Feb 14

Do I need a credit card for college?

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With all of this talk about credit it is hard for high school and college students to weed out the good information and advice from the bad information and advice. Some people preach that credit cards are evil and that there is no need for a student to have one. Other people say that every person over the age of 18 needs to have a credit card. So which is correct? Do college students need a credit card to get by?

The truth is that no college student ever absolutely needs a credit card. However, if you are a student thinking about getting one there are some major pros and cons.

Pros – Reasons to Get a Credit Card

  1. It is good to have in emergency (and I really mean EMERGENCY) situations. If you are on the road and your car is running low on gas and you have no cash you can use your credit card to fill up.
  2. It helps build a credit history which you need to do almost anything in the adult world like buy a car or rent an apartment.
  3. It teaches you responsibility. Having a credit card and making monthly payments teaches you how to budget and plan your spending accordingly.

Cons – Reasons Not to Get a Credit Card

  1. The temptation to spend is greater than it is with cash. It is much easier to swipe a piece of plastic than it is to hand over a pile of bills.
  2. Missing a payment or building up too much debt can seriously harm your credit score.
  3. You could develop bad spending habits at a young age.

What it boils down to is that as long as you are can exercise self-control, and spend only what you can afford to spend, having a credit card is actually a good thing. If you are someone who cannot exercise spending restraint then having a credit card could be really bad. Credit cards are only evil if you let them take advantage of you.

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