Extra Credit: the Impact for Students - Essay Example

Introduction
Marketing
Banning universities from showing, or rather, selling students' lists to credit card companies is a smart move. This is because; higher learning institutions should be the ones imparting life skills to students. Instead, to benefit from the fees they get from the credit card companies, they give access to the students; this shows the level of corrupted morals in the country’s institutions of higher learning (Approvals.com). Thus, it is evident that students require loans to survive in colleges, unless, of course, one is from a good background. However, in spite of this fact sticking out, colleges and universities expose students to risks knowing that they do not have the income to sustain the costs of financing a credit card. In this regard, institutions of higher learning should not grant access, whatsoever; despite the benefits, they bear from these companies. In addition, some of these institutions give misleading information, moreover to selling student lists, by giving promises of broader options concerning higher-education options (Golden). The information collected from these students is only beneficial to credit companies that commission such surveys and capitalize by using it for marketing. Other than exploitation by both institutions of higher learning and credit card companies, credit cards are a deception to students as they are not crucial to their life as students. Credit cards do not add any value except accrued debt and a lifetime of paying for it.

Colleges should actively advocate against the use of credit cards, as they are non-essential products required by students. This is a critical move towards helping colleges and universities lower their own costs of operation, as well as save students the trouble of having claimants on their backs. The move is significant because of the charges that come with processing credit card payments thus, curbing the operating costs of these institutions. Therefore to ensure that students do not use their credit cards, or even to deter them from using the said cards, some institutions are charging the processing fees in cards such as visas that are used to pay for tuition, parking, and other services rendered in the institutions (Greene). Therefore, by doing so, credit card companies will be deterred from mounting their marketing stands in colleges and luring students to apply for finances that they do not require. This is by use of gifts at campus events in an attempt to attract them towards opening a credit card account (Zhu). In addition, due to the lack of independence demonstrated by most students, since they are either dependent on parents or guardians, the use of credit cards exposes them to greater risk (Zhu). This is in the form of promoting the inability to cope with their own needs and putting an end to reliance on advances; that one cannot afford due to either low income or lack of means to do as a job. Not only do they put students at risk, but also the parents and guardians who co-sign the application forms as per the law (Zhu). This is because; spending that which they do not have puts the guardian in a position of responsibility to bear the cost of financing luxuries in the name of emergencies most of which usually end up as “fashion emergencies”.

The fine print, otherwise known as terms and conditions, used by credit card companies is oppressive to students who apply for the cards. This is because; the cards are marketed by companies that have an edge in marketing strategies owing to the information they have on students. In addition, they also have information on their vulnerable points concerning financing. As a result, they lure students into offering them quick solutions to the extent; that they do not understand, if at all they read, the terms and conditions that accompany the approval of their application. This is evidenced by the fact that, at the age of 18years, a majority of fresh college entrants possess credit cards. The role of credit cards to students is termed out all wrong as credit card companies issue the cards claiming that they come in handy in times of emergency. This is not the case as even students going overseas, and are met with emergencies stand a chance to use their debit cards to withdraw cash from their banks.