Hi all! I applied for many credit cards earlier this year (Citi for Students, AMEX, Bank of America for Students) and even though they all say FOR STUDENTS, they all still denied me. What did they expect? I had no credit, obviously, so a 750+ wasn’t going to pop out of mid-air. I then saw Discover it Chrome for Students, and the 2% cash back on Gas Stations and Restaurants was really attractive! And 1% cash back on everything else. No annual fee.
I applied….then got approved! Woo-hoo my first credit card!
Discover it Chrome for Students:
What’s awesome is that for the 1st year they will double your cash back. So, I’m technically getting 4% back at Gas Stations and Restaurants for this year. To make your cash back go even further, you can exchange it for gift cards. Example: Exchange $45 cash back for $50 Gift Card. I got a Yard House gift card already!
This card is great for college students, and even those who want a simple card with decent cash back! If you apply with my referral you can get an additional $50 cashback bonus after your first purchase!
They also have a “Good Grades Reward” where you can get $20 back every year with a 3.0 GPA.
The Verdict:
No annual fee, and decent cash back! A good card for beginners! A good way to build up credit. And, I was it bit worried that not everywhere would take Discover, but it actually wasn’t a big problem for me; I can actually only count 2 instances out of my 100+ purchases where they didn’t take Discover (ironically, they were restaurants, but this Discover is also a Diner’s Club?!).
You can read more about the Discover it Chrome card and apply by clicking here!
Happy travels,
theresorttraveler
I’m on the same boat as an international student..
Considering you had no credit score, how long do you think it might take you to get to something decent? It would be great to (eventually) get a credit card with a semi-decent sign up bonus. 🙂
Or in other words, what score would you need for a decent signup bonus card? Like the “entry level” no annual fee airline cards (eg JetBlue no fee card)
I recently got the Amex SPG Card! So 6 months of having a credit history/credit card in your name, then you can probably get something decent! I would say Amex is easier to get approved for than Chase/Visa!
Thanks for reading!