I am really starting to hate Delta and their endless spree of making MQM's so easy to earn.

How possible is an upgrade as GM right now when flying mainline DL ?

IMO, upgrades as a GM are great. I've only missed 3-4 since January 2007 and that's why I fly DL. I actually value these upgrades more than the miles I accrue, which is why I'm willing to fly DL (where miles are worth next to nothing, but I'll get upgraded) compared to AA/UA (where miles are greatly more valuable but upgrades are harder to come by/cost $). Once my upgrade % drops, there's no reason for me to stay.

Actually, this is open to anybody with a French bank account. If you don't already have Euros parked in France, it would be a pain to open a bank account and pay the CC.
But those who have a bank account in France can open the CC regardless of where they reside.

Acrtually, by virtue of having the BoA card, you can already board early, so Silver is totally worthless then - in this case

To the OP,

Why exactly is elite status that important to you. It's important to people who fly a lot, because they're generally working and it gives them several extra days of sleep a year. Given that you're student and don't fly a lot, why are you hunting for credit cards for this? One credit card is ok to build credit rating, but many of the cards people are discussing here come with fees. Something with no fee or a cash back option would be better for someone without employment.

I was asking because I was looking to get a card to build my rating [I just use debit card now] - and I was curious if there would have been an added benefit of an Elite status with one of them, if at all possible.

That's for Credit Card Forum, Not MilesBuzz!
 

1. Credit rating is a TOTALLY different issue with Elite (FFP/hotel) status. Credit rating/score lines of questions are NOT MilesBuzz! thread. For those who own creditcards with elite status, generally speaking, are heavy spenders or frequent flyers already (with good paying jobs ;)). Hence their credit ratings/history are good to start with. Elite status is not a criteria for credit rating.

2. For students who NEVER have a credit card, it may be difficult to get the very 1st card, let alone a card with Elite status (due to close to zero credit history and limited income). I am a student myself so I've been there. You should aim and start small: get A credit card. That should be your starting point.

As I had mentioned eariler and I am going to say it again, you should visit Credit Card Forum to search for similar topics and join the discussion, if your focus is about getting a credit card and learn about credit history/rating/score. I recall at least 3-4 threads starting by student FTers and I had posted in.

You may even start another thread in credit card fora. @:-)

I'd advocate a no fee credit card or something cash back if you can find it. For most students that will be more beneficial than elite status. Generally, the people who really benefit from status fly enough to get it. If you only fly a few times a year, the time savings isn't that much and any card that will get you any kind of benefit is going to have a high cost coming along with it.

For your first credit card, I'd just get what I suggested above and have them set your limit at $500. Use it to pay one recurring bill and pay it monthly. Credit cards are not something a student (or even non-student) should have. Anyone who carries a credit card balance for a long time is being very irresponsible for their own money. They should only ever be used as a way to deal with large dollar purchases that are needed right away or for large purchases where you might want purchase protection. Students should only be using these things to build credit.

I disagree, in part.

I agree that anyone who values their money (i.e., their time and effort) should not carry a balance at anything but 0%, except for unavoidable life or death emergencies.

That said, I think anyone who values their money should put every purchase they make on a credit or charge card and pay the balance in full when it is due. I have been doing this since I was 18 and I have a great credit score. You must simply be responsible about spending. I know, easier said than done. But, the fact remains that every purchase you make on a CC is discounted (no pun intended), either through points or cash back.

Charge everything, including $0.62 tacos (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=809081), but never pay interest.

Also, I can understand the desire for elite status, even though I take fewer than 10 trips a year.

Why not start with a no-fee card like this:

http://www.firstusa.com/cgi-bin/webc...lus&page=index

It won't earn you elite status, but then again, unless you're spending quite a lot, you won't be able to earn elite status using another card either. Given that you're a student, I don't expect that you have spending at that level (although I'm sure there are plenty who do). I'd recommend focusing on a no-fee card geared towards students, such as the one above or the Amex Blue for Students. As for the credit line, having a higher one will help your credit. In my opinion, theres no reason to artificially lower your credit line - if you're going to get in trouble spending-wise, starting with a low credit line isn't going to solve that problem. I made it through college without getting into trouble with credit cards, but know many who were not so lucky, so do be cautious.

I know that Elite Status has nothing to do with score. I was asking because if someone was to have said - "Oh yeah get the Citi on AA" or the Starwood SPG" or w/e, and it was a card I could have got - I would have factored that into my plans.

Thats all, sorry for this thread getting so off topic.

I have to disagree with you on this. The credit card industry has been described as a marketplace that went through a big change recently; CC is now one of the primary methods of payment for all age groups (sometimes THE method of payment). Of course, I understand younger generations (more likely to be students in college, etc) carry less understanding/experience/control over how to use credit wisely, but how else are they (including myself) going to learn how to manage it if they don't extensively use it?

I started using CCs when I turned 18 (now 22) and I have gone through a few times where I came close to having a red mark on my record (almost late payment etc) but have been able to stay clean. I charge my breakfast, lunch, dinner, bus fare, books, records, ice cream, airplane tickets, rent, video games, etc. I work while attending school and have built credit very rapidly by putting in most of my required spendings on my cards. My loan advisors comment on my multiple, well-established revolving credit lines and say I will almost be guaranteed the best rating when I consolidate my loans after graduation. I was able to get bonus points for getting good grades.. got my warranties mirrored, got points for flying.. the list goes on.

I think, given that the risk is understood, students in fact should start using credit cards as early as possible starting with small limits, preferably with multiple cards to be able to leverage the breadth of your revolving history, not just length of your history.. It would definitely suck if i have to wait 4 years after getting out of college to even have any substantial history...

Could you please provide a link to this information. Thanks!

Do you have any suggestions on a card that will give me qualifing miles on Delta? I need about 60,000 to reach my 2million marker and don't travel as much as I did?

Unfortunately, several AMEX cards provide this feature, including a new one that will let you earn up to 30,000 EQM by itself.

Will you be traveling a bit more once you reach 2mm

In the interest of being thorough, and for future search purposes, charging $60,000 on a Frontier Airlines Mastercard will get you Ascent status. This entitles you to a 25% mileage bonus and free Directv, most notably. Additionally you can also use 30k miles for "Early Returns Plus" redemption awards, which can get you in any available seat for domestic flights regardless of capacity or blackout dates.

I'd wait till Frontier gets out of bankruptcy first :cool: