Pros And Cons
Topic 31313 | Page 1
College CDL training is way cheaper than a company you pay but usually weeks longer. What are the other pros and cons? In my area there is a company called ATI and they charge $6700 and classes last 6 weeks. However there is a local college that costs $575 but is ten weeks long. TIA
Hi James, and welcome to Trucking Truth!!
We always recommend company paid training, for many reasons . . . free (for the most part!) and a guaranteed job upon completion. Have you seen these links?
- Truck Driver's Career Guide
- Brett's Book: The Raw Truth About Trucking (free online version)
- High Road CDL Training Program
- CDL Practice Tests
Hope this helps a bit; see ya around!
~ Anne ~
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.
Is there a reason you don't want to go through company sponsored training as Anne suggested? Check out Shantiwa's latest topic about finding "local jobs" after obtaining a CDL going through non company sponsored training. Schooling and training with a company pretty much guarantees you a job once you are finished with their program. You don't want to spend all that time and money just to have a CDL that you can't use.
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.
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.
Some of the company schools have their own CDL examiners. So, you may take your driving test immediately after graduation. This is advantageous in states such as California, in which test dates might have to be made 4-5 weeks in advance. If you fail your first exam, then you might have to wait 4-5 weeks for reexamination. An advantage to a non company school is that you are not committed to any one company. Some companies will reimburse your tuition if they hire you. Non company schools usually just teach you how to pass the tests, and not really how to drive. Company schools have an invested interest in teaching you to actually drive. Company schools probably keep the equipment in better condition.
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.
None of the schools, including Paid CDL Training Programs teach only what is necessary to pass the CDL exam. Since a third of the exam is road skills (driving), I’d suggest the notion that private schools do not teach a student how to drive just enough to pass? Is false.
Although I’m not a advocate of private schools, I think it’s important to represent facts. I do however conquer, company sponsored training does have a vested interest in each student.
Some of the company schools have their own CDL examiners. So, you may take your driving test immediately after graduation. This is advantageous in states such as California, in which test dates might have to be made 4-5 weeks in advance. If you fail your first exam, then you might have to wait 4-5 weeks for reexamination. An advantage to a non company school is that you are not committed to any one company. Some companies will reimburse your tuition if they hire you. Non company schools usually just teach you how to pass the tests, and not really how to drive. Company schools have an invested interest in teaching you to actually drive. Company schools probably keep the equipment in better condition.
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.
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.
Not promoting team driving haha that's just how I started. @ CRST, in So. Calif.
We were bussed to a school in Fontana, every morning at 6 am sharp ! not 6:01....lol Returned to the terminal , in Riverside, Cal (stayed there in dorms 3 weeks)
BUT, Within 10 days after training, and road tested AT the school, I / we had our CDL's. ASD was the school and they have their own state certified instructors/testers, so made it a LOT faster and easier, to get licensed. They drove us all in a van to the DMV to finalize the paperwork
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.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
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.
Let's see I paid zero for trucking school and training, just had to work for one year with the company I'm still with. Get paid to learn instead of paying to learn.
Take a look at our diaries section.
Good luck.
James, I went the private route, paid my own way. The primary reason is I was in a situation where I wasn't ready to start driving immediately. That was a mistake. My studio was a year old when I finally started looking for work, and I was able to land a job, but it was with a last chance outfit.. They gave me a shot, I appreciate it, and I stayed with them for 14 months.
Were I to do it again, I would find a company that wanted to get me my CDL , train me, and get me out on the road all in one continuous run. If you need to stay with them for a year to complete the schooling contract, that's just a continuation of the learning process, you need to be at least a year or longer OTR to truly learn the critical aspects of this profession.
And I use the term profession specifically, it's not just a job, it's a profession. If you go into it thinking it's a job, you will likely fail.
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.
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College CDL training is way cheaper than a company you pay but usually weeks longer. What are the other pros and cons? In my area there is a company called ATI and they charge $6700 and classes last 6 weeks. However there is a local college that costs $575 but is ten weeks long. TIA
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles: