Marketing Credit Cards to Students
View PDF | Print View
by: barrywaters
Total views: 150
Word Count: 445
College campuses offer a lucrative venue for companies marketing credit cards. Students are solicited to apply for credit cards frequently, as they pass tables with free pizza and incentives if they sign up. College kids are an effortless target. Most are experiencing the sense of being independent like never before in their lives. While some may already have credit cards through their parents, the allure of having their own cards is extremely tempting.
Banks have a tradition on many campuses. At a campus in Michigan, Bank of America has a relationship with the college that grants it the right to use student enrollment lists. The university gets a kick back for students who open credit cards with the company. Contracts like these often offer universities even more money, if their students carry balances on those credit cards. Although these contracts benefit both the university and the credit card company, they have the potential to exploit young people who many not know the consequences of poor spending decisions. As a result, many student groups are raising concerns about credit card issuers exploiting students. Even the politicians in Congress have been examining the contracts between academic institutions and banks, as hearings were held about the issue last summer.
Credit card companies claim they are acting in good faith and helping students learn to become responsible consumers. Student credit cards offer an opportunity for students to develop a relationship with a bank and build a foundation for their credit history. Banks offer seminars on responsible spending, budgeting and paying off balances on credit cards. Additionally, they say the credit cards offered to students have lower limits and more restrictions than those marketed to graduates. Students on many campuses can sometimes even choose between having debit cards or credit cards. Academic institutions say that any contracts they have with banks are undergone lawfully, benefit student programs and are in the best interest of students. Even so, many have taken steps to limit access to student information when they enter into new contracts with banks.
Like everyone else, students are feeling the affects of the economic downturn. Many students apply for credit cards to help defray bills and other costs. The presence of banks on campuses will remain a part of college life, but it appears that it will be a less exploitive presence than it has historically been. Students are likely taking notes during the current economic downturn and will research and understand how to be responsible credit card consumers.
Related Credit cards for bad credit | Secured credit cards |
About the Author
See more on credit cards, review www.getsmart.com/credit-cards.
Rating: Not yet rated