Life Has Changed And So Has My CDL School
Topic 6856 | Page 2
Hey man, good luck at Georgia Northwestern Technical College! Sounds like it's a much better fit for you and your family. Thanks for sharing the information you found about Prime with me in other threads, much obliged.
Absolutely. No problem. Just keep in mind that I have nothing against Prime inc. They are a good company with what I know. It just seemed to be a better fit with me not going to company sponsored training. I'm not limited on funds to go to school and I can pick which company I can start with. If I were limited on funds I would choose prime out of all the Company sponsored training programs. It seemed to have the best options. It was the cheapest, it had hands on training big plus was starting pay.
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.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
If you go GA Technical School you can qualify for the Hope Grant and other programs that will drastically reduce your costs. I am at Chattahoochee Tech now and so far my outlay is:
Admission Fee: $20.00
Physical and Drug Screen: $70.00
Driving Record: $8.00
Books: $123
Tuition: $61 (course cost is $1646; Hope Grant and GA Strategic Industries Grant paid the rest)Other fees to come are for permit and testing, and background check for Hazmat , but that should be it.
Good Luck!
This is a great sample of how the price can change. In the long run I think going with a certified and accredited truck training program is a far better option than Company Sponsored training. Now, not all may be able to go this route. So company sponsored training isn't a bad idea. I would ask a crazy amount of questions to any recruiter. Get that information out of the way before committing to training at any company. That way you can have that out of the way. So you can focus on studies and training. Take your time. If I would have rushed into it. I would most likely hate myself right now and be stressed out.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.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.
Things will work out find either way. Make sure you confirm with US Xpress that they hire candidates from the school you're going to attend. I drove for US Xpress for the better part of six years toward the end of my career. I thought they were about as good as any company out there. They had tons of options for various fleets, nice equipment, good pay, and kept you moving pretty well.
I actually know Max Fuller personally though my Brother, Uncle and Grandfather. My Brother and Grandfather work for us xpress right now. My uncle did a few years back.
If you go GA Technical School you can qualify for the Hope Grant and other programs that will drastically reduce your costs. I am at Chattahoochee Tech now and so far my outlay is:
Admission Fee: $20.00
Physical and Drug Screen: $70.00
Driving Record: $8.00
Books: $123
Tuition: $61 (course cost is $1646; Hope Grant and GA Strategic Industries Grant paid the rest)Other fees to come are for permit and testing, and background check for Hazmat , but that should be it.
Good Luck!
Well permit fee in Georgia is $35.00 and testing is $10.00 which becomes you license fee when you pass. (If you pass the first time) not sure what the background Check would cost.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.
If you go GA Technical School you can qualify for the Hope Grant and other programs that will drastically reduce your costs. I am at Chattahoochee Tech now and so far my outlay is:
Admission Fee: $20.00
Physical and Drug Screen: $70.00
Driving Record: $8.00
Books: $123
Tuition: $61 (course cost is $1646; Hope Grant and GA Strategic Industries Grant paid the rest)Other fees to come are for permit and testing, and background check for Hazmat , but that should be it.
Good Luck!
So for what about $2000.00 total if you payed out of pocket. Not bad when most company sponsored training will slap you with a $3000.00 to $4000.00 or higher "CRE" if discover this is not the career for you to late. Plus im not sure if another company will give you a job if you decide to leave before 12 months of employment. A lot of companies I've been speaking with that only hire people with a cdl class A. Will not touch someone from some of these company sponsored training programs because they... A. Did not graduate from an accredited truck driving school and or program. "160 credit hours". Or B. Do not have the minimum experience (most of the time 12 months) OTR. So far Crete, Us xpress and Conway will not. Maybe one with there own company sponsored training will. I don't really? Just something I've ran across the last few days when speaking to drivers, office personal and recruiters. Seems like a detail some, not all. Companies with (CST) fail to answer.
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.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.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.
So for what about $2000.00 total if you payed out of pocket. Not bad when most company sponsored training will slap you with a $3000.00 to $4000.00 or higher "CRE" if discover this is not the career for you to late. Plus im not sure if another company will give you a job if you decide to leave before 12 months of employment. A lot of companies I've been speaking with that only hire people with a cdl class A. Will not touch someone from some of these company sponsored training programs because they... A. Did not graduate from an accredited truck driving school and or program. "160 credit hours". Or B. Do not have the minimum experience (most of the time 12 months) OTR. So far Crete, Us xpress and Conway will not. Maybe one with there own company sponsored training will. I don't really? Just something I've ran across the last few days when speaking to drivers, office personal and recruiters. Seems like a detail some, not all. Companies with (CST) fail to answer.
WOW! I paid $4,600 out of pocket for my CDL training at a local Community College, and I was experienced at driving, but most companies want to see that certificate.
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.
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.
So for what about $2000.00 total if you payed out of pocket. Not bad when most company sponsored training will slap you with a $3000.00 to $4000.00 or higher "CRE" if discover this is not the career for you to late. Plus im not sure if another company will give you a job if you decide to leave before 12 months of employment. A lot of companies I've been speaking with that only hire people with a cdl class A. Will not touch someone from some of these company sponsored training programs because they... A. Did not graduate from an accredited truck driving school and or program. "160 credit hours". Or B. Do not have the minimum experience (most of the time 12 months) OTR. So far Crete, Us xpress and Conway will not. Maybe one with there own company sponsored training will. I don't really? Just something I've ran across the last few days when speaking to drivers, office personal and recruiters. Seems like a detail some, not all. Companies with (CST) fail to answer.
WOW! I paid $4,600 out of pocket for my CDL training at a local Community College, and I was experienced at driving, but most companies want to see that certificate.
I just enrolled in Ogeechee Tech CDL program and my total tuition cost was $1711.00. I start class on March 5th. There was an earlier class but I have to retire as a Firefighter first...:)
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.
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.
Your right Sandman some company sponsored training programs are not valid with other companies. One thing I will always recommend is research all available options and pick the one that is right for you. I feel very confident with the training Prime is offering me right now. I also believe through all the research I have done that by the end of my training I will be a safe and productive asset to Prime as well.
Phase 1 of Prime Training begins with orientation. In this phase they re-interview prospective candidates, give physicals and drug tests, and test for your permit test. This phase lasts 4 to 5 days and is the most critical time as far as being sent home, We started with 109 people on Monday and finished with 30. After you pass this stage you get put up on "The Board". From that point individual instructors call to interview you to see if they are a right fit for them to be on their truck. During the course of being interviewed you train on simulators and on the pad. The pad is broke into three categories Pre Trip, Backing, and Shifting. Once selected by an Instructor they take you down from the board and you receive 4 hours of pad time with you instructor. ( Anyone going to Prime remember to Interview your trainer as well, make sure he is a good fit for you.) You can choose another trainer.
Phase 2 After you complete your 4 hours of pad time your trainer will get a load dispatched to him and off you go. This Phase your instructor is responsible for training you ( hands on ). Your driver must be in the passenger seat at all times during this Phase. He is responsible for at least 75 hours of driving training, training that consists of driving in all conditions, pre trip, and backing. After the 75 hours of training if he feels you are ready to test he will schedule you back to the terminal to take you CDL driving test. If not he can keep you on until he believes you are ready. My trainer has already stated if it takes 125 hours he will keep me from testing. He wants me to pass on the first try. He gets a nice bonus if he does and so do I. My trainer Jack has been driving for 30 years now and instructing for 10. These two phases equates to 10,000 miles of training.
Phase 3 After passing my CDL road test I will be a second seat. This means either my instructor or a trainer will partner with me for 30,000 more miles. During this phase I will be driving team in the B seat. When my instructor or trainer is sleeping I will drive and vise versa. This can take anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks depending on many factors out of my control. The good news is I will be making $700 a week at this phase. After I finish this phase I will be tested again and then upgraded to a A seat. Which will be a Solo Driver.
I love the way Prime has their training, it allows you to get hands on training in all different driving environments, private schools tend to have very little in actual highway training, also they have a tendency of being a very controlled environment. It's also the only company school I researched that pays for your training with a year commitment. Work for Prime a year and you paid nothing for your training.
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.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.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Brian, that is some great insight. Probably deserves it's own thread because you brought up interviewing your instructor. Keep it coming.
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If you go GA Technical School you can qualify for the Hope Grant and other programs that will drastically reduce your costs. I am at Chattahoochee Tech now and so far my outlay is:
Admission Fee: $20.00
Physical and Drug Screen: $70.00
Driving Record: $8.00
Books: $123
Tuition: $61 (course cost is $1646; Hope Grant and GA Strategic Industries Grant paid the rest)
Other fees to come are for permit and testing, and background check for Hazmat , but that should be it.
Good Luck!
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.