Class B local to Class A OTR

You'll probably have to go through a starter company like Swift, Roehl, etc.

 

Getting a CDL A without going to a trucking school cuts your changes in half.Doesn't Matter with mega carrier you call,first thing there going to ask you did you go to a trucking school.Now with that out of way,if you do happen to get in with a starter company,your going go threw the hold nine yards,these days they don't care you got 10 years experience or not that was class B trucks,so they look at it 0 experience.Also lease purchase,bad idea,its just takes more $ out of your pay check.

 

Congratulations on getting the Class A and welcome to the TTR Forum.

Unfortunately local driving, even combination vehicles has little to no value for getting an OTR job. They don't count it as experience. So for all intents and purposes you nave no experience and no training. You have two chances of getting hired and they are slim and none with slim looking real bad. Sorry, just the truth. Your other problem is your location which removes a large part of your hiring opportunities too. Sorry to be so full of bad news.

Your most promising method of getting an OTR driving job will be going to school and then through the company training. Here's my standard advice for what it's worth.

You need to research and find out what the important questions are. You can make an above average living but you will make sacrifices that other jobs don't require. Read the "good companies" and "bad companies" section on this forum and get an idea of what company you want to work for and what kind of trailer you want to pull. Don't just go to school and then try to figure out where to go.

I don't know your financial situation. Don't take training from a company if you can afford it or get it with financial aid. You will be their slave for up to year. If you leave they will trash you DAC and credit record. Check out your local community colleges and employment office.

Just know that most training and trucking company recruiters will do nothing but lie to you. They will let you talk about what you want and then tell you what you want to hear. Trucking is about moving freight to make money for the company. Your home time, family, paycheck and everything else comes second.

It is not like any other job. Local is usually backbreaking delivery work 10+ hours a day, 6 days a week. Often you unload dozens of times a day or you are a salesman. In my area most dump truck jobs pay less than a good factory job. Regional is lots of loading and unloading time, fewer miles than OTR and not as hard as local but will wear on you and push your HOS limits. OTR is out 3 - 5 weeks with 3 - 4 days home, less manual labor and more miles.

You'll probably have to pay your dues before you get the gravy job. Weekends off, if you are lucky enough to get something like that starting out, may be home Thursday afternoon and leave Saturday night or home Friday night and leave Sunday afternoon. Loads deliver on Monday early and you leave in time to get them there. Often your home time will be in the middle of the week.

Regardless of your driving choice, after school you will go through company training. For OTR this can be six weeks to three months with little or no home time. The first phase is usually $400 a week and the second phase is $500-550 a week. Some pay less. One company pays 12 CPM for training.

You don't want to wait around too long after training or you'll have trouble finding a job. If you get out before you have a year in, when you try to come back a few months later you will find they want you to start over.

One last thing, if you have anything that makes you less desirable than your competing job applicants, a phone or in-person interview will often bring the best results. Even if I am the best candidate I will choose face-to-face if at all possible and phone if not. Sure you may have to fill out that online application but that isn't the best way to get a good job. You have to do something or be someone who stands out from the crowd. Do regular follow-ups by phone on the jobs you really want.

Stay away from lease/purchases unless you want to get statements with negative balances instead of paychecks. There is plenty of good information on this forum about these, please read up before you make a big mistake.

 

If your talking about buying a 18th wheeler and not driving for any company to get experience first,slim to none chance.First of off no insurance company is going to insured you unless you got min.of 1-3 years experience.Also buying your own rig without experience is a bad idea and more likely DOT will not issue you any authority.

 

I really don't think the starter companies will hire you without training. Insurance is one reason and the money they make from the training process is another.

I will say your last post was pretty convincing. If I were you, I would start calling small companies and put an ad in the "Seek Employment" section of this forum.

You could also move to Texas or North Dakota and get a job hauling water in the oilfields.

 

Roehl in Wisconsin has a tuition reimbursement plan. If you drive 120,000 miles for them, you don't have to pay nada. If you can make it at least 6 months, you'll have half the tuition paid off.

Also, when did you get you Class A? Was it within 30 days? If so, you can maybe get hired as a "recent grad" depending if your school is approved by the company.