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JERRYLEWIS
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 13
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| Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 9:57 am Post subject: Headed to Swift |
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Hello,
I have been lurking for a few weeks now while I have been trying to get accepted to a trucking company. It took over a month but I am finally going to Swift in Tennessee on the 9th. Is there anybody who has been to the school there that knows what its like? It took so long because I have not worked for over 2 years as I have been a stay at home dad while the wife worked. I have appreciated reading these forums as a way to prepare for life on the road. I was Navy for 6 years so being away from home is nothing new to me. |
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Sealord
Joined: 20 Jun 2005
Posts: 1711
Location: Florida
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| Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 10:02 am Post subject: Swift Training |
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| Do an archives search using "swift training" here, at layover.com/lounge, truck.net, newbiedriver.com. You should get something. You may also want to use MS Carriers Training as the Swift school was the old MS Carriers site before Swift bought 'em. BOL |
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Webby
Joined: 08 Jun 2006
Posts: 68
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| Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 10:47 am Post subject: Re: Headed to Swift |
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[quote="JERRYLEWIS"]Hello,
I have been lurking for a few weeks now while I have been trying to get accepted to a trucking company. It took over a month but I am finally going to Swift... ... It took so long because I have not worked for over 2 years as I have been a stay at home dad while the wife worked... [/quote]
Did you have to provide additional information to prove you stayed at home? What all was required besides application to get accepted if you don't mind. I am in same situation and not worked in past 15 years. Last child left the nest this summer. |
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tndieselgrl
Joined: 01 Sep 2005
Posts: 534
Location: Tulsa, Oklahoma
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| Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 1:30 pm Post subject: |
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You will generally need at least two letters that verify what you have been doing during a period of long unemployment. Swift recruiters often forget to mention that, and I've seen too many potential drivers have to go home to get supporting paperwork and then return to Memphis weeks later.
Swift is not a bad company to start off with, they can and will give you a migrane at times, but they have their good moments. There were times I made fabulous money with them, and times when I swore I was going to starve to death. It's all what you make of it.
The schooling itself could be greatly improved... I attended the Swift Academy in Millington, TN (Memphis), and I will be frank with you... you will not learn anything other than how to pass your CDL test. Learning to be a professional driver is something charged to your mentor during your additional six weeks of training on the road. It is IMPERATIVE that you get a quality mentor and feel that you are learning from him/her. Your first year will be *HARD* - but stick it out and generally between 10-12 months in, everything starts to gel in your mind and you realize it's not that bad - or you find out it's not for you and you go home. |
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JERRYLEWIS
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 13
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| Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 4:05 pm Post subject: |
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| Thanks for the responses. Yes I only had to get two signed papers stating that I was a stay at home dad. |
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JERRYLEWIS
Joined: 23 Jul 2006
Posts: 13
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| Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 7:14 pm Post subject: |
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| anybody else going to the swift in tennesee on the 9th? |
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jmilici
Joined: 01 Mar 2006
Posts: 102
Location: Champaign County Ohio
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| Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 7:38 pm Post subject: Re: Headed to Swift |
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JERRYLEWIS wrote: Hello,
It took over a month but I am finally going to Swift in Tennessee on the 9th.
I'm sorry.
Pay for your own training, you'll be better off. |
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NevadaJim
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
Posts: 251
Location: Las Vegas
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| Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:29 pm Post subject: Re: Headed to Swift |
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[quote="jmilici"][quote="JERRYLEWIS"]Hello,
It took over a month but I am finally going to Swift in Tennessee on the 9th.[/quote]
I'm sorry.
Pay for your own training, you'll be better off.[/quote]
Maybe someone can explain why Swift is so bad. All I hear is pissing and moaning about how bad a certain company is. Based on all the negative things I read one might think that EVERY Swift driver is a heap waiting to happen. I just find that hard to believe. I guess what I'm getting at is if Swift is as bad as some say then it would follow that all their drivers are crappy drivers? Maybe someone that has the negative things to say can be more specific and state facts rather than general statements. Speaking for myself, I'm a quick learn and take responsibility for my own personal learning curve. That being said, Is it possible for someone that has his $&!+ together to go to a Swift school and become a decent safe driver? |
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NevadaJim
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
Posts: 251
Location: Las Vegas
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| Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:29 pm Post subject: Re: Headed to Swift |
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[quote="jmilici"][quote="JERRYLEWIS"]Hello,
It took over a month but I am finally going to Swift in Tennessee on the 9th.[/quote]
I'm sorry.
Pay for your own training, you'll be better off.[/quote]
Maybe someone can explain why Swift is so bad. All I hear is pissing and moaning about how bad a certain company is. Based on all the negative things I read one might think that EVERY Swift driver is a heap waiting to happen. I just find that hard to believe. I guess what I'm getting at is if Swift is as bad as some say then it would follow that all their drivers are crappy drivers? Maybe someone that has the negative things to say can be more specific and state facts rather than general statements. Speaking for myself, I'm a quick learn and take responsibility for my own personal learning curve. That being said, Is it possible for someone that has his $&!+ together to go to a Swift school and become a decent safe driver? |
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XoticGA
Joined: 14 Jul 2006
Posts: 49
Location: Chicago, IL
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| Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2006 9:48 am Post subject: |
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I'm going with Swift in TN too :wink:
Get in touch with Rokk on the boards.. He'll give you a no bullshit run down on Swift he's awesome :) |
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Adam9315
Joined: 03 Mar 2006
Posts: 486
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| Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2006 9:54 am Post subject: |
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| good luck y'all. |
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lifespalette
Joined: 08 Jul 2003
Posts: 305
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| Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2006 5:38 pm Post subject: |
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Jim....Swift isn't any better nor are they any worse than every other training company out there.....I didn't get my CDL through Swift, but I did end up going with them and maybe I was lucky, but my trainer was an old veteran who pushed for professionalism in all aspects of being a driver.... once when I asked him if he thought Swift was the best, he just answered "there ain't no best company to work for... just the one you work for."
It wasn't until some time later in the training period that I understood what he meant...........it's what you make it. As an inexperienced driver, you're not going get to rich there......but then you're not going to get rich anywhere as a new driver.
The six weeks is rough and unnatural.......any time two adult males live together in a walk in closet sized space for 6 weeks it's unnatural. Most likely your lifestyle is about to be turned upside down. I promise you there are going to be times you want to just say screw it.....and there are going to be times you want to just knock the crap out of your trainer and there are going to be times he wants to do the same to you. You live out of a duffel bag, you eat out of your food box, you shower in places you don't want to know what's on the floor let alone step on it with your bare feet...you'll see parts of towns you wouldn't drive through in your POV....you're whole life clock is about to be reset.......and we haven't even begun to discuss driving.
Do your year ........get your experience, then if you find that the relationship with Swift isn't for you, then you can look else where. Everybody and his brother will give you an opinion....but like the old saying.......opinions are like ass holes, everybody has one, and most of the ones you find on this forum or any other forum are biased in one form or another. You'll find there are two sides to every story and the only one you're getting is theirs. Nobody ever wants to admit they screwed up in one way or another.....it's always the company's fault.
Listen to your trainer, learn the company way of doing it, and be professional......then you can decide if Swift is for you. |
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Jagerbomber
Joined: 20 Sep 2005
Posts: 645
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| Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2006 6:27 pm Post subject: |
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| one thing to remember about Swift is this...about 85% of the people you hear complaining about them and putting them down have never even worked for them. Keep that in mind. They are not the best company out there and certainly are not the worst. they are just very big. |
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TankerYanker
Joined: 10 Mar 2006
Posts: 52
Location: Iowa
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| Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2006 7:10 pm Post subject: |
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Very well put lifespalette!!!
BOL JerryLewis |
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Super 8
Joined: 24 Feb 2006
Posts: 125
Location: Rockford, Ill
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| Posted: Sat Jul 29, 2006 10:00 pm Post subject: Re: Headed to Swift |
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Quote: ="jmilici"
I'm sorry.
Pay for your own training, you'll be better off.
Quote: ="NevadaJim"
Maybe someone can explain why Swift is so bad. All I hear is pissing and moaning about how bad a certain company is.
Some companies have bad reputations. Swift, CR Englund have bad reps. TMC and CFI and Crete generally have good reps. Some of the criticism is probably undeserved, but I would pay attention to the general consensus. If a lot of people are unhappy, it might be because they have reason to be.
The reason Jmilici said "pay for your own training" is because it gives you the freedom to pick and choose who YOU want to work for. If a company pays to train you, they expect you to work for them for at least a year. If you quit because the company sucks, you end up owing them them an inflated price for the training. It's not worth it. Pay for your own, get the CDL, and hire on with a company that will finish you and even offer tuition reimbursement. If you hate the company or find a better offer somewhere else, put in your notice and move on. If you end up hating trucking -and there is a good chance you might....it's NOT for everybody. earn enough to cover your initial training costs and move on to something else.
I paid for my own training, and I'm glad I did. I need to pay the credit union for the lone, but beyond that I'm free to work for whomever I choose for as long as I choose. |
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