By David
So you are getting ready to head off to college with all its new experiences and new challenges ahead of you? If you have been considering getting a credit card, you may be confused about what kind is going to be best. To help you in your quest to find a credit card for college we’ll tell you a little about a couple of different types of credit cards, and why they may be of interest to you.
Prepaid credit cards
Though not credit cards in the traditional sense, prepaid cards work in much the same way. In order to use them you must first load money on to them. This amount sets your “credit limit” and cannot be exceeded. The advantages of this type of credit card are many, making it a great credit card for college.
1) Learning – The point of college is to advance your education, and while credit card use may not be in your college’s curriculum, it is a vital life skill that needs to be learned. A prepaid card lets you do just that, spending at stores, online, or wherever your card company is accepted. The great advantage however is that it sets your family up as the lender rather than your card company. Allowing you to learn from your mistakes without paying for them (literally).
2) Security – As with any credit card, a prepaid card offers you security when shopping online or in the case of a lost or stolen card that far exceeds that of a debit card or cash.
3) Easy Money Transfers – In the event of an emergency where you need extra money quickly a prepaid card can be used as a medium to speed up this process. Rather than having to wait till morning to deposit money into a bank account, or driving all the way to a student’s location to deliver cash, a family member can just hop on their computer and deposit funds from their bank account directly to the student’s card account.
Low interest credit cards
This type of card works like a normal credit card except that it has a lower than average APR (annual percentage rate) that typically falls around 10.4% This lower rate means that you pay less interest over time on your purchases. This advantage over a regular card is what makes this another great credit card for college.
1) Emergency Line-of-Credit – In the case of a sudden emergency outside a student’s present means a low-interest credit card can be used to get them what they need without costing them more in interest than they can quickly pay back.
2) Gentler Life Lessons – Knowing that we all eventually make mistakes and that it’s just part of the learning process you can take some comfort in knowing that overspending one month isn’t going to bankrupt you for life.
Choose a card that is right for you
Now that you know what your best options are, you can make an informed decision about getting a credit card for college.
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