After having my student Barclaycard for two years now, I can honestly say that I’m relatively happy with the service I’ve received. Sure, the card has both advantages and disadvantages, but on the whole, the package they offer is attractive and sensibly designed for students.
When I started ... Read review
Advantages: great benefits, nice low-ish credit limit, excellent customer service. Disadvantages: APR too high in my opinion
After having my student Barclaycard for two years now, I can honestly say that I’m relatively happy with the service I’ve received. Sure, the card has both advantages and disadvantages, but on the whole, the package they offer is attractive and sensibly designed for students.
When I started at university, I decided I needed a credit card. Well, I was living away from home, and worried about those nasty gaps in between student loan ... ...spied a Barclaycard stall at my Freshers’ Fair in the first week of the first term and went for it.
The application process was incredibly easy – I was guided through it by the advisor, and all of the necessary information was given to me before I actually committed myself. After applying, the card and paperwork arrived about a week and a half later – I was quite impressed with the speed at which they manage to process applications. more
After having my student Barclaycard for two years now, I can honestly say that I’m relatively happy with the service I’ve received. Sure, the card has both advantages and disadvantages, but on the whole, the package they offer is attractive and sensibly designed for students.
When I started at university, I decided I needed a credit card. Well, I was living away from home, and worried about those nasty gaps in between student loan payments. I know I should have shopped around, but I spied a Barclaycard stall at my Freshers’ Fair in the first week of the first term and went for it.
The application process was incredibly easy – I was guided through it by the advisor, and all of the necessary information was given to me before I actually committed myself. After applying, the card and paperwork arrived about a week and a half later – I was quite impressed with the speed at which they manage to process applications.
So, what does the student Barclaycard offer you? Their range of benefits is quite large, and detailed below:
- Free £30 worth of vouchers, redeemable in Waterstones and HMV. - 15% of Waterstones and HMV vouchers bought on the Barclaycard. (useful – you should see the number of books that we students have to buy!) - No annual fee. - Credit limit of up to £600, which is reviewed regularly for the customer. - Free online account management. - Free extended warranty. - Free price promise. - Free purchase cover.
As you can see, it’s a pretty good package, with lots of benefits that should appeal to students. Free online account management is very handy indeed – after registering to view your account online, you can see what your balance is, see when bills must be paid by, and even pay your bill online if you have a debit card with which to do so. You can be confident that your details won’t be seen by anyone else online – the Barclaycard server is encrypted and very secure.
The price promise aspect of Barclaycard is very useful – if you buy something on your Barclaycard and see it cheaper elsewhere, Barclaycard will refund the difference. Well, we all know students need to save money – this is an ideal way to do it!
The extended warranty and purchase cover also help you out with money, but in a different respect. Barclaycard offers a whole year’s extra warranty on household appliances, but I believe that the appliances have to be worth at least £50. Purchase cover is great, as Barclaycard give you 60 days cover against theft and accidental damage when you buy products with your card, both online and on the high street, providing that cover has not already been provided.
Add to these the fact that you get up to 8 weeks interest free credit when you pay off your bill on time and in full, and the fact that you can earn Nectar points when shopping with Barclaycard (Nectar has replaced the Barclaycard Rewards Scheme – you earn 500 points when you apply for a Barclaycard, and get one Nectar point for every £2 spent on the card) – it’s a great package!
However, it does have its disadvantages, these mainly being in the three little letters APR. APR on the student Barclaycard is 17.9% (20.8% for cash withdrawals) - if you’re not planning on paying off your bill in full every month, then you should probably shop around, as there are plenty of cards out there with a lower rate of APR. Basically, this 17.9% means that if you don’t pay off your bill in full, 17.9% of the remaining amount will be added to your next bill, meaning you have more to pay. So if you just pay off the minimum every month, you’ll soon find your bill getting gradually higher….
Speaking of billing, this is something that Barclaycard do very well. Bills arrive once a month, and detail all of your expenditure in the last month, and give you a total and how much you have to pay before a certain date. You are usually given a good few weeks in between receiving the bill and having to pay, meaning that you have time to sort out payment – you don’t get charged because of the company billing you too late, as has happened with a few of my friends who have other cards. The bills are laid out very well and are incredibly easy to understand. On the back of your bill, you will find useful information about your card, such as useful phone numbers, and info about interest and charges, and how to pay. Be warned, though – if you don’t pay your bill on time, you’ll be charged a whopping £20, which will appear on your statement the following month.
Customer service at Barclaycard is brilliant. If you phone one of their customer service advisors, you’ll be treated in a friendly and helpful manner, and the staff seem like they genuinely want to help, rather than sounding bored. Their customer services line is open 24/7, and is secure – before the staff can discuss your account with you, you must first provide some personal information that you give when opening the account, so they can verify that it is really you who is calling.
The customer service facilities in branches of Barclays Bank are also very good. A lot of banks now have resident student advisors, particularly when situated in the vicinity of a university or higher education college, and these people are trained especially to deal with students’ accounts. They are always, in my experience, friendly and helpful, and if you have problems with the account, they’re happy to help you to sort them out.
So there you have it. If you’re after a student account with a huge number of benefits relevant to students, along with the option of internet banking and great customer service, then this is the credit card for you. However, if you’re looking for a relatively high credit limit, or aren’t planning on paying your bill off monthly, then look elsewhere – the credit limit is not amazingly high, and the APR is not amazingly low. Four stars from me – I would definitely recommend this card.
Advantages: Not a bad limit, safe for internet shopping, extended warranties Disadvantages: APR is not the best
I applied for my Student Barclaycard when I first started university a few years ago. To be honest, I only applied because they offered £25 free because I already had a Barlcay's student account. I think the current offer is Waterstones or HMV vouchers. There's no annual fee.
The standard credit limit on the Student Barclaycard is £500, which is enough to get by, and not bring untold financial ruin upon yourself! The APR is 17.9% on standard purchases, ... ...like it to be, and Barclaycard have been understanding in the past when I've had to phone them to let them know the payment will be a few days late because of waiting on loan cheque/wages or whatever.
As well as the normal credit card funtions, the student Barclaycard has some extra features:
Purchase cover
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Pretty much any item on your Barclaycard over £50 is insured for 60 days for accidental damage or if it is stolen.
Extended ...
mick101 20.04.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard Student
Advantages: High Credit Limit Disadvantages: High APR
...lot of freedom, and Student Barclaycard has certainly helped to fund mine. Student Barclaycard is available to all full time higher education students. You can open the account as soon as you have the letter from UCAS confirming that you have a place at university. Student Barclaycards are only available as Visas, standard customers are allowed the choice of a MasterCard; however I have not been in any situations where my Visa was not accepted but ... ...The maximum credit limit that Barclaycard offers students is £1500, however if you sign/have signed the agreement after September 2001, your maximum limit will be £500, but you do get 1% cash back, something that those of us who signed the agreement earlier do not get. The older agreement limit is very generous and I have not come across any other student credit card offering that much, the newer limit is more in line with other credit cards available ...
LexiJo 18.03.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard Student
Advantages: Big, dependable provider Disadvantages: perhaps not the best APR out there
I've been using student barclaycard for four years now and I've had nothing but satisfaction from them.
Their service line is always polite and helpful. One experience in particular where my card was stolen whilst I was on holiday in Rome was dealt with very well . The person on the other end of the service line sounded genuinely concerned and actually made me feel a lot better. The card packacge includes
-no annual fees
-£30 Waterstones or HMV ... ...through barclaycard
-up to £600 credit limit
-APR 17.9%
-Free 12 month extended warranty on products purchased with Barclaycard
-Free price promise - they will refund the difference if you find something you bought cheaper elsewhere
-Purchase cover- items covered for accidental damage for 60 days
-Internet delivery protection and online account management
-Barclaycard International rescue (that was so useful in Italy - see above)
-Nectar ...
Ciaoboy 13.09.2002 (14.09.2002)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard Student
Advantages: Easy to use card, with sensible credit limit Disadvantages: The words credit and students are a dangerous combination
...reason for getting a student barclaycard was the fact they offered me £30 of waterstones vouchers, which was extremely useful as my first year book list is almost as long as my arm! However, since receiving my student barclaycard, I have been pleasantly suprised by its ease of use, as well as the excellent customer service I have been given.
Before you ask, Barclays is an extremely "student friendly" bank unlike some of the other high street banks, ... ...of opening the account and barclaycard took about 15 mins, and I received all of my account stationry in the post within the next couple of weeks.
Unlike a number of other student credit cards I have been offered, Barclays set a sensible starting credit limit of £250 allowing you time to get used to the spending freedom the card offers. Furthermore, they review your credit limit at the end of each month, and only increase it when they believe you ...
tomhughes78 02.02.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard Student
Advantages: great introduction to credit card, good reward scheme, sensible apr for student account Disadvantages: needs to be run carefully or could get in too deep
My student Barclaycard was my first experience of credit and a very good introduction to the ‘grown-up’ world of plastic. It was offered to me as an account holder when I updated to a student account, along with the very attractive incentive of £30 of Waterstone’s vouchers. (incidentally, these can also be spent at HMV)
Barclaycard also offer their new student customers the following benefits:
· 15% savings on Waterstone's & HMV vouchers all year ... ...scared off though! My Barclaycard has helped me many a time when funds have been tight. And it’s always nice to be able to treat yourself and spread the cost. There’s online account access so you can keep on top of your balance and make a debit card payment if you’re close to the limit. You can apply easily on-line or at your local branch who will be able to assist you with any queries. Also, the customer service offered both online and over the ...
nicolemorgan 05.04.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard Student
Competitiveness of APR
Product package
Quality of Customer Ser...
Reward Scheme
Additional Charges
Security and Privacy
Ease of Application
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I got the StudentBarclaycard when I first started university in 1999. The application process was fast and straightforward (leaflets are available at universities or go to www.barclaycard.co.uk). At that time, they were giving away a Phillips C12 BT Cellnet Pay as You Go Mobile phone free with each successful application so that was a great bonus. However, I am not sure if this offer is still applicable.
With it being a studentbarclaycard, there is no annual fee. You are billed monthly and the minimum monthly payment is £5. The current monthly interest rate stands at 1.492%. Barclaycard provide you with a detailed two page statement each month - page one is a summary including your balance, what and when to pay and your credit limit. Page two is a more comprehensive breakdown of your individual monthly transactions.
Cash ...
paulruegg 28.01.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard
Advantages: £20 book vouchers, internet accessability, internet gaurantee and extra warrenty Disadvantages: slowness in website
I got the studentBarclaycard when I started university in 1999. At the time they were offering a mobile phone pay as you go and so I accepted. This came in useful. However now I believe they are offering £20 in book vouchers to open a Barclaycard account(best check though):
www.Barclaycard.co.uk, and click on register.
You can access your account over the net (see above and once registered click on the link to logon). This service, I find particulary useful as I then transfer money from my regular student bank account to pay off the credit on the Barclaycard.NOTE: the Barclaycard homepage takes a while to load and when it does bits disappear, this is suppossed to be arty but is just annoying, hang on though , it will load up in the end.
I do use my barclaycard a fair bit but tend to pay the money back in the six week period ...
Patrick187_ 08.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Barclaycard
Advantages: Easy to obtain, big name card, security, website, hard to get into difficulty with Disadvantages: Measly original limit of £350
I got a Barclaycard in 1999 as part of the deal with opening up my Student Account there. It was not an informed decision, as because I was putting a sizeable amount into my account to open it, they practically said I would be accepted for the card, and my lack of credit history meant I was havig trouble gaining a credit card.
Having said that, it has been of great use to me. The credit limit you originally get is hardly outstanding , only £350, but use your card regularly and it soon starts going up.
It's a Visa card (Barclaycard won't issue a Mastercard to students for some reason) and is so available for use in pretty much every store you care to spend money at.
Security wise I have never had problems with this card, and I am perfectly happy to use it on the Internet and over the phone. Barclaycard certainly seems ...
AndyConnolly 23.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Barclaycard
