Private Trucking School Suggestions

I have decided to go the private school route and have narrowed down to 3. America's Driving Force, Daly's and Katlaw. If anyone knows something about these 3 schools or could give me something to look for to narrow this list to one it would be appreciated.

Hey Scott. We have an excellent group of articles on How To Choose A Truck Driving Schooland we also have a chapter in our Truck Driver's Career Guide that covers Choosing A Truck Driving School. Follow those links and read through everything. You'll find a ton of great advice on how to choose a school.

But I'll throw this out there for ya. The two main things you want to do are:

1) Get a list of major companies that hire students from the schools you're considering and then call some of those companies yourself from home to verify it. If major companies will hire from a school then you know it's a legitimate candidate.

2) Go for a visit to the schools and speak privately with some of their current students, away from the staff. Anyone who just forked out thousands of dollars for something is going to be more than happy to share their opinions on it and those will be valuable opinions. You'll get the real scoop on the school, not just the recruiter's sales pitch. While you're at the school, take the tour. Check out the equipment, meet some of the instructors, and get a feel for the place.

If major companies hire from the school, their equipment and facilities are decent, and the current students seem happy with it then you have a legitimate contender. Then you simply pick the one you like best.

Here are the links for others who may be interested:

America's Driving Force

Daly's Truck Driving School

Katlaw Driving Schools

I went to Katlaw this past October. I had pretty much already made my mind up to go to America's Driving Force until one Saturday when I visited both facilities. I won't comment on ADF because I did not go there so it wouldn't be fair or accurate if I did. I can tell you that I was satisfied with Katlaw. Katlaw will tell you from day one their job is to get you your CDL and to get you a job. In my opinion you are far from ready to be a solo driver just because you managed to get a CDL. You will still need a company's orientation. The first week is classroom. On Friday morning you test for your permit. If you pay attention in class you will pass with no problem. Everything on the permit test is covered in the class. The second and third weeks are in the practice yard and on the road. Barring mechanical problems you will be in the same truck from day one until you test. You will have access to several instructors that have years of experience. And you will get plenty of time behind the wheel to learn. During the three weeks of class several recruiters from large and small trucking companies will come in and give you their pitch. I don't know of any company that hires recent school grads that will not consider students from Katlaw. Also Katlaw's website lists when recruiters will be there and you are welcome to come back and sit in with a recruiter even after you are finished as a student there. Honestly unless you have a bad driving record or recent criminal record you will not have a problem getting a job.

If you have any specific questions just ask and I will try to answer them for you.

2 of these 3 companies have something that I do not like. One is a prohibitive distance away and would require me to lodge. Another practices on equipment different from that which you test in. The other doesn't have any negatives that I can see on the surface and they have a ringing endorsement above. They are slightly more expensive than the other two which is a factor but not really a deciding one.

I ended up going private school and was happy with my choice. Sorry I do not know anything about the schools you are considering but will try to give you some things to ask to help narrow down your choice. Most schools simply get you to the point of passing the CDL tests.

How many average students per class and how many trucks are in the yard and on the road? This may help give you an idea of how often you will be behind the wheel compared to how often you are watching someone else drive. Obviously the more higher the student to truck ratio the more you will be waiting to practice.

Which backing techniques are taught? Most will only teach what is required for the exam. Indiana only requires straight line, offset, and parallel. So my school did not teach 90 degree, or what I think is often called alley docking. This was really the only disappointment with my school but not a big deal because you will go through this training with your starter company trainer.

How many CDL driving test are included in the tuition? A high number of students are not going to pass the CDL driving portion the first time. This includes the pretrip, backing, and road portion of the tests. The schools pay for these exams so may charge extra if you have to take it multiple times.

What is the policy when extra practice time is needed to pass the tests? My school did what ever it took to get a driver to the point of passing. I was told of one student that spent SEVERAL weeks in school but they were proud that they got them to the point they could graduate. I would think most private schools will be like this but you need to find out.

How many years on average were the instructors on the road? To me this one would be a big factor. The reason I was so happy with my choice was the things I learned during school that went beyond passing the test. They had all been on the road well over ten years so the small tips and tricks that I was able to learn from them during idle conversation really helped me transition into driving. It doesn't take long to learn the basics of driving a truck. But it takes years to become a professional truck driver.

How many hours is the course? This is critical since most companies will look for 160 hrs minimum.

Job placement is also something you can look at, but to me was not a big factor. With the internet and especially with the tools Brett has put together on this site if you have decent driving, criminal, and work histories you will find plenty of companies that will be asking you to work for them.

Do they have recruiters visit the school? If they do this could be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. It is nice because you will be exposed to a lot of different companies and get to ask questions face to face. But it may also cut into your driving time. In a three to four week course if they have recruiters visit three to four times a week that can add up to several lost hours of practice. I would guess most recruiters take somewhere between 30 mins to 1 hr. Over the course of the program that can easily add up to 10 hrs setting in a room talking to recruiters instead of practicing in the trucks.

I could go on and on, but I think you get the idea. Find out what if any additional fees could occur and try to figure out if any of the schools might get you more time actually driving the truck versus the others.

Woody