Before putting money down with any training company I would suggest checking with companies that you are interested in working for and see if they will accept their training. If not, then you may want to find another company from which to get your training. It is rumored that new drivers will need to have a minimum number of seat or driving hours before they can work in this industry. Not all training companies will give that much training. Many community colleges and vocational schools offer driver training programs for less than the private companies. Most training facilities can assist you in placement with a carrier. I would ask before signing on the dotted line. You may not be able to start with your first choice in companies. Once you get a year or two behind you then you can pretty much go wherever you want.

I would also suggest checking with Roehl, Millis, Swift and CRST. They all pull vans, but offer training for new drivers. You may also check the company listings on this forum. Most of the major carriers are listed along with their minimum hiring requirements. The most critical thing you need right now is experience.

I am starting school on August 11, my tuition and fees combined are going to cost me around $1900 at a community college. There is a lot of recruiting done out of my school and the hours required are well over the required amount by most companies I have already checked into/applied to. I am not sure if all community colleges are the same way, but I can't imagine them being much different. Most companies are requiring 160+ hours of class with a minimum of that being 40 hours behind the wheel. I am not sure of the exact specifications on my class, but the quick math for days in class and hours class is held comes up to around 250. In our first two weeks we are going to be in a classroom environment with additional time spent on a simulator. Weeks 3-8 will be spent mostly behind the wheel or riding while someone else is driving. Some of the other advantages, I've been told, are that the classes are smaller than some of the driver mills the companies will send you through. Our class will have a max of 4 students to one instructor.