New Guy Here, Which Carrier Is Best

As a new driver for Schneider, I wanted to add my two cents since it was mentioned a few times. I would not be quick to pass on an opportunity with Schneider. They have been nothing but great to me so far. Yes, the training is rather short. 3 weeks total, 2 at the academy and 1 week out with a trainer. To be honest, I couldn’t have handled anymore than 1 week with a trainer OTR. It got to be a bit much by the 6th day. I came into it with CDL experience so I took to everything very quickly and I’m naturally just a fast learner at things I have a passion for. I came into this industry because I wanted to, not because I felt like I needed to and Schneider has provided me a great opportunity and laid the groundwork to get my first year in. I personally would put Schneider well above Swift. There’s plenty online and talk at truck stops about Swift and the kind of reputation they have. I’m not here to bash any company though so I’ll leave it at that.

You will learn WAY more in your first week solo than you will in those 3 weeks of training. Nothing beats true on the job experience and with no one hand holding you along, you have to figure it all out on your own. I’m a better driver today than I was 7 days ago and 7 days before that.

I really am having a great time with Schneider. And the work is constant. There’s always been another load for me lined up before I drop my current one. As long as you want to, they’ll keep you moving. I was also assigned a brand new 2025 Freightliner Cascadia, so that helps, too. Fresh out of training into a brand new tractor isn’t usually the case so I’m very grateful. It still smells like a new car in here! But the equipment here is well maintained and there’s tons of resources for you to use. Your DTLs (driver team leader, basically your “boss”) are your main point of contact and I couldn’t say enough positive things about mine.

Bottom line, I’m very happy with Schneider. Yes, I’m not making big bucks but that’s okay right now. I’m gaining my initial experience right now. I’m making decent money for my means of living right now. After I get my first year in here, I can start looking at other opportunities. Or, I don’t have to. Some people go to a company with the intention of it only being 1 year and end up staying for 20 years. It all just depends. Everyone is gonna feel differently based on their personal experience and I may even get some people who read this and think I’m crazy but if Schneider gets back to you with an offer, don’t pass it up. I’m glad I didn’t.

Hello Nick. Good comment and I hope you become a regular here.

The fact is, we could have endless arguments about what carrier is the best, because it’s so subjective. I’m glad you are having good results with Schneider. They have shortened their training time with a training engineer from when I was there, but they do have excellent training. I had such a great experience with the training engineer I was assigned to, that I would have stayed out a month with him. He was a real gift.You should be loyal to whatever employer you are with, so I appreciate the positive outlook you have. Keep it up. But it will be interesting to see what your evaluation is in 6 months or a year. Good luck to you for continued safe driving.

As a new driver for Schneider, I wanted to add my two cents since it was mentioned a few times. I would not be quick to pass on an opportunity with Schneider. They have been nothing but great to me so far. Yes, the training is rather short. 3 weeks total, 2 at the academy and 1 week out with a trainer. To be honest, I couldn’t have handled anymore than 1 week with a trainer OTR. It got to be a bit much by the 6th day. I came into it with CDL experience so I took to everything very quickly and I’m naturally just a fast learner at things I have a passion for. I came into this industry because I wanted to, not because I felt like I needed to and Schneider has provided me a great opportunity and laid the groundwork to get my first year in. I personally would put Schneider well above Swift. There’s plenty online and talk at truck stops about Swift and the kind of reputation they have. I’m not here to bash any company though so I’ll leave it at that.

You will learn WAY more in your first week solo than you will in those 3 weeks of training. Nothing beats true on the job experience and with no one hand holding you along, you have to figure it all out on your own. I’m a better driver today than I was 7 days ago and 7 days before that.

I really am having a great time with Schneider. And the work is constant. There’s always been another load for me lined up before I drop my current one. As long as you want to, they’ll keep you moving. I was also assigned a brand new 2025 Freightliner Cascadia, so that helps, too. Fresh out of training into a brand new tractor isn’t usually the case so I’m very grateful. It still smells like a new car in here! But the equipment here is well maintained and there’s tons of resources for you to use. Your DTLs (driver team leader, basically your “boss”) are your main point of contact and I couldn’t say enough positive things about mine.

Bottom line, I’m very happy with Schneider. Yes, I’m not making big bucks but that’s okay right now. I’m gaining my initial experience right now. I’m making decent money for my means of living right now. After I get my first year in here, I can start looking at other opportunities. Or, I don’t have to. Some people go to a company with the intention of it only being 1 year and end up staying for 20 years. It all just depends. Everyone is gonna feel differently based on their personal experience and I may even get some people who read this and think I’m crazy but if Schneider gets back to you with an offer, don’t pass it up. I’m glad I didn’t.

Hello Nick. Good comment and I hope you become a regular here.

The fact is, we could have endless arguments about what carrier is the best, because it’s so subjective. I’m glad you are having good results with Schneider. They have shortened their training time with a training engineer from when I was there, but they do have excellent training. I had such a great experience with the training engineer I was assigned to, that I would have stayed out a month with him. He was a real gift.You should be loyal to whatever employer you are with, so I appreciate the positive outlook you have. Keep it up. But it will be interesting to see what your evaluation is in 6 months or a year. Good luck to you for continued safe driving.

Thanks, BK. I appreciate that. I was a silent viewer for a while and didn’t want to really start posting anything until I started getting some experience, got hired, and got rolling. I plan to be more active now that I have an actual insight and first hand experience. Looking forward to a long career and like I said, very grateful Schneider gave me the opportunity to get started!

I went back and counted. Of eight "votes", six were for Swift (add me - seven). Swift is a large trucking company, and because of the big numbers is often the butt of Swifty jokes (Sure Wish I Finished Training)

A thing to keep in mind: whatever time the company keeps you in training is not revenue for them. You get paid, and the trainer gets paid extra for their work with you. So the longer the training time, the more the company invests in you and your future value as a driver.

As a pure rookie newbie, any extra training is valuable for you for when you finally hit the road on your own. I bet all the drivers here can remember that first day, at some warehouse somewhere when they stood there looking up at a trailer, ready to hook up and drive over the road for their first miles solo. Training is a good thing.S