<p>I heard many times that college student having credit cards is bad. Why do people say this? Shouldn't it be good to get a credit card so you can build up a score?</p>
<p>Because they spend money recklessly. Most of them are not mature enough to handle a credit card</p>
<p>Yeah, it depends on the person. In theory, you’re absolutely correct, but in reality, many people in college are not responsible enough to correctly use the card.</p>
<p>if you can manage to spend only what you have in your bank account, you will be fine. but reality, most people spend more than they have.</p>
<p>" if you can manage to spend only what you have in your bank account, you will be fine. but reality, most people spend more than they have. "</p>
<p>It’s not just teens. Adults too. Otherwise the country wouldn’t be in this financial crisis.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Adults irresponsibly using credit cards did not cause this “financial crisis”.</p>
<p>And generally speaking, youth are less financially responsible than adults. Nobody said adults are perfect.</p>
<p>If a college student understands the importance of building a credit score and understands the responsibilities revolving around a credit card then yes, it is in their best interest to have one. The problem is that too many young people are irresponsible with money thus hurting their credit scores and find themselves in massive debt.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>They don’t call it a ‘credit bubble’ for nothing. Truly, it was an amalgamation of factors, but a large number of people didn’t take the time to realize how much we have been stretching and stretching our credit. Not that our financial professionals helped any…</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>You’re right, they didn’t. But they weren’t talking about credit cards when they named it that.</p>
<p>When they’re already(most likely) going to be in some kind of debt over college cost I don’t think I’d ever tell a student to get a credit card. Only if they have some kind of job they’re doing along with school. It would be a mess for them to keep up with- when they finally get out for the summer they might have to spend all their money from working on paying off credit card debt. Then it starts all over again. Doesn’t sound like a great experience to me :(</p>
<p>If you don’t have a credit card how do you plan on paying for an emergency if you’re between paychecks? Also, sometimes you can’t order something and have it shipped to a non-billing address (eg, books) with a regular debit card.</p>
<p>chuy has a very valid point.
you just need to be responsible. Use the card in moderation. You are not in high school anymore you are growing up.</p>
<p>How about a Check Card / Debit Card? ta-da!</p>
<p>Use it only to buy stuff that you could’ve bought without the credit card too (in terms of finances), and you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>from my experience, I think having a credit card would be bad for a colleeg student- i spent a lot on mine and made a lot of financially irresponsible decisions- but on the bright side I am 19 and I would never make the same financial mistakes again since I have learnt my lesson</p>
<p>You’re right talha, debit cards should be used more often than credit cards</p>
<p>No, debit cards should NEVER be used if you have a credit card. If something goes wrong (a check doesn’t clear, theres a delay) and you overdraw your debit card you’re stuck paying a fortune in fees, usually $30 for EVERY purchase you make after you overdraft. And sometimes banks will run your largest purchase first for the day, meaning if you had $20 in your account, then bought 5 $1 things, and then one $30 thing, they’d run the $30 first and stick you with a 6*$30 charge. With a credit card as long as you’re responsible you can just pay it off at the end of every month.</p>
<p>College students are responsible enough to have a credit card when they realize that most purchases they make with credit they should be able to pay off IN FULL the following month. In this manner, it is simply a 30 day grace period and you are buying only what you can afford. The only other responsible use for a credit card is for a REAL EMERGENCY situation, again with the intention of paying off the EMERGENCY as soon as realistically possible. </p>
<p>Most students are not able to do this, and hence rack up alot of debt with fast food purchases, shopping at the mall, going out, sporting a lifestyle that they cannot afford…this is a poor lesson and poor preparation for the real world. The sooner they learn to live within their means, save money - the better off they will be.</p>
<p>Honestly, if I didn’t have a credit card I would feel very uneasy. Before I had a credit card I ran into some trouble with traffic tickets, and I had a lot of difficulty paying them off because I was living from paycheck to paycheck and honestly couldn’t afford it.</p>
<p>After I got a credit card, my car broke down and I had to pay a few hundred dollars to have it fixed. Without a CC, there was no way I could have afforded it and would have been stuck with a useless vehicle until I saved up enough to fix it.</p>
<p>Credit cards are lifesavers when you’re in emergency situations that require fast cash. For general spending money on things like fast food and clothes, I would definitely refrain from using one, though. Those costs can accumulate very quickly and before you know it you’ve spent almost $75 in a month on Taco Bell.</p>
<p>If you’re spending $75 a month at Taco Bell you’ll also be racking up some bad sewage costs.</p>