Your Credit Cards Guide

College comes with a great many expenses and new experiences that have a deep impact on the rest of one’s life. For many students, it is their first exposure to credit and both the advantages and perils that come with credit cards.

Making good decisions early on can set one on the right path, and there are many opportunities available just for students. Finding the right student credit card often seems daunting, but if accomplished can improve the college experience and create a solid credit foundation for the rest of one’s life.

Conversely, making poor credit choices while in college can saddle students with a lifetime of debt. Read through this guide to learn if a student credit card is right for you and then if so, how to find the very best student credit card offers.

A student credit card is a card that is specifically targeted at and designed for college students, with a special focus given to their needs. This means that a student credit card, may carry a lower available balance, a low interest rate, and may provide perks on the things the students use most – like travel, books, and groceries.

They will often offer discounts at the campus book store, or may allow one to accumulate points that can be applied to airline tickets to assist a student with travel to and from campus around the holidays.

Some of the best advantages on a student credit card include:

• Lower interest rate
• Discounts at popular locations (the student union, bookstore, etc.)
• Discounts on rental cars
• Discounts on airline tickets
• Points programs that accumulate points more quickly than standard cards
• Flexible payment terms
• Free credit reports and monitoring

In some instances, for those students that attend large universities, a student credit card might even bare the logo on the school. Further, some universities and larger colleges have their own student credit unions that may issue credit cards only to students; these institutions usually require that the student also open an account at the credit union, but they tend to be very competitive for most services. Even schools that do not offer their own student credit cards may partner with other financial institutions to make them available.

In addition to any on campus financial institutions, there are often outside institutions which partners with major universities to make offers to students. Searching for these offers can be as simple as conducting a basic online search to needing to do some actual legwork.

Just like shopping around for the best car insurance quotes is a matter of comparison shopping so too is shopping around to find the best student credit card offer. This is definitely a scenario where doing your homework will pay off for years to come!

Some of the easiest places to find student credit cards include:

• Online search – searching for one’s university with the term student credit card, or student credit card offer
• Offers posted in student common areas
• Contact the financial aid office
• Contact the student affairs office
• Contact any of the major credit card providers and ask them directly if they have special offers for college students in general or specifically at the school you attend
• Ask other students – the army of consumers who are also students at your school may help to cut down on the time it takes to find offers; they may also be a great source of information when comparison shopping

Many major credit card providers offer a wide variety of types of cards. They may have one specifically designed for students, but you may need to ask for it specifically. Searching the website is a great first step, but calling and talking to a representative will give you a more comprehensive answer. By taking this additional step, you may discover options that would have otherwise gone undetected.

Once one begins to consider the available options, it is likely that you will have too many choices rather than too few. It is at this point that a student needs to carefully consider his or her options and choice a card that will provide the greatest long-term benefit. Much of this has to do with the individual and the particular needs that he or she wishes to address.

For example, if you plan to pay off you full balance every month, the interest rate is less important and you may decide, instead, to focus on special offers. This can be a dangerous choice because sometimes the best intentions do not materialize and you end up with a high balance. It is important to be realistic about what limitations you will likely face when making these decisions.

Here are some general tips to follow when making a decision about which student credit card to select:

• Be realistic – if you do not have a history of being disciplined, do not believe you will suddenly become disciplined with a credit card; opt for a card with a low interest rate and flexible payment terms.
• Assess your needs – if the idea of receiving a discount on travel sounds very appealing, but you are simply not likely to travel much, choice a card that will be more helpful to you; there are some many combinations of features available, that finding a card that benefits you should not be terribly difficult.
• Consider multiple cards to combine features – sometimes the features than you need will be spread across multiple cards. There are actually credit advantages of carrying a lower balance across multiple cards, especially when you are trying to build your credit profile. If you need a travel card, and can get a discount on books with a different card, consider both.
• Do not over-extend yourself – Credit card companies love to sign up students with the hope of locking you into their company early, making you a long-term customer. For this reason, there will be many offers available.

Using a few student credit cards to manage one’s finances can be useful, but be careful not to get in over your head. Beginning your financial life, and maintaining it, is of superlative importance and should be treated with the proper respect.

Similar Posts:

• Helpful Credit Card Tips for College Students
• Colleges in Cahoots with Credit Card Companies
• Top 10 Credit Cards for Students
• Georgia’s Own Student Credit Card Review
• Credit Card Guidelines for College Students