Gone are the days when you had to jump through a ring of fire to get a credit card.

Today, credit cards are almost as easy to get as finding a penny on the street.

Shamara Humbles, a sophomore in pre-engineering, is the owner of 27 credit cards. She only uses two credit cards out of her pile of 27.

Humbles said most of the credit cards she had were pre-approved. “Getting free gifts is a very good incentive for applying for a credit card,” she said.

Credit card companies are trying to recruit customers at a younger age. Companies have added new benefits targeted toward college students, such as discount airfare, discount long-distance calling, cash back and low interest rates. And with reduced requirements, many college students don’t even need jobs to get a credit card.

Charles Meyer, professor of economics, said credit card companies target college students because they think colleges students will stay with their company if they get them at a young age.

“College students are pursued because credit card companies think they can make money off them,” Meyer said.

Tahira Hira, professor of human development and family studies, has done research on people who file bankruptcy. She said companies are racing to be every student’s first credit card.

“There’s no incentive for college students to file bankruptcy,” Hira said. But through her research, she found younger people are filing bankruptcy. This may be partly due to easy credit,” she said.

She said she finds a lot of college students get themselves over their heads with charging. “I think they don’t ask themselves if they can afford what they’re charging,” Hira said.

Charging creates debt, which affects the economy. An example is the United States deficit. The number of credit cards sold and used does affect the economy.

“Certainly a person should know what they’re getting into,” Meyer said. “Some type of economic knowledge would create more intelligent credit card users, but you can’t force people to take an economics class.”

A recent survey conducted at Lehigh Valley University, of Pennsylvania, has found that 72 percent of college students have more than two credit cards, and three-quarters of them have a balance less than $500. The survey also illustrated that 26 percent of these students have missed payments.

Shawn McElroy, a junior in pre-architecture, had three credit cards last year. He maximized his limit on two of them, and the third one he cut up.

Although McElroy created bad credit for himself last year, he still feels college students should be sought after by credit card companies. “I think credit card companies should go after college students because they need them the most, and students need to build their credit,” McElroy said.

Jen Arzt, a sophomore in art and design, does not have any credit cards and doesn’t plan on getting any soon. “I think they let you spend money that you don’t have too fast,” she said.

Arzt said she disapproves of credit card companies enticing college students into getting credit cards because many don’t have the money to pay their bills.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has formed guides for young adults on selecting credit cards. The FTC says college students should compare cost features to see which card will best suit their financial needs:

First, consider annual percentage rate (APR). Persons should choose a card with a low APR if you are not planning to pay your monthly payment in full.

Norman Skadburg, branch manager of the Ames Amerus Bank in downtown, said they set their bank’s credit card APR rate with the prime rate each month. “This month’s prime rate is 8 percent, so our APR rate is 14.7 percent this month,” he said.

Second, annual fees should be as low as possible if a person plans to pay the full balance on the credit card each month.

A third consideration is the grace periods. These allow people to avoid finance charges if when they pay the minimum balance before the due date. Charges with longer grace periods may save money.

“A person will be charged a late payment fee of ten dollars, if the payment for that month’s balance is late on our bank’s credit card,” Skadburg said.

Anyone intending to pay all their charges every month may find it advantageous to get a card with a longer grace period.

Finally, see if there are any other charges. These should include such things as paying the bill late, charging more than a credit limit, or using the credit card as a cash card. Other charges may cost more money.

“I don’t agree with the way some credit card companies advertise and try to get customers, especially college students,” Skadburg said. “They want to make more money, so that’s why they go after younger people.”