studentrate

Almost every bank has some kind of special program for students as part of their long term customer goals. If they satisfy their customers while they are young, the customers are more likely to stick with that bank long after graduation. With this said, here is what you need to do to get started.

1. Figure out which bank is on or near your campus. It will save you a lot of hassle if you ever need to actually go into the bank and it’s conveniently located near you while you’re at school.
2. Figure out which bank’s ATMs are on or near your campus. If the ATM on campus is for Citizen’s Bank and your account is with Bank of America, every time you need to make a transaction you’re going to get charged a fee, which adds up over the semester. Not to mention you can’t make deposits at an ATM that isn’t your bank’s ATM.
3. Set-up an appointment with someone from the local branch of the bank on your campus to discuss student banking options. If there is more than one option, then check them all out and figure out which is going to offer you the best options now AND for when you’re out of college.
4. Set-up a checking and savings account. A lot of banks offer students the option to open both at the same time for no fee or interest. Sometimes they will require you to keep a minimum in your savings, but it’s a good idea to do this anyways because if you ever overdraw your checking account, most banks will automatically transfer more money in from your savings account to avoid overdraft charges.
5. Set-up ebill on your account. Most banks if not all banks now offer online banking to make your life that much easier. You just sign on and view all your transactions and balances on all your accounts. With this also usually comes the option to pay your bills online. It’s easy to set-up and use and is automated, saving you from late fees if you ever forget to pay your bills. You can set it to pay your bill automatically on a specified day every month or you can do it yourself in one click.

I personally use Bank of America. There are chains everywhere and an ATM on campus. Not to mention my student loans are from them and they offer great rates. It’s just overall really convenient. I have a checking and savings account with them that are linked so I can’t overdraw my checking account as long as I have money in my savings. With their student program, you need to have a minimum of $300 in your savings in order to avoid any fees, but it’s worth it because I have overdrawn before and it has saved me so much money is penalty fees. Another great feature is their online banking that allows me to log on whenever and see how much I have in each of my accounts including any pending charges. I also set it up so I can easily pay certain bills online such as my credit card. Another cool feature with their online billing is if someone else also has an account with Bank of America you can do direct transfers between accounts. Therefore, if I ever need money from my parents who also have accounts with Bank of America, they can just specify the amount and click submit and I have the money right away. I’m not trying to be a promoter of Bank of America, but I have had accounts at two other banks before this and they don’t even compare. I personally would never change banks again because they are so easy to deal with.

bank of america is best for college students hands down