Hi ya'll,

I am planning on getting my CDL. I have looked into the course at a local community college and I have also recieved info from a private school.

I am going to an "open house" that the private school (Advanced Technology Institute in Va. Beach, va) this coming Monday night.

What are some of the questions you all think I should be asking and what should I be looking out for. I have heard that some schools can be considered "CDL Mills". I am not interested in a school that will "rack 'em and stack em".

Am I on the right track if I am thinking about the condition of the equipment and the instructor to student ratio?

Mods: If I posted in the wrong forum please let me know.

Thanks to all.

R/

Frat

__________________
US Navy Chief
"Navy Chief....Navy Pride"
"Destination: Excellence"

Call a few companies that you might be interested in and see if they have anything to say about that particular school. Maybe check with your local DMV to see if they are a good school. Ultimately if you feel you have not gotten enough training maybe see if there is something further that they can offer you. Also, trucking is not rocker science. As long as they feel you or somewhat comprehending the skills they will probably pass you. Once you get a job with a company and go out with a trainer is when you will get your real world experience. I think trucking school is there to just make sure you are somewhat coordinated. Once you have a year of trucking under your belt you actually have the understanding of how it all works. Good luck.

Study the book, and get your permit, and try to find someone with experience to take you under there wing and train you right. This is the best way.

Hey guys,

Thanks for the quick feedback. I think I am going to take the class through my local Community College....at least thats my plan for now.

R/

Frat

__________________
US Navy Chief
"Navy Chief....Navy Pride"
"Destination: Excellence"

I will tell you one thing, If i had teh money or the ability to go to a community college, that is the way i would go. The classes are normally longer than company training schools, and they will train you the full basics of trucking, not just the minimum that company wants you to know to get you driving their freight and making them money. Plus you can/should start out making more money than just going to a company to train you.

My situation is different. I want to get a CDL, and because my credit sucks, i have to resort to going to a company who will train me, get me earning a paycheck. One thing, you have to work for them for a year (or two) to pay for your training. They will either 'half' it for you, or pay the whole thing provided you work for them a given period of time.

I am headed to Swift on August 13th. I'll work for them a year, then off to MCT or TMC and work there for a year or two, then off to haul cars. I could really care less about 'home time' because i dont have a 'family', and dont care if i am 'just a number', because i am there to WORK and earn a paycheck. It wouldn't be 'work' if you enjoyed it, right?

Make these moves before any others:

1. Get a grant to pay for it. There's a retraining grant out there you can get. Check with your local employment/labor office. Don't be like some of us who were idiotic enough to pay for our training out of our own pockets. Many of those who work in the labor office don't want you to know about this workforce retraining act, so you may have to wax an attitude on them to get the info.

2. Make sure the course is certified. A lot of companies will want a CC program to be certified, which eliminates (unfortunately) a lot of those (cheaper) programs. I don't remember the name of the entity that certifies training programs. It's PDTI or something.

Know that truck driver training is a racket. Being as it is a racket, the revolving door of turnover sucks many a driver in and spits him out on the other side. What I'm saying is "turnover is the companies' interest".

__________________
--Paved Dudley--

Yeah I drive a Swift truck
And that means one thing
It means she's slow
It's a typical company truck
It's just all show and no go

I'm gettin' passed by Yella
And even Overnite
I'm gettin' passed by ever' body in sight
46 days on the road
And I'm not gettin' home tonight

No, my hometown's nowhere in sight
And if you think I'm pissed off
You're right
46 days on the road
And I'm not gettin' home tonight


Love pissing off those trucking company insiders.

Hi Ya'll,

Thanks for the feedback.

Paying for the course is not an issue. I plan to use my Tuition Assistance and if absolutely necessary I can tap into my GI Bill.

While my instinct is telling me to go towards to the Community College, I am still gonna tour the private school this Monday. I will ask both entities if they are PTDI certified.

Thanks for the feedback on the turnover. I suspected this while reading through the Board. Seems like some companies are good and others are ....too be nice.... not so good.

Snowman...best of luck with your training at SWIFT. The only drawback that I see with regards to the Community College(for me at least) is the evening class starts at 3:30pm and lets out at 1230am. Dont get me wrong.....I am no stranger to long days....but getting up for work at 4am would make for an interesting few weeks.

R/

Jeff

__________________
US Navy Chief
"Navy Chief....Navy Pride"
"Destination: Excellence"

My exp. with schools is thus: absolutely, positively, make sure it is certified by an accredited source. Checking with prospective co. about the required length(hours of training) is also a very good idea. You dont want to spend money(anyones) only to find out that you dont have enough hours. This usually comes into play with tuition re-imbursement. Also, keep in mind that the current state of the economy has allowed companies to be selective. Many have raised the exp. needed by one to several years. As far as student/teacher ratio goes, I would say that any more than 3-1 is pushing it. My school had a 4-1 for driving. That got to be a bit long just "watching". However the few times I had only 2, that was ALMOST too much. Remember, most schools can only go so far with out having to log. That leads to a lot of the same thing. I think 3 students was perfect. The benefit to not going thru a company for training is that the certificate is yours, take it and go if you need to. I suppose in the end it comes down to what "feels" right to you. Good luck!

i went to tcc for my training and i had it paid for buy the state i went to the unemployment office and they set me up, its a great school

Well...

I met with the admissions counselor at the private school. The total cost of tuition would be $5800. GI Bill and Tuition Assistance will cover that. The evening classes are from 1530 to 2230 M-F and 0800-1600 Sat and Sun. Total class time is 8 weeks with four weeks of classroom and 4 weeks of driving. I dont have the paperwork in front of me (left it at work) but if I am mistaken she said it was 160 hours total.

Total class size is 15 student at a time and 3-4 students per instructor while driving. Tractors were Freighliners with 9 speed transmissions (I need to re-confirm that).

She did not appear to be pushy to me, although she kept talking about Werner and of all the flyers available ( I was and still am most interested in TMC) ....go figure....yep...she gave me the Werner flyer. I told her that I still have 5 years to go before I transition from the Navy (I am at 19 now) so a job is not an immediate priority. She did suggest that I may want to try some part time driving for experince and to avoid having to re-train later on, which I definately appreciate.

The only disconnect between she and I was I was more interested in class size, type and condition of equipment, what the policy is if a student is being disruptive (cell phone, constant talking out of turn, ect)....and she kept talking about employment after I graduate (not the part time gig, but as a full time driver).

I am open to suggestions and feedback if ya want.

Thanks to all.

R/

Frat

__________________
US Navy Chief
"Navy Chief....Navy Pride"
"Destination: Excellence"