Trucking Truth, anyway. Here's my Marx. And Lennon, too:

Ok Space Truckin. Everybody has been very kind to you in this thread, and tried to give you some real good advice. You are obviously a know it all pompus ass. Good luck to you. People with your attitude really rub me the wrong way after awhile. I'm done with this thread. You are obviously way too smart for me.

I had the money so I paid for my own school. If I had not had the money, I would have went to a company sponsored school without hesitation.

The thing I noticed about some of these company sponsored schools is that they teach you for their benefit. That makes sense, of course, because it's their school.

It's not so much that the recruiters lie. It's more that they tend to omit information and gloss over the stuff they know is their companies weakness. "Yeah we slow down in winter, but every company does" not true. "Our rookies avg miles per week is the same as our experienced drivers" cmon man. "You can make a lot of money driving our dollar store account and it's not that much more work" please quantify your definition of not that much more work.

My suggestion is if you have the money, stay a free agent. If you dont, find the best deal you can get with one of the big boys.

With the big companies there are decisions to be made as well. Do I want to go to a team company? "Do I want a specialized company or one that has their hands in everything? Is starting money more important or am I willing to wait for a fat raise in 6 months?

Home time wasn't a consideration for me, but it may be for you. My feeling is that I'm going to give my company every opportunity to get me loads without having to sweat routing me home. I'm hoping to make it home every 5-6 weeks. Your desires or needs may be different. Heck, mine may different after 6 weeks solo. We shall see!

Since others have chimed in with specific companies, I will too. When I was considering company sponsored training , Prime and Werner were the last 2 I had under consideration. There are other fine companies of course.

However some companies aren't even in the ball park on wages, miles, equipment, or benefits. It's like they haven't done their research and they are behind in all the categories. They stick out like a sore thumb if you do your research.