Quote:
Originally Posted by TimberWolf
Hey Golf Hobo,
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Slick rick when I went to Mid FLorida Tech (the same school the op went to) I paid $1800 for 8 weeks of training and came out of school with a very strong comfort level including the ability to back up with confidence, 5 weeks of classroom and track practice to include daily trips and daily backing assignments, and then 3 solid weeks of highway driving at all times of the day, our class had 10 students and no more then 2 or 3 per truck while road driving.The instructors told me before I paid that I may have difficulty finding work with my DUI they also said local work was going to be even harder to find. I came straight out of school into local work and have not looked back since. So it can be done.. I do agree times are harder now and companies are picking the best of the best so he does have his work cut out for him, but it can be done with some luck behind him...
Timberwolf
It's SICK not SLICK. I'm a recent graduate of McFatter Tech (a Broward county school) - so we likely had very similar class sizes, equipment an curriculum. The difference between county schools and commercial (mills) is that you have a guidance counselor (not a recruiter or salesperson) pitching you on the class - they usually have NO CLUE about what the industry looks like (as far as current job availability - other than the usual "dire predictions" about the 100,000 driver shortage predicted for 2010 - yah, RIGHT!), and will tell you that the school does not do direct job referrals. The instructors were equally vague about hires out of the south florida area - but I had ALREADY DONE my research here and on other boards before signing up - so I KNEW that I wasn't getting a "Mega Carrier" hire for OTR work. I have a couple of connections for local work - but loading and unloading pallets of Pepsi and making pretty displays in supermarkets with stacks 100's of 12 packs just really isn't my idea of truck driving..
I'm just saying that I went INTO THIS with NO ILLUSIONS as to what my job opportunities were when I signed up for school - even with a CLEAN RECORD. Companies have "pick of the litter" right now, as far as the available "talent pool" of drivers - and frown on "past indiscretions", when they have plenty of "pure as the driven snow" candidates to choose from at the moment.
If you're north of I-4 - I DID hear that Covenant and CRST are hiring - EVERYONE ELSE I HAVE SPOKEN TO SO FAR, pretty much stays out of FLORIDA completely.
I'm waiting to wrap up some personal business (foreclosure & bankruptcy), then either relocating to Ga. OR buying a rig and staying down here.
Rick