oliviachang

hey, i was just wondering if anybody could help me out regarding banks in UIUC. what kind of banking services do students use? do they have Citibank?

thanks!

im_blue

You can go to each bank's web site and see if they have ATMs located in convenient locations. If there's also a location in your hometown, that would make it convenient for your parents to deposit money into your account.

oliviachang

^thanks for your prompt reply.

i'm actually an international student so wiring money is a little bit more complicated.
is the banking service at the school opened by the school itself? i checked out citibank but they only have one in chicago :\

seren

They push TCF pretty hard, there is a small branch right in the illini bookstore and they let you set it up so your i-card can be a debit card, and I think they have a lot of TCF atm's right on campus. My brother didn't have a bank account already so he went with that (just a simple checking/debit card dealie), my parents also have one in a nearby Jewel so they can go over there and deposit money into his account for him so that works out pretty well. He went and signed up for it in the bookstore while he had about a billion hours to kill before his adviser appointment on his registration day. So it's been almost a year now and he's pretty happy with it.

I already have a bank account that I've had for years (Chase) and I know they have a branch down there so I don't really want to change. I think if I wasn't attached though, I'd probably just go the TCF route.

seren

A little more info on it too:
TCF Bank Partnership

tennisfan88

TCF has just started to become more mainstream, however personally I just don't like it. There are quite a few JP Morgan Chase ATM's here and also there's a bank center in downtown champaign that the bus can take you to. Just in general I'm more comfortable with Chase. Also since you're international Chase is probably more accepting to wire transfers and also it's easy to open up a free Chase account for college students.

taffy

University of Illinois Employees CU is what I use. They have a place in the union.

Paerra

If you do the TCF thing, you have to use your i-Card as a debit card, which may or may not be a good thing (considering how often you'll be using your i-Card, you run a high risk of losing it). Plus, I'm not sure if all businesses will be willing to accept a debit card that looks like a university i.d. card. For me, I just plain like the thought of having a separate debit card that I can keep in my wallet.

If you do the TCF thing, you get a free Illinois hoodie. Too bad it has the TCF logo right on the front. I see these everywhere.

missil3

For an international student, I would suggest openning an account from a Bank that is known world wide and has an atm close to campus. Bank of America charges 10$ on all wire transfers, check for such fees before you decide which one you want to open.