To the Editor:
It has become increasingly easy for college students to obtain credit cards and incur huge credit card debt.
Today the average college student carries three credit cards, with an average debt of $2,748. From the moment they step on campus students are offered an onslaught of invitations to sign up for a credit card. Such gimmicks include T-shirts, water bottles and other various prizes. In many cases the college and/or university is being paid by credit card companies for the right to set up shop.
Many students sign up for a credit card without giving it much thought, or for emergency only, but the fact is that most college students do not have the funds necessary to pay off credit card debts.
With today’s financial situation it is easier for college students to get a credit card than for them to get a job while in school or after graduation. Student believe that upon graduation they will become employed at a job that will allow them to pay off the credit card debt acquired in college, but this is often not the case and many college graduates find it hard enough to pay off student loans without the added debt. The ability of credit card companies to target college students should be addressed by lawmakers, as it is becoming a national problem.
Paula L. Brayson
USM student