I need a first credit card.. But I was not approved by 3 different cards.

[Anonymous]

I've applied for Capital One Journey Student, Citi Forward, and Discover It.. all three are cards I've heard would be great for students looking for a first credit card. I've never applied for a credit card before.. so I was surprised when a few seconds after applying, I received a message saying I was not approved and I should be expecting a letter with more details eventually. What? All three of them? According to Fico, my score is 671.. All I have are student loans.

I don't know what to do. I want to get a credit card to help build my credit history, but no one gave me a chance. I don't know what else to try, but anything as long as it helps build my credit history would be nice. I was considering trying something with PNC, since I already have a checking account with them but.. why bother? Is there anything I could do? I don't get how my friends, who are in many of the same classes and the same school are in worse financial situations but they have a credit card, yet I could not get approved. I'm also still shocked that it took so fast to get a yes or no, almost as if the computer is doing it.

What do I do? Is there any cards you would recommend that I could easily get approved? Because what I've tried, I thought I would have been approved with all the reviews of these being great for first credit cards and students.. especially the Discover It card.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I've applied for Capital One Journey Student, Citi Forward, and Discover It.. all three are cards I've heard would be great for students looking for a first credit card. I've never applied for a credit card before.. so I was surprised when a few seconds after applying, I received a message saying I was not approved and I should be expecting a letter with more details eventually. What? All three of them? According to Fico, my score is 671.. All I have are student loans.

I don't know what to do. I want to get a credit card to help build my credit history, but no one gave me a chance. I don't know what else to try, but anything as long as it helps build my credit history would be nice. I was considering trying something with PNC, since I already have a checking account with them but.. why bother? Is there anything I could do? I don't get how my friends, who are in many of the same classes and the same school are in worse financial situations but they have a credit card, yet I could not get approved. I'm also still shocked that it took so fast to get a yes or no, almost as if the computer is doing it.

What do I do? Is there any cards you would recommend that I could easily get approved? Because what I've tried, I thought I would have been approved with all the reviews of these being great for first credit cards and students.. especially the Discover It card.

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IT's likely that your credit file is too thin (not enough history and not enough credit lines).  You may want to look into getting a secured credit card and/or being put on as an AU on your parents account to build credit.

[HiLine]

Did you apply for the Student versions of the Forward and the More? If you got denied for student cards, there may be something about your current credit profile that doesn't look favorable. How big is your student loan? Have you checked your credit report for baddies? 

[Anonymous]

I just applied for a secured one by Capital One. I've heard great things about them.. it will take a while for me to be approved, if I am.. Which is at least better than me not getting approved right after I submit an application.

[Anonymous]

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@HiLine wrote:

Did you apply for the Student versions of the Forward and the More? If you got denied for student cards, there may be something about your current credit profile that doesn't look favorable. How big is your student loan? Have you checked your credit report for baddies? 

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I'm pretty sure they were the student versions, otherwise I made a horrible mistake. I went on their pages that explicitly said they were the student versions and hit "Apply". I may have to stick with a secured card unfortunately, which sounds horrible.

[gpfirestone]

Just call Discover and ask for reconsideration and say you are only asking for a CL of $500 to start building credit.  They can probably give you the IT card without the intro APR and no signup bonus for $500 CL.

You could also just goto the bank you have your checking account with and ask to open a CC at the bank and explain to them you are just trying to build credit and they can probably call and lobby underwriting on your behalf to get you something small to start.

[Anonymous]

Try for a BofA or credit union secured card

[bs6054]

Sorry about the denials, but a lesson for the future (or for others!):  A good rule, with exceptions; If you get denied, somewhat unexpectedly, DO NOT apply for anything else until you get a letter detailing the reason(s) for rejection.  Sometimes there is something bad, rightly or wrongly, on your file, and you need to address that, or, as is likely in your case, the file is too thin, additional applications certainly won't make things better and will usually make things worse.

As others said, try a recon and if that fails, secured cards are the best way to start bulking up thin files.

[CreditScholar]

+1 to those who suggested secured cards. Also what did you put as your income?

[Anonymous]

I agree with what bs said, applying repeatedly after denial only makes things worse. Stop and pull your updated reports to see what is on there as something may need to be PFD'd or GW'd and/or you may need to lower your goals from prime to starter/subprime/secured.