Student Credit & Money Management Services - Iowa Memorial Union: The University of Iowa

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Student Credit and Money Management Services

Credit Cards / Free Debt Management

Feeling overwhelmed by debt is not uncommon in college, especially when so many students carry large student loans and use credit cards to cover daily living expenses. It can be especially confusing if your family doesn't talk much about money, and it's your job to figure out how to manage money on your own.

Financial help is available

If you dread your credit-card bills -- or if you could just use a hand with budgeting and checkbook balancing -- the UI has a service for you. Free personal finance consultations are available on campus through the Consumer Credit Counseling Service at Westlawn. The counselors are nonjudgmental about all financial issues, including debts. They're there to get you financial tools and education, and to help make any debt you might have managable.

Budgeting tutorials and tools
Help managing student loans
Tutorials on wise credit-card selection and use
Assistance with checkbook balancing
Credit-history review and guidance in improving credit scores
Debt management, including negotiating interest rates, repayment amounts and schedules with creditors

You can make a confidential appointment by calling 335-3239. Your financial matters remain entirely confidential. Nothing you discuss at CCCS is disclosed to parents or anyone at the university. Consultation does not affect your loan status or registration.

What is CCCS? Is it part of the university?

CCCS is an independent nonprofit organization funded partly by the United Way, Lutheran Social Services, and other social-service agencies. Because so many students these days must carry large loans and make major financial decisions, The UI has contracted with CCCS to provide personal-finance counseling on campus. For a comprehensive overview of how CCCS works, see their website. CCCS does not charge students any fees or take a "slice" of any payments you make through them.

How can CCCS help me manage debt?

Counselors can call your lenders and negotiate lower interest rates and monthly payments for you. They'll allow you to make one monthly payment to CCCS, and then dispense it to your creditors. If creditors are incessantly calling you, CCCS will work on getting them off of your back, as long as you're clearly making a good faith effort to pay off your debts.

In addition, CCCS can help you get and understand your credit report. You're entitled to two free credit reports per year, and you can correct the report if it's reporting misinformation about you. This happens frequently, especially if you have a common name.

CCCS provides free, non-judgmental financial counseling, and getting an appointment on campus is as easy as calling 335-3259. It's the easiest step you can take to preserve your financial future, no matter how scary your current situation seems.