Credit Card Debt Among College

here it is:


When a person walks into a classroom, he sees just ordinary students sitting down to listen to a lecture. Little do they know about most of these students personal lives. Their families, their friends, their problems, how they live their life, or how they spend their money. Students in college are out on their own for the first time and can now finally be free and do what they want. That includes wasting their paychecks on movies and getting their first credit cards. Credit card debt among students is becoming more and more widespread....


is that a good start. suggestions?
and this is for a college class, not high school.

Something really felt out of place in the paragraph. I think your using the phrase "little do they know" incorrectly. The phrase is a 3rd person omniscient that suggests the narrator knows something that the character doesn't. In this case, you should use the sentence, "They know little about most of these students personal lives."

I usually see the phrase "little do they know" used like "Little do they know that the life they were saving was their own..."

I don't really like the paragraph in terms of an opening for a research paper about student credit card debt. I don't really get the point of setting up an outsiders view on how students are. You need to focus more on establishing your thesis and getting the readers attention.

2007-04-09 10:29:41 by i totally agree with you!! not

Sanyika Calloway Boyce's appearance on "In the Loop with iVillage"

Some background info: I'm 25 yrs old, 2yrs out of college, I make around $45,000/yr gross income between a full-time job and a waitressing job(mostly tips, but some tips are reported). I've had the full-time job for 9 months. I've had the waitressing job for 3 months but had other part-time 2nd jobs before that one.

My credit is...fair to good, I'd say. All my bills are paid on time. I have $9500 in student loan debt & that loan has a 10yr term(I had it lowered from the original 20yr term). I paid off a $1500 personal loan 2yrs early. I got a 6yr car loan almost 2 yrs ago, and I owe $12,500 on that(original loan balance of $27,000). I owe $7000 in credit card debt amongst 2 Visa cards w/ combined credit limits of $15,300. I've also had some store cards for 3-5yrs now w/ $0 balances. My oldest open accounts are 2 store cards from 2002. I do have a few 30day latenesses on now-closed credit cards from 3yrs ago, due to a time I was completely unemployed & had to drop out of college
On 1 of my 3 credit reports, I also have a paid public judgment from 2002...long story, basically a so-called "friend" screwed me over & I ended up getting stuck w/ the blunt of said friend's delinquency. I'm self-conscious & very embarrassed about this.

So overall, I'd say my Fico score is about a 660-675. My score will probably go up a good bit once my $7000 credit card debt is paid off, which I'm planning to do by next summer(I pay $1200/mo towards this debt).

Right now I'm paying $875/mo rent on a 1bedroom all by myself. I love my apartment but I hate how much of a rip-off it is, and how my money's not going anywhere in the end.

Ideally it's good to have a down payment, but if I saw a house for a very good price...would I be "fit" enough to get a mortgage? Or, would I be doomed to face foreclosure like a lot of the subprime people are facing?
By the way, I do not have a down payment saved at this time...I've been putting all excess money into my credit card debt(way more than I need to). So if I got a mortgage, it'd be in a 1st time homebuyer program with 0% down. I'm NOT looking to do this, I'm just curious if I'd have the ability to handle it...I'm just curious where I stand in the money world...and the only time I would actually consider buying a house with 0% down, would be if I got a great deal(e.g., a $250K value house in a gentrified, appreciating area for a low price of $160K...basically a bargain like that).

If you are paying that in rent, then go for a house. You are right about just blowing that money on rent. But, do take care of that credit card debt as soon as you can. You don't need that yoke around your neck.

2007-10-10 09:57:01 by Phoenix

For example, take a look at credit card debt among college students. Credit cards are being targeted at them. When a teen graduates high school, what has he/she learned in terms of real world skills? For instance...the fundamental operations of a bank for consumers. How checking accounts work. What debit/credit cards are for. The pitfalls of easy credit, the concept of saving for a "rainy day..." What a 401k/IRA is... How stocks/bonds work... living within one's means (setting up a budget)... and so on. I know that parents should pick up where the school stops, but obviously it isn't working. It might only take one lecture a week for a sememster as a junior/senior. Sure, they know how to take an SAT and can even do calculus, but that won't stop the debt collector from knocking on the door.
Wow, only one answer so far? Maybe I should have put the word s-e-x into the title. Maybe people would click on it.

Very True- Alot of homeschoolers make this same point on why homeschooling is a good option because they learn "home and Life" skills such as bill paying/ cooking/ shopping/ staying in a budget. Its sad how many students do find themselves stuck in this situation

2007-02-16 11:28:45 by Thundercat

I am a 21 year old college student working a part-time job, and have accumulated nearly $3,900 in credit card debt. My debt is spread out among 6 different cards. About 3 months ago, I hit a rough patch and missed several payments. I was recently able to save up $3,000 which I will be depositing into my bank first thing tomorrow morning, in order to pay off some of this debt. I just checked my credit score and was almost brought to tears when I saw that it was in the mid-500s. I am well aware that I have no one to blame for this but myself, but I am desperately seeking some advice on how to raise this credit score. I have learned my lesson and am trying to fix things. I was just wondering, considering I pay off the remaining $900 in the next 2 months and spend more wisely from here on out, how long do any of you think it will take to raise my score to about 600-650?

Any answers are greatly appreciated!
I haven't been using my credit cards for a long time. As I stated above, I have learned my lesson and am focused on paying off my old debts, not accumulating new ones.

Have you pulled all 3 of your credit reports? If not, that should be your first step as you need to check and make sure the information is correct.

Do you have any collection accounts? Any information that is incorrect or not yours, you need to go about fixing those first. We can help you with that if you need it.

Next, try contacting the credit card companies you missed payments on. Explain that you hit a very rough patch and see if they will cut you a break when it comes to the credit reporting. Many of them will do that, especially in return for bringing the account current. Just call in and talk to a supervisor.

Try to pay down all balances on your credit cards to 30% or less of the total credit limit. Carrying high balances will hurt your score.

Keep them all current. Try adding some new credit, like maybe department store cards. They are easy to get and help add lines of credit to your report.

That's about all you can do, being in college with a part time job. In a few months your score will start to go up. Once you are out of college and have a better paying job you can do things like finance cars and so forth, which will help your credit even more.

You can check out these links below. They have lots of good information that will come in handy in the near future. Good luck!

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/rebuild/

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/repair/

2008-02-19 18:59:15 by HoneyChild

I have an old Chase Credit Card from back in college that paid for my final semester. When I graduated I was making regular payments...never really got anywhere. In the past two years, things have gotten really bad. I was laid off from a job that was shutting it's doors and it took me awhile to find work...the payments got behind. I began working in Real Estate and had caught everything back up after a few closings but the fees were exorbitant and the interest rate was out of site. They were not cashing my checks until AFTER the due date no matter when I sent them, I was getting hit with 35.00 fees for that, 35.00 fees for being over the limit, high interest...every time I would make a payment to bring it back down I would get bogus fees for late payments and higher interest rates to take it back over the limit. At this point I believe the amount owed is three or four times what I had charged in the first place..it is up to close to $10,000. (I do not know exactly as Chase has not sent me a bill since last fall). Then the local Real Estate Market Crashed. I asked for hardship help like Bank of America gave to me. Chase Bank said I had to make three payments of a set amount, three months in a row, and THEN they could enter me in the program to remove my fees and interest so the set payments could begin to work on the balance. I paid for over six months and they never entered me in the program. At that point I had not had a paycheck in months and was looking for other employment. Eventually my savings ran out and I had to quit paying on it all together along with everything else. I went a full year without employment, no means of supporting myself except through my family. I am working a temporary job but it ends in two weeks. They are trying very hard to find a place for me in the company but at this point I am still unable to guarantee steady payments. Most of my other creditors are working with me: Ford Credit, Bank of America, etc.
Chase Bank however, has turned it over to Valentine and Cabartus "Attorneys" who have harassed me, degraded me, lied to me, accused me of stealing money from chase by using their credit cards and not paying them back, among other things. They have never physically sent me any documents and apparently do not record the conversations as I have to repeat everything every time I speak with someone. I have offered them money when I started receiving paychecks as small as they were...up to 200.00 as that was all I was paid and they would not accept it. I have tried sending something in writing to Chase but I get the run around on who and where to send it.
I am trying to take care of this and pull myself out of this mess at the same time as I am on the verge of living on the street. My credit is shot, I do not have any assets, the job market is horrible. If I file bankruptcy I can not hold a Real Estate License in the state of NC. (according to my association) and I do have clients and houses on the market..but they are just sitting there. If they sale, they are large commissions that I could offer Chase a substantial amount...like 1500.00 but if I file bankruptcy I lose even that option. I do not want to file bankruptcy. I want to work and pay my debt....can you give me any advice on how to handle this situation and this harassing company?
Desperate and stressed!

Desperate and stressed? Why not learn how to fight back and give them more grief than they are giving you? You say your credit is shot? Then learn how to fix it and get paid for doing it. You don't have any assests and little income? Then let those who are abusing you pay for the misery they are causing you. If you don't want to do that then all I can say is that you will just have to live with it the best you can.
Reccomend Reading About Chase Credit Card:

Review:Chase Credit Card Article:
http://tinyurl.com/Review-Chase-Credit-C ard

Chasing a Chase Credit Card ARticile
http://tinyurl.com/Chasing-a-Chase-Credi t-Card

2009-09-01 04:59:38 by Rajaei A