My Reaearch Has Concluded These Things.

Even if you manage to buy the truck, no company will hire you and no brokers will give you loads plus you can't afford the insurance. Insurance is expensive even for seasoned drivers with a clean driving record. Check the OOIDA.com website and that will show what I'm telling you is true.

 

Look at Schneider Bulk and CTL Transportation. These don't put new drivers with rookie trainers.
CTL Transportation has their own CDL school and Schneider Bulk pays for private CDL school. Both do hair follicle, since you mentioned that in you post.
Just go where the money is in the beginning and that's tankers.

 

I paid just over $1000 for a 8 week program at a community college. Was solo after 4 weeks training, brand new truck after 6 weeks solo ...made .36 cpm first few months, raise to .40 and after 6 months went into the pay by performance proogram were ill make 45-50 cpm , .05 extra for hazmat. 2500-3000 miles a week.

Not all schools, jobs and situations are the same.....

I know of a community college in NC where the cdl program costs less than $500

 

Yup...
I went to Johnson Community College in Smithfield NC. Was just over $1000 including the books... 8 week, 384 hr course. Its the oldest truck driving school in the US. started in 1949 if I recall correctly
Sampson County Community College is under $500 ... also a 8 weeks course.
NC has an excellent community college program for cdls... these are just 2 of the schools

 

I've worked for several companies and as far as I know, none of them cared about military service. I've always just left that part blank on the application. It's none of their business unless it's an absolute requirement due to some specialty hauling the company does. I've worked with drivers with all types of discharges including dishonorable and they were just as good workers/drivers as the rest.

 

i paid 2200 cash for trainig wasnt bad i had a friend in the industry already knew what to expect. buying a truck dosent equal making big money being an o/o is for very diciplined people alot of work goes into making it profitable lots of people fail at it.

 

yep me too. $845 all in at Davidson county almost 4 years ago. same program across the state at several campuses. talking to students there now it's up to $1200 but that's all in for 8 weeks, 380hrs and some of the best, comprehensive training you'll get anywhere.

never teamed. never had a lease pushed on me. 6 weeks training then solo and a brand new truck every year while I was at my training company.

graduated from there 3 years to the day into an even better gig i'll probably retire from making 65k and I'm only halfway up the payscale, home every weekend, top notch equipment, good benefits. non-haz van, 90% drop and hook, no touch. no endorsements. it can be done. it's all in how you approach it and just how much research and homework you REALLY do as to what's available.

granted, living in NC me and ncmickey had an advantage in the program offered by our community college system, but the rest of it boils down to you and how much research and homework you really do, combined with how good (or bad) your background is.