The truck driving school that you choose to attend could have a tremendous impact on your future career. While there are numerous truck driving schools to choose from, they are not created equal – and failure to get your certification from a good school could make it hard for you to get hired.
Things to consider when selecting a school
There are certain things that will make a good truck driving school stand out from a mediocre one. Some things to look for include:
- Accreditation – a good school will have sought out accreditation by an agency approved by the U.S. Department of Education
- Certification – meets or exceeds the Professional Truck Driver Institute standard, including a least 44 hours of actual drive time
- Cost – consider the cost of the school in relation to the number of hours behind the wheel, and look for hidden fees that may not be included, such as obtaining a permit, drug screening, insurance, and more
- Drive time – you should have at least 44 hours of actual driving time, not including observation time
- Equipment – well-maintained recent model tractors and trailers, including weighted trailers (because pulling empty trailers isn’t good practice)
- Facilities – clean classrooms with audio-visual capabilities, a library, and a practice driving range
- Financing – reputable schools will have financing options
- Instructors – teaching staff should have at least three years of driving experience, as well as educational experience
- Placement assistance – while no school can guarantee you a job, they can provide you with assistance in finding one after graduation
- Program length – a good truck driving school will be at least 3 weeks long to provide you with adequate drive time
- Student to truck ratio – the best schools will place just one student per truck, giving you individualized attention
Driving schools to consider
The two truck driver training companies that operate locations across the country are Sage Truck Driving Schools and Roadmaster Drivers Schools.
SAGE has been providing CDL training and testing since 1989. All of SAGE’s truck driving schools offer one-on-one driving with no more than one student per truck. This kind of private driving instruction offers students maximum hands-on driving time and no distractions. The programs are 150-160 hours and take 4 to 6 weeks depending on the number of students. SAGE focuses a lot of time on driving, with the PTDI program offering at least 44 hours of time actually operating the truck. About half of SAGE’s schools are partnerships with community college, and the other half are free standing SAGE-operated schools.One critical difference between SAGE and most other schools is that SAGE schools do not include “observation time” in the training. Most schools place 3-4 students in a truck at a time and rotate drivers into the driver’s seat. Observation time means that the student will spend 6 to 8 hours in the truck, but will only drive for about 2 hours. However, schools that provide observation hours in the program typically advertise all time the student is just observing as “behind the wheel time.”Observation time has some significant drawbacks, including (1) it can mislead students regarding the actual driving hours included in the program, (2) sitting and watching for several hours causes fatigue, (3) students talking, joking, commenting can create distractions, (4) causing stress for the driver, (5) taking the instructor’s attention away from the driver, etc.SAGE schools have been accredited nationally and programs have been certified by the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI). PTDI is the only national trucking industry school certification entity, and only about 5% of all school have been certified.Christopher Thropp
Vice President
The SAGE Corporation
Roadmaster Driver Schools don’t meet all the criteria for a “Good” truck driving school, but they’re a lot better than most, the quality is consistent, and they have a bunch of locations around the country. An upside to all the marketing they do is that everyone in the industry knows their name, so even if the training isn’t the absolute best, at least no one will turn you down because they don’t recognize your school.
If there isn’t a Sage or Roadmaster near you or you can’t afford their training, look at other training programs in your region and compare their offerings against our list of “things to consider when selecting a school.” Regional and local schools can be just as good or better than national schools, but there is a wide variation in the quality and price, so do your research and make sure they meet your criteria.
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{ 26 comments… read them below or add one }
Although some schools are better then others there is one thing that is most important. It is that most good company’s want at least one year experiences so even if the school gets you a job that dose not pay well you should still go to that school because any job is better then none, you can always use the bad job as a stepping stone to get the better job. I went to the Smith and Soloman school for one reason. They had a night class and I did not have to quit my job. I was able to keep working while going to school and my driving record was not that great and they still helped me get a O T R driving job.
I have to agree with Doug on 99% of what he said because I wasn’t always late. Although, the last company that I worked for accused me of being late to a delivery. Any delivery that I would have been late for I knew before pick up that the load would be late. I did get porked by a broker and my dispatcher on those however, the company never said a thing while I was employed by them about one single delivery. They accused me of a late delivery when I attempted to file unemployment. So, with that said, Doug is right about what he said. Not all truck drivers are out of shape but, many of them do have serious health issues. Companies don’t like to get you home if you have a health issue. Or try telling them that one of your elderly parents are in the hospital. I wouldn’t say that the trucking industry is family friendly. Comany recruiters will paint a pretty picture of everything. On the other hand some will be up front with you and tell you that it is demanding, which it is. Right now I am experiencing a health issue and I am deadheading home, having to eat the fuel to make an appointment. Luckily, I am driving a cargo van. I gave up driving a class A truck, at least for awhile. I am actually considering getting out of trucking altogether. I am tired of seeing truckers go down icy roads at 65 mph or tailgate at 65 mph. I am tired of truckers urinating in a parking lot…I had one stop right in front of my truck at a truck stop and pee in front of my truck with me sitting there watching him. I should have given him a blast of the airhorn. Many truck drivers are good people though. There has been a couple of times that I was going to pay for a shower and they offered me their shower points. Sometimes the bad apples ruin the bunch though. It’s sad. I have even seen a bag of feces left out in a parking lot at truck stop. Many trucking companies will lie about the students learning to drive in their schools so that they can scam them out of thousands of dollars. It happened to a friend of mine who tried out Schnieder. They let him go the last couple of days of training and sent him bill for training. My friend finished trucking school elsewhere and is driving to this day for the first company he applied at three years later. Schnieder and many other companies are run by dirtbag liars. You have to be real careful. I was terminated from a company for making errors on my logs. Now, I can see being fired for falsification however, not an honest to goodness error. By the way, I was never cited for logging errors and the company official that fired me knew I didn’t cheat on my logs. l could write a book in the two years that I have been truck driving. The best gig that I have had driving was delivering propane for Amerigas. I had an excellent boss and I was home every night. I am very disappointed with this career because it seems that companies just think you can live weeks and weeks out on the road under any condition. States have stupid idle laws and they expect you to roast or freeze in a damned truck too. Well, there are a few examples as to why you may want to reconsider taking up this profession.
Happy trails.
Truck driving is not a 9 to 5 job.. it is a life style.. you either love it or hate it.. its pretty simple..really..
your not home very much.. fact.. company wants to make money..fact.. .the dispatcher needs to be your friend..no matter how much you hate him/her…fact… allot of.drivers with only a couple years under their belt are the ones that whine… an cry because they really didnt know what being a OTR driver was like.. an dont enjoy the life style.. remember..its not a job.. it is a life..that will pay good ..for doing something you love .. if you have a family with young kids…or just need to stay close to home.. OTR is not for you ..period..I know I will get flamed for this.. but the truth is hard to swallow sometimes..
Well I have no family with young children or a husband that Ihave to be homet to everynight so I think OTR would be perfect for me. I have lived in a 5 th wheel travel trailer, I know it is not the same, but I do believe this will be the right choice for me.
I am retiring from a firefighting career after 30 years. I have had a desire to be an over the road trucker since I was very young. Now my kids are grown and my wife has her own career (registered nurse) and I believe it’s my time to become a trucker. I have driven tractor-trailer units in the past for a concrete block producer delivering products to different locations and the experience has always kept my interest in trucking. I hope to be on the road in the next few months.
Betty Boop you sound like the perfect person the get into the business.. ..it takes a special type of person.. good luck..an maybe we will see you out there
I agree with gary, you either love this job or you hate it. I was a driver for 3 1/2 years, I’ve been working as an owner operator for about a year and 5 months now and it pays off good and the most im¥ out of home is 2 or 3 days per week. I am 24 years old and I ve been around big rigs all my life let me tell you the best school you get is hands on. Not in books or in a classroom you have to drive and experience traffic rainy conditions otr experience something that you won’t get at truck driving dchools. My dad, a trucker that has been driving for about 25 years was my teacher.
When driving you need to have a lot of comon sence you need someone with more experience telling you what you should and shouldn’t do becuase in this job you never stop learning every day is something new there is no such thing as a “PROFECCIONAL driver” because there is always some thing that you know about this profecion that someone else does, a trucker with that has over 20 years otr told me this. Blessings to every one and a safe trip .
For CDL A training, my suggestion is to look at private, vocational school or community college programs that meet criteria for tuition assistance from organizations similar to “career link” as such tuition reimbursement organizations limit their funding to schools meeting specific criteria. My personal experience, I give Luzerne County Community College located in Nanticoke, PA a thumbs up for their program. Visit their new training facility to see for yourself.
I was wanting to go into truck driving, love to drive and be on the road. Started a course at LIT located in Beaumont Texas. Went through a 2 week classroom and was the only one who passed. I quit when I began the driving portion. These people are not teachers, only old has been truck drivers. The classes I paid for were scheduled for 7am to 3pm. Mon-Fri. We went 7am to 11am Mon-Fri. Driving portion was nothing but yelling and screaming at me and was told they did not have time to answer my questions. I would not recommend this school to anyone!
Another trucking school to stay away from is West Michigan CDL located in Wyoming,Michigan. It cost about 5 Grand last I knew to go there. The large trucking companies I checked into will only reimburse you for only 2 Grand for the schooling. your allready 3 Grand in the hole before you even start ! Not only that…the trucking companies that hire you have it set up that you have to “sign-up” to drive for them for at least 2 to 3 years,and they will pay you low wages…so you’ll never get ahead. That’s a scam used my the trucking schools,and the companies working together to make a profit at your expense. I owned my own truck as an owner/operator for 38yrs.so I could be my own boss. I learned from the old time truckers,not some truck driving school. ABC…”Always Be Covered”. Don’t let some cop,trucking school,or trucking company get into your paycheck. The big companies have taken away the truckers ability to make their own lifetime decisions. We need the independant trucker back into the system,then the big companies won’t be able to “run the show” for thier own profit.Campanies need to use the independant trucker more often,rather than wait for a big companies to find a truck that is close for the pick-up. Use a local driver in your own home town.
I agree. I would also like to add that they will tell you anything to get you out there and once there, even though you’re 800 miles from home if they decide to cut you loose for whatever bullshit reason they can come up with, you are on your own! It could be 10 degrees outside and all you have is you duffle bag and a couple dollars and they’ll give you a ride to the bus station. How you get the money for your ride home is not their concern. They are a money mill of sorts. They say they’ll pay your tuition if you work for them for 9 months and if you leave school after the first week you pay $999, after the second week you owe $1999 and after the entire 16 course you owe $2999! They want you to pay $200 a month at 18 percent interest. They are criminal in my opinion. Check it out THOROUGHLY and get ALL communications in an EMAIL so you can have proof if you have to go to court to get out of paying the fees. Ask LOTS OF QUESTIONS and expect to live like a homeless person with a truck and eat LOTS AND LOTS of Cup O Noodles!!
i would have to agree with you jim,doug and russ. i went to a local driving school here in sc and the only thing they really did for me was teach me what i needed to know to pass the test at the DMV. very little behind the wheel training. all i know now is self taught and i have been driving for three years now. if you are able to find a local company that will give you a shot then that is the way to go if you are set on driving a truck. that way you are home every nite and dont have to be out on the road that is what i did and like it so much better then OTR werner done me in. they hiried me in to run the south east and when i got out of orientation they put me in a truck running from Florida to California and back. that lasted one month and as soon as i was able to get out of that truck i handed them there keys.
SAGE IS A HORRIBLE CHOICE FOR A TRUCK DRIVING SCHOOL!
YOUR BETTER THAN THAT.
Sage truck Driving School breaks federal regulations,? feed answers at test time, and terminate students with a small learning curve with no refund!
Sage is honestly one of the worst places you can go to if you want to drive a truck. I went to school here and I can truthfully tell you that every single one in the class, all 11 of us, were in some way or another quite frustrated with Sage. I am still really good friends with most of the class and we all still joke about how pathetic it was.
Sage Technical Schools have a 100% passing rate. Me and my classmates soon understood how they are able to do this. They kicked out several students who were having just a little learning curve, and I truly mean LITTLE. They werent much far behind me and would have passed but Sage kicked them out in halfway through the coarse and didnt return any of their money.
Truth is, Sage is a racket. If you dont believe me then just do the research yourself. They were on the news in Washington for doing just this. Just one example is Laurie Thomas, who went public on the evening news with how Sage took her money and kicked her aside. She is just one of more then 30 people I have read about and spoken with.
Should there be a class action lawsuit? There are too many people to speak of who are disappointed with Sage and who all deserve compensation.
What location was this? I’ve mostly heard good things about Sage, but if one of the schools is being run badly then you should let future students know so they can avoid it.
Thanks Doug,
I am a 57 yr. old Marine Corp vet trying to use this vrap benifit, but like a lot of guys I always thought trucking would be a cool way to make some good money and be on the road, with my
dog or girl or even a girl dog…what ever. But somehow I just had a feeling it was a little overrated. Thanks for the heads-up Doug..Happy St. Pattys day
John B.
What kind of salary am i looking at approximately lets say after 5 years of trucking, Long haul. im looking at schools right now because i really feel its a good fit for me just want to know that if i put in my time im going to make good money eventually. thanks
Hi, I’m a retired WWTP Superintendent the kids are grown my wife is to young to retire she loves being a School teacher and I’ve been retired for several years. I have plans on us running our own truck at some point, I would like to do some OTR driving to learn the ends and outs of the business. I pulled a set of tankers 25years ago so I need to go through a driving school to catch up. I’m just not sure of the one to choose. Being gone is no problem we have a solid marriage so living Ina truck for a year is not something I can’t handle. I would like to make the money to buy a tractor of my own. I just need some advice as to the best school in the CA area.
Thanks for your help ahead of time.
Steve
Can someone tell me anything about the driving school that’s located in Charlotte NC. It’s called Trans – Tech Truck Driving School. the cost is $2875.00 for 4 to 6 weeks. Information would be greatly appreciated.
i attended charlotte truck driver training school on hovis road. they basically teach you to pass the test to attain your cdl. am currently working with epes 3 weeks into my 6 week training period and this is where the real training has come in. but, you need your cdl to get to this point. good luck.
I have to disagree with this article about the two cdl training schools you have picked as the best . I’m retired from the exec. end of the trucking industry for over 33 years. Those two schools are different in a lot of ways. Sage is a company that leans on community college’s for the purpose of using the school’s financial aid program for there students. The problem with Sage ,is that they dont really employ all there people. Remember I know all about these schools and what they offer. Sage is very poor training center for employment. Roadmaster is not as good as they make themselves out to be. First off they are in bed with Werner Int. Roadmaster does not have a real student loan system even though they tell people they do. They will always ask for $2500.00 to $3000.00 down and bring you into school under what is called an open start. Open starts are letting people start school ,but ost are pulled out of school the second week and told there loan didn’t go trough and they are out the door. They will also tell you that the only company that hired you is the company they are in bed with. This means you are put to work ,but not by the company you would have chosen. When you get to that company ,you will have to sign a contract with that comapnay and they will send 2 to 3 cents out of every mile you drive to pay back to Roadmaster that you did not pay them for.
The best cdl training school in the US is CDI/TDI which has 12 locations nationwide. They do employment and you have to prove to them you can be hired before you start training with them. If you attend one of there schools you will have 5 to 8 job offers a week before you graduate and you get to pick your own company and no one signs contracts to work for anyone period. They offer a student loan through SFS (student Loan Financing ) which has been doing business with them for over 15 years. Fact is SFS wont write loans for any other cdl training school in the US but CDI/TDI . The first thing they do for there people is to verify employment before they bring them into training or offer them a loan. They are the best of the best if your looking for a cdl training school…..James Lang
Sorry James…TDI will rope you into their school and charge you plenty to do it and if you cant get a co-sign you are out…they did that to me after one week of hard class work…also their instructors are rude and don’t really care about you they just want to teach class get out and go fisihing
I just had meeting at PDI (Professional Driver Institute) Rochester, NY. Had to give $100 registration fee to get the ball rolling. I was told they are Affiliated with government agencies that offer grants therefore that would help me pay $5595 tuitions plus I will have to pay for CDL fees, medical screening, and for permit, road test,and license cost. I have been trying to find any kind of reviews or comments about this Institute and can’t seem to find anything besides the website they made. They are not affiliated with the BBB so that made me wonder? I have an 18, 20, and 22 year old daughters and my husband keeps getting laid off. I need a good paying job with good benefits. I already spent too much money on my Associates to have to pay for another school that will get me no where like the first.
How about CR England in Dallas? I’m supposed to start there in two weeks. I work at a truck stop as a cashier now, but am looking for a long haul career where I can see the US.
Does anyone have any opinions or feedback on Fox Valley Technical colleges CDL truck driver training program in Appleton WI? Thanks….
Hi Samuel,
May I use the ‘checklist’ in this article for an upcoming issue on the trainee crisis? I am working with a few drivers to put together an advocacy type issue for new trainees. I will of course link back to The Truckers Report, give you full credit, etc.
Kind Regards,
Luisa Nims
Sure thing, Luisa.