Impatience Is Killing Me

Hey guys,

I'm currently attending a truck driving program through my local community college Central New Mexico Community College. I've just completed Week 4 of the program. All of my "schoolwork" is done online and then once a week we meet at the range for about 8 hours to practice maneuvering. The course is slated to end in mid April of 2016 and then I should have my CDL by then. The course and all required expenses adds up to be a little over $1,000. Now with that information put out there, here is my predicament: This is going to take too long....

I'm currently unemployed as I quit my job just as soon as I enrolled into college. I live at home with my mother and sister so my expenses for day to day things and bills are relatively small, but I've reached a crossroads now. I need to either speed up my ability to be employed as an OTR driver or I need to go back to work and balance school and a job. What I'm seriously asking, and considering, is whether it would be more beneficial if I simply dropped this class, applied to a private sponsored school that goes full time and then sign on with that company for a year. I understand that with some of these sponsored schools I can get cash advances during my training period?

Any advice?

Why did you quit your job?

I was a bartender at a country club that was highly mismanaged and they had put me in the position to be cited for a felony on several different occasions. I felt it was in my best interest for my future career to cut ties with that company and avoid any possible deviance from my career path.

I attended Georgia Northwestern Technical College to obtain my CDL. The class was Monday-Friday, 8:00am-1:15pm. I also worked 5 days a week, 3:00pm-11:00pm.

I was also about to ask why you quit your job for college if you only have one actual class a week and the rest is online, but as you've already done it, I guess that part is somewhat irrelevant at this point. As to your current predicament and what to do about it, I'd say that it really depends on you. Do you want to be able to take your time, interview with a number of companies, and pick one that suits you best? Or do you just need to hurry up and get on the road so you can start making money?

If you want more freedom and flexibility and choices, I would say you should get a temporary job now to get you by while you finish your schooling. Perhaps even a non-CDL delivery job of some sort, so you'll at least start getting used to being on the road all day for work. Then once you finish school, you'll have your pick of many companies that are ready to hire you, and you won't be beholden to them for any set contract or tuition repayment.

If on the other hand, you REALLY can't wait and you are just itching to get on the road and start making money, and aren't too picky about which trucking company you get on with as long as they get you rolling quickly, then I would say as long as you've got what it takes, going with a company-sponsored CDL program through one of the major trucking companies would be the way to go. The advantages here are that they will pay your way through training, you'll get your CDL fast and get on the road fast making money. The downsides are that the schooling will be a much tougher, more stressful, intense, "sink or swim" type environment where many will fail out and you will have to prove you have what it takes through a "trial by fire" of sorts, and also of course the company footing the bill for your CDL training means you will be under contract to drive with them usually for a year (sometimes more) while you work off your school debt to them. They also tend to not pay as well your first year compared to if you paid your own way through trucking school because of the opportunity they gave you. You can still make a decent living wage though. If you can live with that for a year, then you might want to consider the company-sponsored route.

Either way can work out fine, you just have to decide what's right for you and your situation. Best of luck to you! :)

Ian, I like the Community college courses, but that one sounds like it is just way too long for your situation. If I was in your shoes I would sign up for a Company-Sponsored Training program and get the ball rolling. You could always get yourself a part time job in the interim, but here's my thinking: Even though that community college course is going to cover a lot more than your average Truck Driving School, You still ultimately only end up with a CDL for all your time. The only way you are going to really gain any truly valuable experience as to what it takes to undertake this whole new experience or lifestyle we call "trucking," is to be in an actual working situation out here on the road with a trainer. Very little of what you go over in that course is going to translate into "real world" helpful stuff.

I know at Prime they will advance you two hundred dollars a week during the first initial weeks of training until you get your CDL, and then afterwards they will pay you a minimum of 700 bucks a week. They will deduct those pay advances a little at a time until you get them paid back. You don't have to go to Prime, but they have the most generous pay package of any of the companies hiring rookies. I've got to tell you, I know drivers at my company who have been driving for several years who seldom make 700 bucks a week. There's a reason for that, but I think you should reconsider your options if you don't want to find a part time job, and/or you don't want to wait out the duration of that course. I know it probably seemed like a bargain to you when you forked out the scratch, but your situation may dictate a more rapid approach.

Hey, one more thing. Don't let that idea of committing to a company for a year cause you to stumble. (read that twice and make sure you get it!) One year is such a small thing in the overall picture of a new career. And when you start driving a Big Rig you are going to find that there is a huge learning curve involved. You will barely be getting your feet wet when that first anniversary comes barreling down on you - trust me, I know how this works out here. They are going to keep you so busy that there's going to be days that your head is spinning. You will hit the bed exhausted at night, wake up and hit it all again for all you've got, and then the next thing you know another week has gone by and then another quarter, and golly, then the year is up. Don't even let it bother you, just do it!