Rebuilding Your Credit

[dizzydee]

So I applied for a Walmart card and was approved. I received my card in the mail and I registered online to get my free FICO score. I was pleasantly surprised to see 625. My hard work is paying off, so I thought. I also applied for a JC Penney's card the same day and received the standard 7-10 message. I received my denial letter from JC Penney's today and it advised me that my credit score was 439! I was shocked. The letter also went on to say " Score range from a low of 300 to a high of 620"..which got me thinking...I was under the impression that FICO scores can reach as high as 850. Why was this range so low. Can anyone tell me if this is a TU Score and not a true FICO score? I can't imagine getting a Barclays card, which I was approved for a week ago, with a credit score of 439. Not only that, I was also under the impression that the score you get from WalMart is a true FICO score that you can receive monthly for enrolling in paperless statements. Just confused and need some help understanding.

Thanks in advance

[Shogun]

It's an internal score.   Some have their own proprietary score systems.  

[HiLine]

If the letter doesn't mention FICO, you can safely assume that the provided score is not a FICO score.