is a lack of communication with recruiters normal?

When were you aboard Independence?

 

i was on board 1968-1970

 

Correct. Millington.
One bed each.
One bedroom shared by two.
One mini kitchen and one small fridge one television shared by four.
No that you have any time to be watching TV.
Up at 5am first week.
Working nights sleeping days second week.

If you can't handle that you sure won't be able to handle sleeping in truck.

 

I would agree about ex-military and people starting out again.

But for total newbies, Community College has a lot going for it.
One big thing is that Swift Academy is OTR. Too many people decide they actually want a daily driver job and drop out when they hear what OTR actually involves.

Someone who has done OTR years ago won't have that problem.

 

Well hopefully the person has done their homework on a OTR job and what it consists of...Com College is not always the best choice either because not all classes are accepted by all trucking co's. The bad thing is,that recruiters paint this big pretty picture of life on the road and people think it's all fun and games....

 

There is a relatively recent post on here about a fella who went to the Comm College and got his CDL driving a day cab and a 28' trailer. He posted that there were some companies that wouldn't hire him as a student because he had not trained in a sleeper with a 53' trailer. Wonder whatever happened to him?

 

It's a bummer that certain trucking schools aren't recognized by some of the bigger co's...These schools aren't cheap and as long as the state says it's a good program with the right amount of hours,why would it matter? I tried to get into a local job here but I had to go OTR so I could have experience...which I didnt mind at all...Bad thing is, now I'm part time here cause it's slow and not really making any money...OTR is looking better all the time now..We had the Comm College here that had classes but they dropped it for some reason....at least when I went thru in 09....

 

One really important point about Swift Academy or any other major carrier's school is that your job interview starts the first time you talk to the recruiter and ends when you are assigned a truck. Going to a company school, meeting all the requirements and not destroying equipment or killing anyone practically guarantees you a job driving for that company. Other schools, including some excellent community college programs only offer job search assistance.

With that said and obviously, nothing in life is a guarantee. OTR trucking is as much a life style as it is a job if not more so. I believe many people, especially those with strong family ties at home, will struggle with this. Those of you considering trucking need to really do some serious soul searching and avoid blowing smoke up your own ***; there are plenty of others who will do it for you. This is hard work and low pay. It is so much more than driving. There are indeed enormous rewards but most are intangible, things you simply cannot quantify with dollar amounts or any other form of measurement.

As I posted before, I recommend Swift Academy, whichever one, wherever you live. I also recommend the company as a place to gain some experience before you go looking for that plum local job. Even if OTR is not your thing, enjoy the scenery and add some power to your resume.

Frank

 

Well I wouldnt say its all that bad going to a carrier's school because you get the training needed for the job,but.....You have to pay back that money to the carrier even if you leave and there's no choices of trucking co's you can choose from...it's that 1 and 1 only...I went to a outside school and because I (like others) had a perfect driving record (no tickets or accidents), got invited to 8 different co's. That gave me choices and I felt no pressure from anyone on which one to choose. I could research co's and decided b4 I finished school. Every part of this country is different and every driver out there has a different criteria for their choices, remember if you had a good experience at 1 of their academys,doesnt mean the others are they same too...They had a real problem a few yrs ago in Tenn and for those people that went there it caused a lot of issues...wasnt pretty at all....I think the choices are out there for sure that's all...