Cost of driving schools?

CDL schools are mills that teach you how to pass the DMV pre-trip and road test. Period.

CDL schools are to commercial drivers what universities and colleges are to office types (I was one). That is to say that they give you the credential necessary to gain access to that world, but an insufficient base of USEFUL knowledge and experience to really succeed.

My $.02 on looking back at my CDL school (I finished up two months ago)...if I had to pay for that class out of pocket (G.I. Bill paid for my course)...I'd have been pretty pissed off about the "value" that I received. Huge class size (20+ people) and lots of standing around and waiting for something to happen (i.e. Backing practice). If I had just gone to a company that has a driver trainee program (I.e. The one I eventually got hired on with, lol.) ...I could literally get in more backing practice in a single shift than I got in an entire four week CDL school.

Don't even get me started on the company recruiters they bring in to sucker people that don't know enough to do basic mathematics to figure out that the salary estimates they're throwing out are only possible under the best of circumstances.

 

Ya, honestly I think getting a permit and training with drivers probably teaches you in a faster and better way than a school, assuming you trian with a good driver. It's an option in my area, and probably in alot more areas than people think. Won't get you an OTR mega carrier job but there are alot more local jobs than people think. You'd be suprised what you can get by just knocking on some doors and knowing a few people.

I think alot of people promote the CDL School - Mega OTR path because that's what they did, and its fine for some, but there are options =)

 

In Illinois you have to go to school, it's the law here... yeah , I know.... anyway, I paid $2k

 

What school, how long is it and where's it located?

 

School is in Park Ridge, IL and we drive at Villa Park, IL. NW suburbs of Chicago. It takes a month, like I said in my previous post because it's the law, one could actually get done with the whole school in less than two weeks.

 

I am getting ready to go to school soon I have contacted both roadmaster in florida and a tech school in ohio. Florida is a short course like 4-5 weeks and runs about 6500.00. The tech school is a 10 week 600 hour class and then 6 six weeks of reviewing you after you are hired on somewhere. I live in florida but I am leaning on the tech school. I think the longer course will make me more confident as well as it qualifies for the pell grant that I have. I don't know the total cost yet of the tech school (7000ish??)but with the use of the pell it will be less to me. I did do an approved school check with a few carriers that I like and they have TDDS in ohio listed so I think this option is a better decision for me. I am 41 and I am looking to go on the road for a few years and bank some money. Everyone is different with learning and time in which they need to make money. I do sort of hope tha going a little longer course will get me better job offers but in the long term I have already written off the first year.

 

It's about 2000 here in my area for just OTR training. You have to get the permit on your own.

 

I went to and graduated from Diesel driving Academy in Shreveport, La in 2009. It cost me 10k but with a few grants I qualified for it cost me $5,500 out of pocket which I was able to get a school loan for. DDA is a nationally accredited school. My class was 5 months long (4 weeks in the class room, 6 weeks on a backing pad, 4 weeks of interstate driving and 6 weeks of city driving) The testers that give you your road test are the trainers at DDA. The school also has job placement. I was able to obtain a local driving position right out of school because with the amount of training I had the company I had applied with took that as having 3 months exp..

 

Care to name them please?

 

I paid about $3,800 at a Community College. It was a 16 week program. I had a job before I finished the 16 weeks. I had a trainer for the first 16 hours of driving at my job and then was on my own doing regional driving hauling milk getting paid on a percentage of the load.