Getting Started With Truck Driver Institute’s Dallas Campus
Topic 10992 | Page 1
This school sounds similar to what I am just finishing . 3 week course cost me $4100 Most companies will reimburse tuition at about $150 per month Werner has Otr and some regional jobs that get u home weekly. Home daily jobs are mostly unloading/ delivery. Think coca cola, beer, restraunt supply. One thing I wish I had thought more about is how many students in your class and how many trucks they are using. ? You want as much time in the truck as you can get . I figure I paid them $20 per hour and sat on my but watching 75% of the time
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Raz calculates:
I figure I paid them $20 per hour and sat on my but watching 75% of the time
You can figure that way. But you really paid them $4100 to help you get a CDL. And if you pass the DMV test, that's all that counts.
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.
Raz calculates:
I figure I paid them $20 per hour and sat on my but watching 75% of the time
You can figure that way. But you really paid them $4100 to help you get a CDL. And if you pass the DMV test, that's all that counts.
I agree. Don't sweat it like that. You're going to aggravate yourself for no reason. Also, you're going to learn more by watching than by trial and error in the beginning. A lot of people don't realize how much you'll learn simply by watching other students or instructors.
Ray, there are indeed jobs open to new drivers that will get you home on weekends. That's pretty common. Local jobs that get you home every night straight out of school are not common, but even a few months of OTR experience will open up new opportunities.
But if you want to be home on weekends straight out of school you should be able to make that happen.
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.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
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.
Please let me know if anybody out there has experience with Truck Driver Institute in Dallas Texas......
Please let me know if anybody out there has experience with Truck Driver Institute in Dallas Texas......
Not Dallas, but graduated TDI in Milton, FL. Remember, they are only there to get you your CDL and possible recruitment opportunities into good companies. Really you're only there to get your CDL though. My TDI was independent, not affiliated with any trucking company that I know of. They charged $5k if you paid in full or $6k if financed. However, if you qualify for a loan through a credit union, you could pay the $5k then use the tuition reimbursement from your ultimate employer to pay back the loan. Better rate than financing through school. However, some companies (like Stevens Transport) were doing something where they paid off the loan after two years with them regardless of the balance.
Good luck.
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.
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I am thinking about getting my CDl from Truck Driver Institute in Dallas Texas. I believe these guys are affiliated with Werner. I am being told that the cash price for class is $5000 and probably closer to $8000 if financed. I am also being told that all of the 25 companies that recruit from the class offer some kind of tuition reimbursement if you are employed with them at least a year or so. 3 week class which seems amazing to me but anyway...I am also being told that they have both otr and local companies that hire from the school.
I am trying to decide what to do....OTR and being gone for 6 or more weeks at a time without being home is just not good for my situation. I'm sure this is common. I believe most local or regional jobs where you are home every weekend or even every night or two is probably not going to go to a newbie.....
Anybody have experience with something like this and getting a job that gets you home for real every weekend? I don't mind working 7 days a week but I would like to be home most nights.....
Is that too much to expect? Please tell me what you think....
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.