How To Find The Best Training School Option For You
Knowing the qualifications
- FAFSA; You can make a profile on FAFSA to see if you can get a student financial aid to go toward your CDL Training School.
- Credit; Ask if they’re doing a credit check and/or if your credit will impact your cost. Driver Solutions does not check credit and it doesn’t affect eligibility.
- Loans/Down Payments; See if loans and down payments are required. If so, will interest be charged on the loan and what are the terms? It’s important to know your financial responsibility and how the school will be covered. Many students choose to take our student loans as the road to pay for their CDL, but if you have a low credit score, it may be hard to get a private lender to help you out. If that is the case, sometimes having a cosigner can help. Some schools will require you to take out a loan or a down payment, but don’t make that clear until you are there. You need to know your commitment ahead of time.
- Company-Sponsored Training; For most, this is the best option to get started in the trucking industry. With company-sponsored training, your upfront costs are covered and you're only required to pay back a portion (unless you break your contract).
Finding a location
- It is easy to go to a school that is the most convenient location for you. However, that doesn't mean that it is the best school for you to attend. Often times, the greatest school for you to attend is the one that helps you out the most financially and gives you the training needed to succeed in a truck driving career.
Fully understanding the cost of schooling
- Sponsored CDL Training Program - For many, this is the easiest route to get started. With sponsored CDL training programs, most of the time the upfront costs are minimal. If you decide not to go with a sponsored CDL Training Program the out of pocket cost can get as high as $6,000.
- Ways to pay for schooling if you don't go with the sponsored CDL training program;
- The GI Bill; If you are a military veteran, this bill can help you pay for truck driving school.
- As talked about above, you can take out loans or look for sponsorships to help pay for the cost of schooling.
How long is CDL Training School?
Types of schools to choose from;
- Most CDL training schools are at least a month-long program, it also depends on how quickly you can retain the information. Ultimately, you are the deciding factor on how long your training actually is.
- Private; Most private schools will give you a good experience and teach you all you need to know but can push up to $6,000 in costs.
- Public; Public CDL Training Schools are more likely to teach you only the necessities but will be cheaper when it comes to the cost of schooling.
- Company Sponsored; This is where there's no upfront cost to you, but you will sign a contract to drive with a company. If that contract is broken, the cost of schooling is up to you to pay back.
The Driver Solutions Way
- When you go through Driver Solutions, we will be there with you every step of the way. Once you apply, one of our friendly recruiters will reach out to you and get all your information to see if you are eligible to go through driving school. There they will get you started as soon as you are ready at a school that is closest to you. The cost of your stay is paid for, leaving you with minimal costs for food money and licensing fees.