Compare Student Credit Cards

by Mack Bartlett

Credit Cards are a commodity product. What does that mean? Commodities are products that are really only differentiated by the price and terms of the purchase. A mortgage is a commodity product, as are homes, cars, cell phones – you get the idea.

Why do I bring up commodities? Because when you’re going to compare student credit cards you have to understand there probably won’t be much difference between them when it comes to rates, fees, etc. You’ll want to dig a little deeper for the intangible benefits offered by the different card providers.

Let me give you an example:

I read a review from a young man in the UK that had applied for a graduate student credit card with Barclay. He wasn’t happy at all. He had three main complaints: 1. They asked for a letter proving his status as a graduate student, then didn’t accept the letter he sent them. 2. Their customer service center was located in India, which on its own might not have been a huge problem, but the agent he spoke with seemed to give him a lot of attitude and spoke with such heavy accent that they couldn’t even understand each other. 3. They finally approved him for the card, but only gave him a limit of about $500. His feelings? “What’s the point?

Near the end of the review he also complained about the high interest rate. Lastly he mentioned having transferred all balances to a Virgin credit card.

What’s the lesson? I’m guessing this guy initially liked the idea of opening a student credit card with a notable company, looking to build his credit score and his credit history. What he got was a lot of hassle and he ended up with a credit card he didn’t even use in the long run.

I strongly recommend reading some reviews online of the customer service a credit card company offers. Just because you’re a college student looking for an opportunity to improve your status as a credit holder doesn’t mean you have to settle for mistreatment by the company you’re generating a bunch of revenue for. Find a card that treats you well. I’ve had great experiences with Bank of America’s customer service.

Compare Rates for Student Credit Cards

So let’s say you’ve found a couple of companies offering student credit cards that have great online reviews for how they treat their clients. At this point it comes down to price and limits. That means getting down to the cold hard numbers – what interest rates are they offering on balance transfers and purchases? How big of a credit limit will they give you? Do they charge application fees or an annual fee?

Once you know they’re going to treat you right, and you know the numbers make sense, go for it.