“Come over here and fill out some forms to get free stuff.” I swear on the ownership of this site that this is the statement I heard coming from a credit card rep. on my college campus today. Before I even started writing the post I instantly thought of J.D Roth’s story about the $1500 frisbee. Student credit cards are being handed out like free samples around the college campus and I’m here to write about it.
For the record I am not anti-credit card nor will you ever hear my preach about not using credit cards. To be quite honest I actually support credit cards in many cases. However, to hear a credit card rep. make such an irresponsible statement really infuriated me.
The credit card company is offering college students:
- A customized University credit card with school name on it.
- A low interest rate.
- A few gifts (back pack with school name, water bottle & a few other great items).
What is wrong with what the credit card companies are doing? Well before you guys email me to fix my mistake about the Credit Card Act of 2009 let me remind you that I’m located north of the border. The credit card companies on my campus were pretty much willing to give anyone a student credit card. The funny thing is that all you really need to receive a student credit card is to be 18 years of age and prove some sort of an income. If you can’t perform the latter then you will still likely still receive a $500 limit credit card.
Instead of ranting I will just throw out some thoughts on student credit cards today. I’m not here to make your decisions for you, I simply want to help you guys make educated choices on your own.
Do you really want a customized college student credit card? What I mean is how important is if it your credit card is customized for your school? For me the aesthetics of the credit card is the least of my issues. I would rather find a rewards credit card or one with no annual fees then a credit card that has my school name on it.
A low interest rate is almost never permanent. So the credit card company locks you in with an introductory low interest rate. A few months down the road you will lose track of time and next thing you know you’re rates are up at 18% or so.
Why don’t you just buy the bag or any of the free gifts they are offering? I don’t want to advise spending money foolishly but if you really want that bag or water bottle then you should just buy it. I mean you could spend a few bucks now to go buy that bag instead of having to deal with receiving this new credit card in the mail. If you’re not willing to spend the few bucks on the purchase then chances are it offers no real value to you in the first place.
As soon as I mentioned the free gifts from credit card companies, a Twitter follower chimed in with @Sustainlifeblog: The free t-shirt with your schools logo on it is not worth the interest you’ll be paying in the future. Dont bother singing up.
Any experiences you guys want to share with credit card companies around your college campus?
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The stupid giveaways they have for frisbees, tshirts and others are not worth it and should not even be thought of by students. Only get a CC if you know you can pay it off in the end and are responsible with it.
I sure wish I had seen this advice before I went to college. I applied for my first credit card on campus, my first week of school. In return, I got a UCSD coffee mug.
I went back to speak with one of the reps today. Nothing substantial just the usual sales tactics. The only difference is that they had school shirts today as a free gift.
I have friends that sign up for credit cards just to receive the free gift. Once the card comes in the mail they cancel it. Personally I don’t want to put up with all of that hassle for a gift.
I applied for my first credit card today, from my bank… two weeks before I start uni. Surely the best way to avoid such things is to get a decent one before you go so you can just say “No thanks, I’ve already got one?” I’m only planning to use mine for small regular purchases anyway, to build up my credit score.
@Wilhelm That’s how I use my credit card. I also use it to pay for group trips and monthly fixed costs. With a cash back rewards card it certainly feels good to receive some money at the end of the year on top of building my credit rating.
I am inherently a sucker for free stuff. Unfortunately, the “free” tshirt I got for signing up for a Contiki Visa card about 15 years ago bit me in the end. I had about 14 credit cards by the end of my college career. There were visa and master cards, and many many store cards. Oh – you mean I can save 15% today!?!?!?! Oh – and I can cancel the card when it arrives in the mail? Sure. You say you will cut up the card or cancel it when it comes. But there it sits all shiny and new and you place it in your wallet. You definitely will NOT use it on your next trip to the Limited. But there you are in the Limited… and there are ‘perks’ for cardholders… but you have to use your card to get those perks. So you use the card and then you’re stuck making $7 an hour and can barely fill your gas tank and you let a $45 charge for a pair of jeans sit on your Limited card and you only pay the minimum pmt of $10 that month and it continues to accrue interest. And so on and so on times 14 for each card.
Listen folks, don’t do it! Pay cash. You’re already going to likely have student loan debt. You don’t want to graduate and immediately have to go into consumer credit counseling, like I did. I learned my lesson – but my credit was not so great for quite some time.
If you must have a credit card, get one from your local credit union where interest rates will probably be lower and you know you can talk to a regular person if necessary.
Meh. I’m of the opinion that low-limit credit cards to students are probably a good thing. I learned about not carrying a balance when my limit was $1k. Way better to learn it then than later in life when my income would justify an introductory limit of $5k-$10k.
Credit cards are an important part of how our economy functions. It’s difficult to participate in the online economy without one. The rewards are also awesome. Maybe it’s changed, but when I was in school they were mostly offering the same cards I’d get now – cash back or travel rewards cards – to students. I’ve done well over the years taking advantage of those benefits.