The booths are scattered across campus, trying to suck you in with promises of a free T-shirt or boxes of cheap candy in return for signing up for a credit card. The plastic vendors deal out, though, can end up taking a bite out of a student's wallet, peace of mind and future.
Credit can certainly be a great tool to balancing a student's budget.
If your '85 Chevy dies and payday is four days away, a quick swipe of plastic can fix an otherwise miserable situation. But this very simplicity is also the lure of easy buying. Students, with our craving of instant gratification, mental lists of must-haves and hectic schedules, are easy targets for credit card companies. When MasterCard or VISA snags a college kid, they can celebrate for several reasons. First, we're big spenders.