Prime New Driver Orientation (10/15/13)

I am starting a new thread to document my experience with Prime's CDL training. My intention is to give those prospective drivers who are interested in training with Prime, an objective account of my experience here. Keep in mind that ill do my best to answer questions but I am learning as I go (well, minus the great advice I've gotten so far on this sub-forum). Let me throw out a few "heads ups" before I begin.

Before committing to any training program, DO YOUR RESEARCH. I started this process about two months ago by creating a chart of what things in a company were important to me and assigning them a value. Then i called all of the companies i was interested in, and ranked the answers. This allowed me to objectively compare all of the companies I applied to see which one would end up best for me. I chose Prime becuase based on my criteria and the weight it carried; it literally scored the highest. I'd attach the list I made but I don't have it with me.

I'd also like to comment that my experience at Prime will be slightly different than others here. Because I am from Illinois and they do not permit the transfer of CDLs, I was required to get my Illinois class A permit before coming here. When I go to take my pretrip, skills, and road exams, I will need to go to Illinois to take them.

With that being said, my experience at Prime started by filling out their online application about 3 weeks ago. When filling out the app, BE 100% HONEST! I can not stress this enough (thanks to everyone on here for the heads up). My recruiter called me a couple of days after to touch base and let me know the status of my app. She was very thorough in checking on my employment history. My first employer sold the business and the new owner couldn't verify my employment before the buy out. She had me call the IRS and have them fax over the records. Once everything was checked I was given an orientation date.

As you probably know, orientation is held at Prime in Springfield, MO. Normally, they will pay for your bus ticket to Orientation, but since I was only 500 miles away and love a good road trip, I elected to drive. I was told that I would receive mileage compensation on Thursday. I got to the Campus Inn about 4:30 this afternoon. When I checked in I was given a packet with a buch of forms and a paper application. Before I left this morning, I printed out my app I submitted a couple of weeks ago and essentially coppied it. I had a few changes to make and according to my recruiter, its the paper copy that matters. The online app is more of prequalification thing. Orientation officially begins tomorrow at 7:00 am and I'm excited to start my new career. As orientation and training continue, ill keep posting in this thread.

 

Today was the first official day of Orientation at Prime. The motto of the day was hurry up and wait lol. The day began at 7:00 with everyone meeting in the classroom. My orientation class had a total of 75 people; one of the biggest from what I've heard. The day started off with a roll call then heading to the office to get our paperwork scanned. After that we spent 2 hours going through a packet of paperwork ranging from media releases to direct deposit forms. Corporate security then came in and fingerprinted everyone the old fashion way: with ink. After that, nurses came in with DOT medical paperwork. Even if you already have a medical card, Prime requires you to retake the exam. Once the paperwork was prefilled, we were divided into two groups; those that have permits and those that don't.

We went with a nurse and did a urinalysis then the first half of the physical. They took height and weight, checked eyesight and hearing (they tested hearing via the whisper test), had us lift 50 lbs, and took blood pressure and heart rate. Then we waited for the doctor to finish the rest of it. When meeting with the doctor, make sure you have your paperwork ready, socks and shoes off, and your phone off. People were kicked out of the exam room and sent to the back of the line for not being prepared. It took another 3 hours for my group of 40 to get through medical.

After getting our DOT card, we went to the orientation office for an "interview". The reason I put it in quotes was because they already know everything they need to know about you before you even step into the office. Essentially the interview is to confirm the information you put on your paper application and to see if you're going to lie about anything. Note that there is a $100 cash fee for training. They will collect it at this time.

We had some down time after and most got a free meal at the cafeteria. Its worth noting that Prime owns the hotel you stay at and its only for employees. During orientation, Prime pays for both your stay at the hotel along with three meals a day. The cafeteria food actually isn't that bad. Its not 5 star but I've definitely had worse free food.

We spent the rest of the night doing six online courses. They are either in powerpoint or video format and have a short quiz at the end. The courses covered basic Qualcom operation, rollovers, winter driving, basic hazmat procedures, sexual harrasment, and an into course. The courses are about 20 minutes each and are easy to complete if you pay attention.

Personally, I thought it was a long day but when you think about it, Prime had to fit 75 doctor's appointments and interviews into a single day. Everyone that I encountered throughout the day was courteous and professional. You definitely get a family-type feeling around here. So far, Prime has exceeded my expectations for training and I'm anxious to see what tomorrow brings!

 

Today we finally began to interact with the trucks. today's's main focus was the pretrip inspection. A packet with Prime's method was handed out in a classroom setting and we spent 3 hours going over every detail of the inspection. After we took lunch then spent the afternoon with the trucks practicing.

Just to give yall an idea of the method, the pretrip is broken down into 6 sections: engine, driver door/fuel area, coupling area, trailer, lights, and cab/airbrake inspection.