No CDL Yet

I have my CDL but I haven't chosen a company to drive for yet. So, the best advice I can give you is take EVERYTHING (Good or bad) that you hear about a company with a grain of salt. One company might be good to a certain driver, and it might be bad to another driver. You're going to hear bad things about the majority of the bigger companies. Choose one, get through school, fulfil you contractual agreement with the company that you choose. Then move on to a company that is a better fit (if you find one.) Just don't let the company talk you into a lease purchase...
Good luck!

 

Online Transport and Roehl Transport both pay their students while in classroom training.
Prime Inc. lets their students draw pay advances of $200.00 weekly, then later deduct $20 or $40 or something like that from their weekly pay until the advances are paid back.
Schneider Bulk might pay for cdl school, then hire you for their tanker division. They have a tanker facility in Knoxville. Probably "take home" a grand a week there. Problem is they don't pay while in cdl school.
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Online Transport ; They're in Indiana, but not sure they hire in Tennessee, so call and ask. I think they pay students $75.00 a day while in cdl school.
We offer CDL Training with smaller class sizes for a more personalized environment. Every participant is paid, there are no tuition fees, and there is no experience necessary. Free housing is available with the option to go home on the weekends. We provide all the tools needed for you to become a safe, confident, and knowledgeable truck driver.
Edit: I checked online reviews of Online Transport and they don't look great. Don't know if that's fact or not.

 

I think Roehl Transport pays students $500 weekly. Not sure when you get the first paycheck.
You'll have to call to get the actual details.

 

Even if you did get through school you likely will have weeks if not months trying to get hired on. Newbies without experience face a insurance screening behind the trucking company, not just the trucking company.

It seems you have active finances with debt already. It's not good.

What you need to do is take on a second job, even if it's doing dishes until you have not only the tuition saved up in full (So you get your own CDL without being indentured or indebited to anyone which is really important) and you need ideally at least three to 6 months all expenses and bills saved up before you head out.

Trucking is the worst when it comes to keeping a job. You might rub something and damaged it trying to do a turn, someone calls it into your company and boom. You are unemployed now for cause. Meaning no unemployment. Or you are run into the ground within 90 days because you don't have a spine to say no to dispatcher against your HOS in a truly bad company.

If anything goes wrong with say Covenant, they maintain their own data base with 15 other companies. You will not be hireable with any of them. End. Dot. The usual stuff with DAC etc dos not apply here. Covenant still remembers my orientation from 1996. Everything else is ancient history and a blank slate with me.

Trucking is not for everyone for many reasons. Do not go out there in debt and behind on your finances. You run the risk of being stranded somewhere in the USA and worse case scenario become homeless when everything defaults and is repossessed or foreclosed.

One more thing.

Trucking has very little to show for itself. One visit to a truckstop drenched in human waste for you to walk across in a hot summer day will pretty much wipe out any idealistic thoughts or other motivation to stay involved with this industry. It is unlike anything you have ever done in life.

 

TLD Logistics has cdl training in Knoxville. Looks like students are paid $400 weekly.
TLD Logistics CDL Driving School!
With locations in Knoxville, TN and Crossville, TN, TLD Logistics can get you trained and on the road in no-time. Since we are owned by Toyota Tsusho, you can count on TLD Logistics to have the latest equipment and state-of-the-art simulators that will get you on the road quickly. We have trained hundreds of drivers over the years, and if you want to be a truck driver, you will need a class A CDL. With TLD, you will receive your class A CDL and be able to start driving right after your graduation from the program.

Student Requirements

• Must be 23 years old
• Have a valid class D
• Clean MVR & Background

Driving School Breakdown
The Knoxville Driving School consists of 3 weeks of classroom and hands-on training consisting of backing, pre-trip inspection, and driving skills. Classes are Monday through Friday from 8:30 am until 4:30 pm. There is 1 instructor for every 4 students to allow students to stay with the same instructor throughout their schooling. During training, students are paid $400.00 a week.

 

Thus the high turn over rate. You really have to love the job to put up with it.

That being said, I went to school and got student loans. I was able to pay them off within the first year working at Werner. It's been a roller coaster ride the entire way but it's also been an uphill ride. I still love the job. This is actually one of those jobs where you love it or hate it. Very few people just tolerate it. Try it and you'll find out. Most newbies are purposefully put through a newbie gauntlet to test your mettle. That's the way it is. After that there are so many things that can take you out, I wouldn't even begin to list them.

But, here is an example. At Werner, one of the first films we were shown was about a drive that had 2 million miles accident free. On an icy road he made one fatal mistake. That mistake cost him his career, destroyed a family, an indebted Werner to that family. Those are the stakes. Rather sobering.

Love my job and can't imagine doing anything else. Results will vary.

 

Millis Transfer has a decent program for cdl school.
You need $500.00 to get started though. Dry van outfit that runs mostly eastern half of USA.

Highlights of Our Program:

• GUARANTEED $50,000 if you run our fleet average of 115,000 miles
• Earn $0.43cpm when out with a trainer
• Small class sizes at 5 convenient locations
• Lodging included with breakfast and lunch provided by Millis
• Professional & seasoned Instructors provide one-on-one training
• Possible job offer with Millis Transfer upon graduation
• Minimum up-front cost; Financing available; No credit check