you have to establish credit and rite away...i was amazed when i started getting pre approved credit cards at the age of 17 but it was because of my credit which i built up a good rep for. I had music cd subscriptions and magazine subscriptions which i payed promptly and had a job that paid a decent salary at my age. but salary in this situation doesnt really matter wut does matter is building your credit and fast. the US runs on this its like oil you have to have good credit for everything.