Realistic starting income stated by community college?

Nothing really. If you really wanna know though. Back when I was otr,The late 80's,I was running across I-44 in Missouri and I heard a driver talkin on the cb and he was callin himself stinkyfinger ( I think he was jus jokin around though and I remember he was tryin to talk to a lady).Well I thought that was the funniest thing I ever heard.I looked back on that quite often and it always made me chuckle to myself. So I can't lay claim to it, I stole it.

 

They have to attract enough students to keep the state funding so they need to recruit also. They want to keep their cushy jobs.
30 cpm is just about normal but can go down to 27 or 28. Locals are normally paid by the hour.

 

Ya,like what kind of medicine LOL

 

It's not a problem. I just got my W-2 and made 56,320.38 my first year. I was licensed Nov 17, 2005.
Doesn't make any difference where you go to school. It does make a difference who you work for.

 

Lob, I think you're selling it short. Some companies pay for a lot more things than driving. He should make sure he's getting paid for all that other stuff...it really adds up.
To make my 56K I drove 143,000 miles. My base is 34 1/2 CPM, but quick math shows that I actually made 40CPM what with all the drop and pickup payments. And BTW, layover pay of 50/day is not in that fugure; it's not taxable. And I probably made about 2000 in layover pay.

 

That is great for a new driver. Your 34.5cpm is way above what I have heard.......you got on with a very good company. Who?

 

Action Transportation; they are the delivery arm of Lane Furniture. But the other furniture companies pay just as well.....Ashley, Franklin, maybe some others. It's hard work, and with Action you have to live in MS. That's because we come home twice a week or so to get more "stuff".

 

When you consider working for any company, you need to know how much you will be earning per mile, and HOW MANY MILES per week? (or per month) I've gotten several good offers from GOOD carriers, all around 34 cents or 35 cents, ranging from minimum 2500 miles per week up to 12,000 miles or more per month. I know miles are not guaranteed, but if you research carefully, you should be able to find out whether a company is blowing smoke up your ### BEFORE you report for orientation.

The offer I'll probably accept is for 34 cents per mile as a "student" driver (before bonuses) for 2800 miles or more per week. From a company that seems to actually pay what they say they will, and give you the miles that they say they will.

I see it like this...2800 X .34 X 50 = about $48K per year. Starting at 30 cents per mile? That's about $42K. 30 cents per mile seems to be about average for student drivers right now. Student, meaning, you just got your CDL A and will be working on-the-job with a trainer for several weeks before you get your tractor assigned to you. Some carriers pay less than 30 cents, but most of these seem to be carriers that you wouldn't want to work for anyway, for various reasons NOT related to low pay.

I don't think the school is trying to mislead you at all, as far as pay goes. The only "catch" is, you've got to understand that you are making a LIFESTYLE change, and not just a career change. Out of all the students in my truck driving class, I am the ONLY one looking at truck driving as a lifestyle change. The rest are just there for various reasons like "oh I always wanted my class A" (basically, he's a class B driver that felt like blowing several thousand dollars for nothing) or "I'm hoping to get local work for 8 bucks an hour" or "I'll consider OTR work only as a last resort, I'm looking for regional" (pays less, and good luck getting that as a student driver) or the best one I've heard so far . . . "I need my Class A right NOW so I can start working OTR in a couple of years when my numerous DWI convictions drop off my record". (I'll bet you think I made that one up)

I'm the only one in my class who expects to make a radical lifestyle change. Without that, forget about $42K the first year. Won't happen. So make sure you know the reason you are going to school, BEFORE you apply. If you want to go to school to get your CDL A to allow you to change your lifestyle and are ready to spend a lot of time away from home, then that $42K should be doable, if you have a good work history and good driving record and can pass the DOT physical. -Dave

 

So flathead who are you going with.