Question about entry level OTR trucking

Question

I am going to go to school for my CDL. should I get financial aid and pay for it my self or sign onto a company for a year or so if they pay for my training?

*ALSO...to me, this is the important part of my question...if I did sign a contract with a company like Schneider, what is the realistic amount of home time that i would have? is it possible to be home on weekends when just starting out? thanx so much for your answers!

Answer 1

Let's go 1 step at a time.

1st; DO NOT get financial aid. You will be tied into years of repayment for training in a field you may hate. You have no way of knowing until you get into it.

2nd; Depending on your city, the big companies ( Swift, Schneider, JB, Werner etc.) will have dedicated accounts for Wal-mart, Family Dollar, Dollar Gen. etc. distrubution centers. They are always looking for drivers. These will have you home alot more often, but at a price. You will be unloading alot more yourself & will be getting less miles, i.e. less money.

3rd: If you want to go otr, research your area. There are alot of smaller companies (200-500) trucks that either have their own training school onsite, or have agreements with local community collages for reimbursement. These smaller companies will be more likely to get you home MOST weekends. Be aware that in this industry things often go awry & unless you are a local driver, it is very hard to be home every weekend. ( Companies that guarantee that are often home Saturday evening & leaving on Sunday morning)

4th: I can't speak for the rest, but Schnieder will keep you moving & making money, but the otr you won't be home very often. Another thing to look at, is you really are a number, not a name.

5th: Remember, if you do sign a contract with a large carrier, you MUST drop the phrase " I won't do that" from your vocabulary for the length of that contract.

Try researching your opprotunities at jiggyjobs.com, or go to ooida.com,  then go to links, and go down to online job searches. They have links where you do specific searches( student,state,type of trailor etc.)

p.s. good luck & remember, pros don't get it there faster, they get it there safely everytime!

Any other questions, just email me though yahoo

Answer 2

if you can get a company to pay for it if you work for them for only like a year or so then yes because the schools use finance companies that spread it out so long that you end it paying like 15000 for a 5000 loan...

and home on weekends?

I'm sorry but realistic otr is home maybe every other week if you are lucky for like a day or two , maybe every 3 weks.. weekends are  probably not realistic.. especially if you are gona solo drive...  you get home when you hapen to come by home.. depends largly on where you live but you could be in ca today... habve to be in fl in 3 days and then boston, 3 days later and so on and so on... criss crossing all over the country... after you pay your dues and get experience you can get a dedicated route where you can be home way more often

Answer 3

My cousin just graduated out of one of those schools about a month ago. He chose the company pay route with Swift. He's starting out at like .28c a mile. I think he has to work like 2 years for them until his loan is paid off. With Swift he's gonna be home like every 2-3 weeks. He did say that guys who had a clean MVR got on with companies that were home on weekends. The best bet is to talk to the recruiters with the companies and ask them if you can have home on weekends. The better your MVR the better your chances.