Student Credit Cards in the Past

• Prior to the student credit card restrictions passed in 2009, the marketing and enrollment of young people in credit cards was a free-for-all. Credit card companies could promote their cards on campus, offering shirts and electronic devices in exchange for applying for a card. The idea was to get students to run up balances on these cards so the companies could make money on the interest. These practices caused many students, who didn't realize the importance of credit history, to get in way over their heads amassing credit card debt.
  
  

Student Credit Cards Now

• The Credit CARD Act of 2009 sought to rectify these predatory practices by introducing legislation to protect potential cardholders. The law stated that anyone under the age of 21 would no longer be able to apply for a credit card without a co-signer, or without meeting certain income requirements. The law also said that creditors could no longer market their cards on campus, or offer material goods in exchange for an application. These changes were designed to keep the credit card companies at bay, and to prevent students from making huge mistakes without even realizing the damage they've done.
  
  

Loopholes

• Unfortunately, the credit card companies have found ways to get around the CARD Act's provisions. Instead of offering merchandise to potential customers to entice them to apply, creditors can now offer intangible incentives such as statement credits -- which may do even more harm than the merchandise offered. Furthermore, creditors can get around the on-campus restrictions by setting up shop at popular off-campus locations. In essence, it's as though the law was never enacted.
  
  

Student Culpability

• Students are hardly to blame for predatory credit card offerings. After all, though more schools are beginning to introduce money management courses, these courses aren't universal, nor are they mandatory. In the absence of any education about credit, students continue to run up balances. In fact, students have already learned how to get around the income requirements necessary to apply for a card without a co-signer. The CARD Act does not restrict students from declaring the amounts received from student loans as income. Nor does the law require creditors to verify a student's income before accepting or approving an application. With the help of the students themselves, the student credit card epidemic is as bad as it's ever been.