Selecting a Student Bank Account – Features to Look For
Having a student bank account is essential when you are in college and want to manage your money efficiently. There are quite a number of banks that offer savings accounts, with more or less the same features, for students. To know about the features of student bank account, you can visit the website of the bank that you choose. But to be sure that you are choosing the best, you need to shop around and compare all the options you have.
Student bank account features
When selecting a student bank account, here are the features you should look for.
Overdraft
One of the first things to look for is the overdraft facility. Unless you are excellent at managing your resources and funds, you will need an overdraft during sometime or the other when at the university. Borrowing from peers or from other unorganised sources is not such a good idea. Most banks offer student accounts that come with an overdraft facility, which is usually limited upto a certain amount.
Choosing the best banks that have generous overdraft limits is a good idea, especially in case of emergencies. On the other hand, it is best to avoid using this facility way too much, to keep your debt burden to a minimum.
Interest rates and fee
The interest rates and bank account fee are other things to consider. Usually, banks charge an interest and fee on overdrafts. But for student accounts, they may not charge any interest on upto a certain period or upto a certain amount of overdraft in a year. Also, most banks may not have any maintenance fee for student accounts, although that could also be for a limited period.
In any case, it is best to read the terms and conditions of the bank to have a clear idea about the fees and interest rates before you actually open an account.
Incentives
A number of banks offer freebies like student insurance, traveller’s cheques, discounts on laptops and other devices, rail cards etc to attract students to open an account with them. While getting incentives can be a great idea, they shouldn’t be the only reason you choose a particular bank. Along with the other features, you should check if the incentives offered are of any use to you, and only then open an account with them.