Diesel truck driver school, sun prarie,wis.

The 2 week class gives you the minium skills needed to get your cdl providing you already have your permit. I've been told by my mentor at swift. The 4 week class concentrates more on driving and more classroom time to help you get your permit. What your skill level should dictate what class you need. It is a cdl mill. They won't codle ypu. Personally I took the weekend course there. But I already knew how to drive. Most starter companies accept graduatesand have tution reimbersment. I work for a local grain company now aqnd run into there trucks all the time

 

The cost of school is minimal if you go through a community college. And the training is 10 times better in my opinion.

While there are many financial methods. It's best to stay away from "company paid" if at all possible. I can count on one hand the number of "honest" companies that offer this.

Many of the "Driving Schools" are nothing more than fronts for the major companies. Training you just well enough to get a CDL.

I've rode with CC grads, Driving School Grads, and "company grads".

The CC gives you hands on training with a better student to teacher ratio. And many actually take you on a road trip to deliver a load, before you graduate. Typical course can last 7-12 weeks.

Many of the company grads I rode with, were recent "quits" from other company training programs when they realized they were going broke over the course of low payed training. This is NOT to say they weren't being trained. It is meant to imply they were not making enough to maintain/assist with household expenses, while they were running with a mentor/finisher/engineer after training.

Most of the CC grads were up to speed on basics from day one. And only had to have their skills further developed and polished.

 

In the opinion of the majority of carriers that hire students none of the schools prepare a driver to step right in and drive . That is why you will spend 4 to 6 weeks with a trainer .

 

HAMA...I posted on wrong thread, I had 2 open. My apologies.

You were asking about a specific school.

 

They mention 2 and 4 week classes. It also says that anyone successful in completing this class will be qualified to obtain an "ENTRY LEVEL POSITION" in the trucking industry.

 

One of their testimonials is a guy who graduated from there and is now a lease owner operator with CRE. They taught him how to drive a truck, probably NOT how to read a lease contract.

 

I graduated from the 4 week Sun Prairie School. My advice...RUN!!!!!!!!!!!! Run as fast as you can in the opposite direction. I was an 88M Truck Driver in the late 80's-early 90's, including a tour in Desert Storm. After that I delivered office furniture with a 25,950# GVWR straight truck for 14 years. All this school provided was a means to get my permit, get my Fed. Med. card (in the first 4 days of class), and access to the state commercial vehicle testers in week 4 all on a VA loan.

The Army training I recieved was far more superior and was only twice as long and on a much broader range of vehilces. The DTS training for backing was pathetic. After a quick demostration to the group (20 people) we broke up into our "driving teams" and practiced with no one in the jump seat, and 2 instructors roaming the grounds. It was hilarious and scary watching these guys back up a truck without someone there to coach them. Fortunately my military training kicked in right away and I became utterly bored by this reputitious drill while other floundered.

The "on the road" training is 30 minutes a day 4 days a week for 2.5 weeks driving first to Columbus (10 miles away) and exiting at every ramp (3), crossing over to the on-ramp and re-entering the 4 lane highway to the next ramp. Once you got through the 3rd ramp you turned around and then watched from the stripped out sleeper compartment the other 3 students repeat the whole process. If not doing the ramps you got some city driving in Sun Prairie, but again, in 30 min. bursts once a day.

The road equipment is older Freighliner Century Class condos, while the yard equipment is trashed out former Swift FLD120's. Trailers are empty 48' so you don't even get to see how it feels to pull any kind of load. You watch alot of training videos from state DOT's in the class room. Hear lots of stories from the Lead Instructor that are supposed to educate you. And spend a couple of days learning how to fill out paper logs and talking about HOS.

Now in comparison to the company I hired on with after school. You spend 2 weeks with a trainer with over 15-20 years of flatbedding experience driving daily into Chicago making deliveries and pick-ups, interacting with customers, and getting a taste of the "Real World" Those 2 weeks IMHO more benificiual than those 4 weeks spent in Sun Prairie.

Go somewhere where you get a more rounded education in truck driving. NOT from a 2 or 4 week hyper course.