After a LOT of research, it looks like my friend and I are planning on attending SAGE in either Montana or Wyoming. Housing is a factor. Their tuition is very competitive, except for the fact of finding affordable lodging for the month or so we'll be there.

Schneider sounded like a good possibility, but too many factors about investing so much and possibly not being able to pass, after signing for the tuition and owing even if you don't pass CDL A license test, deter us from going that route. Their advanced driver training program, ADTC, for inexperienced, licensed drivers, sounds pretty good, though, with 7 days in classroom/simulators and 7-10 OTR with a trainer at no cost to student (includes room and board).

We were hoping to train as a team together for OTR and found one company that will allow us that....Covenant....(if we're hired on). We've heard good and bad about that company but maybe for the buddy team OTR training and experience it won't be too bad for six months to a year. If anyone knows of a company that has OTR training for teams, so they can stay together for that period of time, please let me know and thanks, in advance!

Looking forward to beginning and appreciate this forum, A LOT!

p.s. My brother just got on with KKW (?) anyone ever heard of this company? If so....what?

I graduated from Sage (Lebanon,PA) last August. They were okay. On one hand the classroom stuff got boring with the endless video and lectures but on the positive you get more private behind the wheel time than just about anywhere else.

I did a great deal of research on Carriers and chose Transport America. I've been soloing for 7 months and am very happy here. I get pretty good miles (averaging 3000/wk) the equipment is very well maintained and they treat me fairly and with respect.

Many carriers are cutting back and drivers are sitting, I drove 4200 miles last week (my best so far). I made $1440 for the week. That's not too bad for a first year driver in a slow economy.

Just graduated from SAGE in (near) Denver, CO. Nothing but good to say. The videos were... mind numbing - but only one was worse than anything I saw in the military.

There's not a lot of choice - just about any school is going to use those exact same videos.

The instructors are all experienced truckers (gotta have minimum 5 years experience). Very patient (hard to do that with me in the class).

All in all, the classroom side of things is probably essentially identical to any other quality school.

The difference is mostly behind the wheel. You don't share that cab with any other student. Drive time is actual DRIVE time (don't let any other school feed you a line - you can NOT learn this stuff 'by observing')

I won't say "you can't do better" - but it would be difficult. And obscenely easy to do worse.

As for carriers.. you might still look at places like Schneider- coming in with a CDL-A would solve the 'owe them a bag of money' problem.

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Keep the big doors at the back!

I appreciate the input and advice very much! My friend and I are more than likely going to go with the Wyoming school. Is this a recent career change for you? Congratulations on graduating and completing! Did you have to wear coveralls or need them for going under the truck? We were told that we should bring coveralls and boots for this purpose.

I appreciate what you had to say and it sounds like you ended up with a great company, especially for a first year driver...congrats! I hope that we will be that fortunate as soon as we graduated.

Were you a pre-hire before or during school with this company or did you have to wait a bit after completing SAGE?

It took me two weeks from graduation from Sage until I was invited to orientation with TA. I didn't send out any apps until I got my CDL. Then I sent about 40 apps in the ten days following graduation. TA was my first choice ( I sent them 3 online apps in 10 day span) based upon their commitment to training and safety. Two other key points were the bonus pay incentives and their tuition reimbursement program.

It's a heck of a career change for me - I useta was the VP of a small phone/internet company. My partner and I... parted ways.

Coveralls are good - but not *needed*. You will get dirty, though. You crawl under the trailer - and... well.. Mr. Clean is not a frequent visitor.

More than coveralls, though, I would insist on a pair of gloves. Even those cheap-o $2 gloves from the local wally world will be fine (them turbos get plenty hot enough to melt your fingerprints off. Duh!). The pre-trip involves a lot of poking and prodding at the truck (even though the instructors may just have you point to things, I think it's better to actually perform the action every time)

Boots aren't needed - I did all my training in my tennie-runners, jeans, and a t-shirt (and a denim coat when it was snowing)

I know you asked this of RK - but I had to have pre-hires before school. Not because the school needed them, but because WIA needed them to show I would be employable AFTER school.

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Keep the big doors at the back!