School Or Company Training..??

I guess one way or the other I have to pay for my cdl...priv school or company school...I do have the money for school...really could use some feedback from you men and women...especially the new drivers regretting whatever way you chose, and wish you would of went the other way...

They both have their good and bad points....

for company sponsored training , its no money out of pocket, but you have to sign a contract to stay with that company, usually for about a year....

For private schools, you have to pay out of pocket, but no contracts with a company.... Most companies offer tuition reimbursement, up to the actual cost of the course, but its spread out over a period of time, from 1 to 5 years, to either you (if you paid for the course) or your student loan holder (if there is one).... Each company is different, both with the terms and amount, so check out each company....

I work for Werner, and they pay $100/month to the loanholder until its paid off, up to $7,000.....

Hope this helps.....

We have great information on choosing a truck driving school. Check this out:

• Trucker's Career Guide: Choosing A Truck Driving School
• Article Category: Choosing A Truck Driving School
• Forum Topics Tagged "Choosing A Truck Driving School"

I'm currently in school at a local community college. I have a job waiting, and the boss said he'd let me use a truck to take the CDL test, but I felt I'd be a better driver if I attended school. And boy am I glad I did! I'll be 6 weeks later getting started, but I'm learning so much that I'd have had to learn the hard way otherwise. It also seems that I have more options due to the recruiters that visit the school almost daily. The community college seems a great value at $1470 for 6 weeks and this includes your permit, physical, drug test and license.

I did company sponsored with a year contract. You should stay atvyour first company for a year anyway, so no big deal.

Advantages: driving OTR with the permit gives you experience in night driving, down grades, fog, rain, traffic, and all sorts of other conditions. I delivered loads from day one with my permit, which allowed getting used to pulling various weights and seeing the difference with downgrades and speeds. People with questionable records are sometimes better off finding out if anyone will hire them before spending thousands on school. At Prime the training pay is higher if you go through their program than if you come in with a school CDL , and the training period is shorter than if you come with the CDL from a school.

Disadvantages: uncertainty of whether you will be accepted until there. Long periods away from home in the beginning.

Disadvantages {of company schools}: uncertainty of whether you will be accepted until there. Long periods away from home in the beginning.

Much of the hiring vetting happens before school starts. (Swift has the first three days as "no charge" if you quit or they boot you.) True, you can still be let go any time from the first day of school and into your company orientation.

Long periods away from home is true. In my Swift class, one student was away from home for three months (through Christmas & New Year) before seeing his family again.

I guess I should explain...yes, you get vetted before you leave for school. But once you get to orientation, a more in depth background check occurs. Physical or medical issues can prevent enrollment. At which point you can get sent home. Orientation is usually a two day bus ride away from home. But keep in mind, by the time this happens, people have already resigned from their old jobs and sometimes have given up apartments or put things in storage expecting to be gone for extended periods of time.

However, this is still a better than paying thousands of dollars to a school that says companies will accept you with two DUIs, felonies, accidents, speeding tickets....while not telling you those things can limit your prospects or giving any guidance towards companies willing to accept those candidates.

Just like companies, some schools are better than others. Some trainers are better than others.