What CC to apply for

[Anonymous]

My college student child wants to apply for a credit card... how do we know which one to apply for?  Any suggestions?

[haulingthescoreup]

Has s/he ever had credit before?

Many card companies have student cards that are meant for those with little or no credit history.

Another good alternative is to find a local credit union, or possibly the bank where s/he has been banking.

Those with no credit (as opposed to recovering from bad credit) should not fool with rebuilder cards like First Premier and their ilk.

[jmbfl]

Have you pulled her credit reports yet? Never apply for credit without knowing exactly what is reporting!! You can obtain free credit reports from all three CRB's once a year here:

www.annualcreditreport.com

Do not pay for the scores when you order the reports. They are worthless FAKOs! I would not worry about the scores at this point as long as the reports are clean.

If the reports are clean I would app for Discover More or Discover Open Road or a Citi card (mtvU comes to mind). These are very good issuers and the cards will grow with her. I would also find the best possible local credit union, join, and start building a relationship. This will come in handy later. Do this last as joining a CU will most likely result in a hard INQ.

If the CBR's are not clean - clean 'em up before doing any app'ing. This is vitally important. She needs clean reports a lot more than she needs a CC.

If you want to give her an instant credit history you could do the following: make her an AU on one of your oldest CC's and then not give her the card. This way you can do something for her w/o risking your credit. Giving her the AU card to use risks your credit and you would have to be prepared to pay for any charges she might make.

HTSU - Great minds do think alike.

Message Edited by jmbfl on 01-01-2009 02:05 PM

[Anonymous]

Try CapitalOne or Chase freedom..............that was my first credit card. i got immediatelly i turned 18yrs. I'm now 19yrs. EXP=706 EQ=619 TRA=642

[Anonymous]

Credit cards specifically for Students can be easier to get with no credit history (if you are actually a student, of course!). 

Two I got that have specifically great rewards programs (so that you can earn a little cash back for purchases you'd make anyway, while building credit history at the same time):

Discover Open Road card for Students

-- 5% cash back on up to $100 gas purchases a month

-- 0.25% - 1% cash back for all other purchases

Citi mtvU card for College Students

-- 5 thank you points per dollar for purchases at Restaurants/Fast Food, Bookstores (including all Amazon.com purchases!), Movie Theatres/Video Rental, and Record Stores

-- 1 thank you point per dollar for other purchases

-- also earn points for good grades and for paying on time each month

(the Thank You points seem to be redeemable for equivalent 3-5% cash back)

[smallfry]

Citi is a good place for a student to start. I put my youngest on my BofA card last week and received an offer in the mail for her from AmEx for their Gold card. Imagine that.