Credit Card Pro
Now the question is: do you want first-class flights and hotel suites, while still living on a grad student budget? Regular travel cards can only take you so far. The real shortcut is learning how to earn big sign-up bonuses and stack luxury benefits. Welcome to the RGS club.
Giorgio Sarro
The Rich Grad Student
If you’re here, you already use cards responsibly, have a great credit score, hit the right bonus categories and you're familiar with the benefits of a travel credit card and are a master at using points.
Do you want to travel often in business or first class? Do you want to stay in hotel suites, all while on a grad student budget? Regular travel cards won't cut it. Let's now dive in on how to earn large bonuses and unlock luxury benefits. Welcome to the RGS club!
Where to find large sign-up bonuses
Sign up bonuses are the fastest way to accumulate many points. There are two types of cards that allow you to do so: business credit cards and luxury travel cards.
Fun math: If you earn 150,000 points from a sign-up bonus, it would have taken $75k of spent on 2x travel card like the Venture X, or 3 years of average graduate student salary! The only way to travel in luxury often is by chasing sign-up bonuses.
Do I need to own a registered business to open a business credit card?
Surprisingly, the answer is no! Almost anyone can open a business credit card, no EIN required. Are you on a fellowship? Do you do some consulting on the side? Do you pet sit? Do you tutor? All these qualify you for a business credit card (1).
Additionally, your business will get its own credit score (with EIN), limiting the impact on your personal score after a few months (2).
Cards to become a “Rich Grad Student”
The following cards are well-suited for graduate students seeking luxury travel benefits. While they require significant spending to open and may carry high annual fees, the perks and overall value can be substantial. If the annual fee ever outweighs the benefits for you, remember that you can always downgrade the card to a no-fee option.
- Ink Business Unlimited ($0/year): A large sign-up bonus without an annual fee. This card is free! Link your business and personal account, transfer the points earned to the CSP or CSR to maximize the points value.
Signup Bonus: $750+
- Ink Business Cash ($0/year). Like the Unlimited, without an annual fee and large bonus which can be converted into lucrative Chase points.
Signup Bonus: $750+
- Marriott Bonvoy Business ($125/year - 1 free night). Get a 7% discount on all Marriott bookings, and elite status night which can be stacked with the Brilliant.
Signup Bonus: 50,000+ points and/or free nights
- Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ($650/year - $300/year in credits + One luxury free night): You'll feel like a true VIP at Marriott properties around the world. Ritz Carlton, give me that breakfast and suite right now!
Signup Bonus: 100,000+ points
- Bilt Palladium ($495/year - $600/year in credits). Access free breakfast and free room upgrades at select hotels. Earn up to 3.25x on "everything."
Signup Bonus: 50,000 points
- Chase Sapphire Reserve (CSR) ($795/year - $300/year in credits): Your CSP on steroids! Sign up when the bonus is large.
Signup Bonus: 60,000+ points
Other cards and setups exist and can make sense in specific cases. For instance, you might want to swap the CSR for the CSP business. We own more cards than the ones listed here. We crunched the numbers and believe this lineup offers the best value for graduate students.
How do I unlock the sign-up bonuses?
Both business credit cards and luxury credit cards require large spending at card opening (usually $5k to $30k within the first 3 to 6 months) to receive the large (>75k points) sign-up bonuses.
We recommend opening these cards around known large expenses and never overspending just to reach a bonus. I typically apply right before I have multiple conferences or when I'm covering a large university event that will be reimbursed.
Always do the math: If you earn 100,000 points after spending $5000, that’s a cashback of 20% (assuming 1 cent per point). If you need to pay taxes or university tuition, it can be worth paying a 2.5% credit card processing fee to secure the bonus.
Benefits of Luxury travel cards:
All the benefits of travel cards + more
Expanded Airport lounge access:
- Priority Pass. With the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, BILT Palladium or the CSR you can now bring in the lounge multiple friends with you for free.
- Bank-branded lounges. Unlimited access to Chase Sapphire Lounges for you and a friend with the CSR.
- Airline lounges. You have unlocked a new lounge category! Airlines-run lounges are generally less busy and rarely waitlist you for entry. With the CSR you unlock Air Canada lounges!
Expanded Insurance, protections
- Trip delay and cancellation coverage now reimburses higher amounts and for less delay. The CSR and BILT consider a trip delay from 6h instead of the 12h of the CSP.
- Purchase protection dollar amount significantly increases with the CSR.
- Emergency roadside assistance with the CSR.
- Emergency medical coverage and evacuation with the CSR.
Elite Status Benefits
- Hotel VIP status. 4pm checkout, free high-quality breakfast, high-floor suite upgrade, large point multipliers and more at Marriott properties with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant. Free breakfast, upgrades and property credit at hotels that are part of The Edit with the CSR.
- Hotel lounges. Hotels have lounges too, and the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant gives you access! You can eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner for free. Unlike the free breakfast, which is limited to 2 people, anyone in your room can access the lounge.
Personal experience: Three friends and I booked a room at the Marriott Seattle Airport. Thanks to my Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card, we all enjoyed free breakfast in the hotel lounge (a $100 value). Since we skipped the standard included breakfast, I also earned extra points for the stay. Free food and extra rewards at the same time.
Airline status. Having status with an airline can unlock priority check-in lines, free checked bags, and in certain cases lounge access. Getting status normally requires traveling with cash-paid tickets—a lot. With luxury travel cards, you can cheat your way. The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant unlocks priority check-in and boarding with Emirates. The CSR unlocks A-List status with Southwest (with significant spent).
References
(1) https://www.chase.com/personal/credit-cards/education/basics/get-business-card-without-ein
(2) https://www.chase.com/personal/credit-cards/education/basics/does-business-credit-card-impact-personal-credit