There are certain banks that actually focus on extending credit with MasterCard and Visa to candidates who are just starting out. You might get him to try and pick a bank, maybe one that you use, and see how he does. However, do not have him apply to more than one because multiple rejections make a person look like they are desperate to get credit.

If he gets denied for a credit card through a bank there are an additional two different ways to try next. The first one is to have him apply at a department store or for an oil card from a gas station. This is how I started my credit. My first credit card was a Standard Oil credit card. These are cards are a lot easier to get that a MasterCard or Visa charge card. Have him apply to one, either an oil company or department store, and see if he is approved. If he doesn’t get approved, have him wait a couple months before he tries again.

The second way is for him to apply for a secured credit card. He will have to put down a deposit with the credit card company but they then provide him with a credit card. To start out, the credit limit is usually the same amount as the deposit.

Once he gets credit, just tell him to be sure and stay current on it. It doesn’t hurt to keep a small balance on a department store card. It shows that he can handle installment payments. Missed payments, late payments or other problems with payments will defy everything he has tried to do to establish his credit history. Good luck! :-)

One kind of card to consider for your teenager would be a secured credit card. This is a card where the cardholder needs to load money on the card in order to use it. Once the money on the card has been used, additional funds will need to be put on the card before it can be used again.

This a good scenario because the cardholder never has to worry about spending more than they can afford, thus avoiding monthly finance charges that are incurred with traditional credit cards when the balance isn’t paid in full every month.

My first credit was a secured one with First Consumers National Bank in 2001. It was a good stepping stone for me in learning about credit cards. However, I’m sure there are many options of secured credit cards available to chose from.

If you are planning to get the first credit card for your teenager, I suggest you try Capital One credit card in coordination with Mastercard. One of the security for this type of this credit card is you have to be the co-signor with your daughter or son. The credit limits comes around from $200-$1000, as a parent you are accountable for the account.

But before jumping on the gun of having your teens carry plastic, I would suggest parents should set the ground rules for using credit cards, orient the teens on the workings of credit card interest rates, fees, penalties and other charges.

Accordingly, "Jump$tart, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., says these fresh young things aren't ready for plastic. Jump$tart's goal is to ensure that students are financially competent by the time they graduate from high school.

She says parents have to get involved if they are going to allow their children to use credit cards. "It takes supervision. If a parent has a co-signed card, they need to sit down with them and show them what interest rates are."

If this is the first time you are giving a credit card to your teenager, one of the things you should consider is getting a pre-paid credit card. When I first got a card, I wanted one mostly for emergencies and to build good spending habits. These cards are perfect for this. These cards work like a credit card in the store, but provide the security of not going over the pre-paid limit and provide great parental control. In actuality, these function more like a gift card , but can provide a nice way to get your teenager into the habit of charging responsibly.

VisaBuxx from Visa is an a great example of one of these cards: http://usa.visa.com/personal/cards/prepaid/buxx_faq.html