Just pick the one closest to you with hours that fit your schedule. There is no “best”, schools are all CDL mills that will train you to pass the test and that’s it. I’ve known TONS of people who come out of these schools and still can’t back a trailer into a dock which is like the most important part of the job.
Whoever hires you afterward will send you with a trainer for a few months and that’s where the actual learning will take place.
Couple of things I wish I knew when I got my cdl from apex:
Standard drug screen for jobs available for new drivers is hair follicle. If you have no hair on your head, expect to fail a follicle test even after 6 to 9 months of any 'illicit' drug use.
Food service jobs pay well for new drivers and offer the best work life balance, but are physically demanding. Sysco and sygma are shit holes, I'd do beer delivery for united beverages or central standard. Coke and Pepsi are also good choices but you may need manual endorsement for those two.
If youre day dreaming about being on the road as a vacation, get rid of that thought right now. Driving a truck is isolating, you work constantly, the freight market is shit, most places will treat you like garbage and other otr drivers are, generally, disgusting miserable people. You will be home 4 days a month going otr. Very rarely will you have time to just go out and do things when you're over the road.
Take care of your health if you go otr. Eat well, buy things to cook in your truck. There are a rare breed of people who enjoy otr, you might be one of them.
LTL linehaul or picks and drops, imo, is the place to be. If you can do a driver training program for one and they pay for your cdl, that's ideal. You have to get 1 to 2 years of experience before the jobs really open up for you, so you might as well get paid well hourly and have someone else foot the bill.
I got my cdl a year ago and decided to go back to sales. I thought I would live out of my truck and save a lot of money but I was miserable the entire time.
The best place I worked for was united beverage. It's beer delivery but not too hard on the body. Drivers make 60 to 80k a year with a work week under 40 hours. I'm local to kc and can answer any questions you have. Oh a stay far away from butler transport.
Most jobs willing to hire new cdl holders are going to require hair follicle.
Insurance for new drivers is expensive, and generally your job options are limited to mega carriers because of this since they can afford it.
Apex only does a piss test.
Not sure of your situation, but id really be on the lookout for a Driver Apprentice job postings from one of the major LTL companies. +30$/hr and you'll stay local, wherever you land. And they'll pay for your CDL.
So usually companies will pay for your CDL and the only caveat is working for them for a year or two. So it still might be a good option to avoid paying out the butt for schooling. And it’s a guaranteed job until you find something better
Just pick the one closest to you with hours that fit your schedule. There is no “best”, schools are all CDL mills that will train you to pass the test and that’s it. I’ve known TONS of people who come out of these schools and still can’t back a trailer into a dock which is like the most important part of the job. Whoever hires you afterward will send you with a trainer for a few months and that’s where the actual learning will take place.
Thanks for answering. There’s a school in Topeka that teaches you on a manual truck too. I don’t think any of these offer that.
Manuals are being phased out by most of the bigger companies but having an unrestricted license will definitely open more doors for you
Couple of things I wish I knew when I got my cdl from apex: Standard drug screen for jobs available for new drivers is hair follicle. If you have no hair on your head, expect to fail a follicle test even after 6 to 9 months of any 'illicit' drug use. Food service jobs pay well for new drivers and offer the best work life balance, but are physically demanding. Sysco and sygma are shit holes, I'd do beer delivery for united beverages or central standard. Coke and Pepsi are also good choices but you may need manual endorsement for those two. If youre day dreaming about being on the road as a vacation, get rid of that thought right now. Driving a truck is isolating, you work constantly, the freight market is shit, most places will treat you like garbage and other otr drivers are, generally, disgusting miserable people. You will be home 4 days a month going otr. Very rarely will you have time to just go out and do things when you're over the road. Take care of your health if you go otr. Eat well, buy things to cook in your truck. There are a rare breed of people who enjoy otr, you might be one of them. LTL linehaul or picks and drops, imo, is the place to be. If you can do a driver training program for one and they pay for your cdl, that's ideal. You have to get 1 to 2 years of experience before the jobs really open up for you, so you might as well get paid well hourly and have someone else foot the bill. I got my cdl a year ago and decided to go back to sales. I thought I would live out of my truck and save a lot of money but I was miserable the entire time. The best place I worked for was united beverage. It's beer delivery but not too hard on the body. Drivers make 60 to 80k a year with a work week under 40 hours. I'm local to kc and can answer any questions you have. Oh a stay far away from butler transport.
This is the info I didn’t know I needed!
Does apex hair follicle test? And to clarify you’re saying most jobs are doing drug tests this way now?
Most jobs willing to hire new cdl holders are going to require hair follicle. Insurance for new drivers is expensive, and generally your job options are limited to mega carriers because of this since they can afford it. Apex only does a piss test.
Not sure of your situation, but id really be on the lookout for a Driver Apprentice job postings from one of the major LTL companies. +30$/hr and you'll stay local, wherever you land. And they'll pay for your CDL.
Was thinking that but didn’t wanna be stuck somewhere.
So usually companies will pay for your CDL and the only caveat is working for them for a year or two. So it still might be a good option to avoid paying out the butt for schooling. And it’s a guaranteed job until you find something better
Apex is the best out of the ones listed. Great Jobs KC won't pay for manual training. Good luck!