Credit card companies are hitting students hard. Sending them mail,
tabling at big events, pre-approving them for thousands of dollars, but
a group at the university is working to help out these unsuspecting
students.
Living on the budget of a college student can be
tough and free junk is hard to pass up! Credit card companies know this
better than anyone and are using it to get young folks to sign up. But,
what students don't learn in class is how to deal with credit card
debt. High interest rates, hidden fees, and bill after bill after bill.
Now, at the U of O, an organization called Ospirg is hoping to knock
some sense about the debt into unsuspecting students.
To get
students' attention Osprig is spoofing credit card companies by passing
out their own free hats and shirts, but at the same time letting them
know it's not easy getting out of debt. Financial advisors on campus
say they deal with many students whose credit card woes are making it
hard for them to make ends meet.
Something some incoming
freshman have already learned about. With that education, and the help
of Ospirg, hopefully more students realize, nothing's ever really free.
The campus campaign will run all year and next term a personal
finance class will be offered to help students manage their budget.
Right now, about fifteen states restrict or ban credit-card marketing
on college campuses.
