What is a TD Student Line of Credit and how does it work?

Now that you’re enrolled in school, you may have realized your sweet scholarship and RESP (Thanks mom and dad!), are still not going to cover all the books and supplies you need. Luckily, you’ve got a TD Student Line of Credit. But what is it? Imagine you combined a credit card and debit card. That’s kind of what a student line of credit is. Almost. But we’ll go over all those details.

Who can get one?

When you apply for a student line of credit at TD, depending on the program you are studying, you could qualify for a specially designed student line of credit. For example, if you’re a dental student, given the higher costs of your program, you may be eligible to have a much higher credit limit than someone in an undergraduate science program. Woot!

When you’re ready to apply, you will likely be required to have a parent co-sign, because essentially a student line of credit is money you are borrowing from the bank. And if you have little or no credit history, the bank will want someone (like mom or dad) to ensure that any credit used (plus interest) will be paid off.

What’s so great about a TD Student Line of Credit?

Besides allowing you access to the credit you may need for school, you get to borrow money at a lower cost than other options. This means, the interest rate is usually lower on your student line of credit than your credit card. Plus, you will likely be given access to more credit than your credit card, too. Nice.

How does it work day-to-day?

So once you are approved for your TD Student Line of Credit, you can start using it for whatever you may need for school. For convenience, you can access your line of credit from your debit card (TD Access Card), once you set that up, write cheques and bank online. So if you know how to use your chequing account, you’re ahead of the game. When it comes to what you buy, there really aren’t any restrictions. You can buy anything from a new laptop, to a latte, but remember to spend within your limit and use good judgment. Your line of credit is not free money

How do I pay it back?

What’s cool about the TD Student Line of Credit is that while you’re in school AND for 24 months after you’ve left school, your minimum payment requirement is only the interest on your balance. Sweet deal right? Then, when it's time to start making monthly payments, your line of credit will be converted to a student loan, with comfortable monthly payments.