Getting A CDL Permit Before Going To Prime
Topic 6811 | Page 3
Well its $35.00 application fee in Georgia plus $10.00 test fee which would pay for the permit if you pass. I have the money for it so I will just do it and hope for the best when I get to Missouri. Heard it was $32.50 in Missouri not sure though.
My recruiter (Don) just told me I need to show up with $150 for some administration fee and Prime would take care of everything else. At that time (2 months ago) I had only just realized I was interested in trucking. Thank God I found this site otherwise he would have had me at Prime on Dec 1st 2014 not knowing a damn thing about a damn thing. Don's probably a good dude but without TT I would be looking like a sucker right now and might have been sent home already. My funds are real tight right now and I'm trying to plan accordingly and not alienate particular individuals in the family by giving them the finger and telling them to pound sand. LOL. For every reason not listed on this thread I know I will love this career, I'm just trying not to fall on my face in my haste. I like to be as Stuart Scott once said, "cooler than the other side of the pillow". That guy Thinks Too Much took my forum name! JK. Booya!
The 50 of the 150 is for DMV so in reality you will only spend 7.50 of that if you come with a permit.
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
Guys I am at Prime right now. Went to the DMV today and transferred my permit to Missouri for only $7.50. It's not that hard. But strongly recommend getting that permit before you arrive. It makes life a whole lot easier when you get here.
Wow that's pretty cheap. How are you liking it so far? I know it's only been a few days..
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
Wow that's pretty cheap. How are you liking it so far? I know it's only been a few days..
It's been really good. You need to show up ready to and we are not kidding about the hurry up and wait during the first two days. I woke up at five in the morning on Monday and did not pee thinking we were going to start off with the UA test. I held that sucker until 2:30pm. I was floating. This is an example of what we had to go through to complete our medical and the wait for the one on one interview was the same. Be patient and keep a level head through the process and you will persevere. Talk to the instructors and trainers because they are a wealth of information. Listen in class and do not be late. There is a near zero tolerance for this. We will keep you posted as we progress. Tomorrow is a big day for us as we go to the Millenium building and Friday we start training on the pad with real trucks. Good luck to you.
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
Sean, we always recommend getting your permit before you go to Prime because that will allow you to immediately move on to other areas of training while the rest of the class sits around studying the CDL manual and gets shipped back and forth to the DMV to take tests. So it puts you ahead of the group by a few days. You're not going to soar to glory if you show up with your permit, nor will you crash in defeat if you don't. But it will get you ahead of the class just a bit and impress the people at Prime just a bit.
These Company-Sponsored Training Programs are really more like tryouts to make a team more than they are a school. Yes, obviously it's a school and they'll train you very well. But the entire time they're evaluating everything about you because they're trying to determine as quickly as possible which students have the potential to become safe, hard working, reliable drivers and who won't. The company doesn't want to waste its time and money on people that won't pan out. You'll find that probably 1/5th of the people won't make it through the first day because they'll fail the physical or drug test or they lied on their application. By the end you'll be lucky if 20% of your initial class actually completes the training and goes on to drive for Prime. So you want to do all you can right from the start to show them you have an awesome attitude and that you're serious about becoming a safe, hard working, reliable driver.
As far as which state you'll be living in and ultimately have your license in, that definitely complicates things. Some states allow simple license transfers and it takes 20 minutes of paperwork - no problem. Other states, like Illinois, require you to start from scratch and do ALL of the testing over again - road test, pre-trip inspection - everything. So you'll want to look at the policies of the various states before deciding on a strategy. And if you find the policies are difficult to deal with you might want to pick the state you're going to live in and get established there with a regular license before getting your CDL permit and going to Prime.
But let me be clear....no matter what you do it will work out so don't stress yourself over this stuff. It's administrative garbage and it's annoying, but nothing more. None of these decisions like which state you live in, where and when you get your permit, etc are "make or break" decisions. I know preparing for a start in trucking is overwhelming, stressful, and confusing - it is for everyone. I just don't want you to stress yourself over these particular issues. They'll work out fine one way or another.
What is needed to take the test for the permit? Approx how much does it cost? I'm in Alabama. I don't have a lot of money to put upfront so if it's expensive it's not really an option for me.
Pre-trip Inspection:
A pre-trip inspection is a thorough inspection of the truck completed before driving for the first time each day.
Federal and state laws require that drivers inspect their vehicles. Federal and state inspectors also may inspect your vehicles. If they judge a vehicle to be unsafe, they will put it “out of service” until it is repaired.
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
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.
Sean, we always recommend getting your permit before you go to Prime because that will allow you to immediately move on to other areas of training while the rest of the class sits around studying the CDL manual and gets shipped back and forth to the DMV to take tests. So it puts you ahead of the group by a few days. You're not going to soar to glory if you show up with your permit, nor will you crash in defeat if you don't. But it will get you ahead of the class just a bit and impress the people at Prime just a bit.
These Company-Sponsored Training Programs are really more like tryouts to make a team more than they are a school. Yes, obviously it's a school and they'll train you very well. But the entire time they're evaluating everything about you because they're trying to determine as quickly as possible which students have the potential to become safe, hard working, reliable drivers and who won't. The company doesn't want to waste its time and money on people that won't pan out. You'll find that probably 1/5th of the people won't make it through the first day because they'll fail the physical or drug test or they lied on their application. By the end you'll be lucky if 20% of your initial class actually completes the training and goes on to drive for Prime. So you want to do all you can right from the start to show them you have an awesome attitude and that you're serious about becoming a safe, hard working, reliable driver.
As far as which state you'll be living in and ultimately have your license in, that definitely complicates things. Some states allow simple license transfers and it takes 20 minutes of paperwork - no problem. Other states, like Illinois, require you to start from scratch and do ALL of the testing over again - road test, pre-trip inspection - everything. So you'll want to look at the policies of the various states before deciding on a strategy. And if you find the policies are difficult to deal with you might want to pick the state you're going to live in and get established there with a regular license before getting your CDL permit and going to Prime.
But let me be clear....no matter what you do it will work out so don't stress yourself over this stuff. It's administrative garbage and it's annoying, but nothing more. None of these decisions like which state you live in, where and when you get your permit, etc are "make or break" decisions. I know preparing for a start in trucking is overwhelming, stressful, and confusing - it is for everyone. I just don't want you to stress yourself over these particular issues. They'll work out fine one way or another.
What is needed to take the test for the permit? Approx how much does it cost? I'm in Alabama. I don't have a lot of money to put upfront so if it's expensive it's not really an option for me.
I am also looking forward about the info. I live in Oklahoma state and they required DOT before getting the permit. If I will go ahead and get the permit then it would be a double pay since MO State wants you to redu the DOT with doctors outside the state. Upon doing the permit , do I just need to take the written test and pass it and take it to Prime or I need to do the actual driving too? I'm kind of confused.
Pre-trip Inspection:
A pre-trip inspection is a thorough inspection of the truck completed before driving for the first time each day.
Federal and state laws require that drivers inspect their vehicles. Federal and state inspectors also may inspect your vehicles. If they judge a vehicle to be unsafe, they will put it “out of service” until it is repaired.
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.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
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.
Flatie C, you have a written test (on computer) for obtaining your permit. After that you just have a driving test to obtain the CDL.
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.
Flatie C, you have a written test (on computer) for obtaining your permit. After that you just have a driving test to obtain the CDL.
Which I can get at Prime after all the training correct?
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.
That's correct. Best of luck to you at Prime, we've had a lot of new drivers in here who built a great foundation for their careers at Prime.
Missouri DMV changed their policy. They will no longer transfer out-of-state permits to Missouri, so you will have to take the written permit test in Missouri even if you show up with a permit from another state. If you're going to Prime, you're probably better off saving your money and just getting the Missouri permit when you get there.
Don't forget to study before you arrive though!
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
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Guys I am at Prime right now. Went to the DMV today and transferred my permit to Missouri for only $7.50. It's not that hard. But strongly recommend getting that permit before you arrive. It makes life a whole lot easier when you get here.
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.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
TWIC:
Transportation Worker Identification Credential
Truck drivers who regularly pick up from or deliver to the shipping ports will often be required to carry a TWIC card.
Your TWIC is a tamper-resistant biometric card which acts as both your identification in secure areas, as well as an indicator of you having passed the necessary security clearance. TWIC cards are valid for five years. The issuance of TWIC cards is overseen by the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.