Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One® Review

Parents, legislators and consumer advocates have debated the merits of student credit cards, especially after allegations of questionable marketing practices on college campuses. That's why it's great to see how Capital One has promoted its Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One® credit card as a tool for young Americans to build good financial habits with responsible use. This credit card for students with limited, fair or average credit uses Capital One's features and benefits as incentives to reward responsible saving and spending.

Teaching students the benefits of credit cards over prepaid debit cards

According to research conducted by Auriemma Consulting Group, consumers born after the 1980s tend to rely more on checking account debit cards and on prepaid debit cards instead of on credit cards for daily purchases. They tend to manage money well, but may be missing out on some of the biggest benefits of using credit cards. Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One® offers MasterCard benefits that include:

• $0 fraud liability if your card is ever lost or stolen. Stolen or lost debit cards can put your cash at risk, at least for a little while.
• Travel assistance services. Studying abroad and setting out on spring break become safer and simpler with help from a 24-hour response team that can dispatch replacement credit cards and cash advances.
• Travel and emergency assistance which is available virtually anytime, anywhere to help connect you with local emergency and assistance resources when you are away from home.
• Auto Rental Insurance. Occasional drivers will appreciate access to coverage for damage due to collision, or theft when you reserve your rental car with Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One®.

Like other Capital One credit cards, Journey Student Rewards doesn't charge fees for foreign transactions for international purchases making it an ideal travel companion for quick overseas trips or extended stays abroad.

Using today's technology to manage a student credit card

Even with a strong slate of premium features, Journey Student Rewards really shines by connecting cash -back rebates to responsible credit card use. In addition to the 1 percent cash back common among many of today's best cash-back rewards cards, Journey Student Rewards will boost your cash back to a total of 1.25-percent each month for cardholders who pay their bills on time.

Should you switch to Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One®?

You won't really be able to switch to Journey Student Rewards unless you're a young adult ready to trade in your authorized-user status on a parent's account for your very first individual credit card. Capital One doesn't make Journey Student Rewards (or any of its cards) available to co-applicants, so you'll have to wait until you're at least 18 years old before you can complete their application. As you get older and gain more money management experience and if you use credit responsibly you could certainly apply for credit cards with better interest rates. Until then, Journey® Student Rewards from Capital One® is one of the best student cash-back credit cards you'll find.