Fixing your credit score can be very stressful at times and it feels like it’s never ending where the bills keep piling in and it seems like you’re making no progress. While most people tend to just give up and declare Bankruptcy, there are many ways you can fix your credit score and start off where you started when you first grabbed your first Credit Card.

Building and maintaining good credit is more important today than ever. Whether we realize it or not, so many parts of our daily financial lives revolve around our credit scores. But don’t fret — abide by these five must know credit tips for students and you shouldn’t have any problems at all.

CoreLogic and FICO partnered last year to offer lenders an alternative credit score for more predictive scoring, which includes data previously not used in credit scoring, from a borrowers cell phone bill, utilities, payday loan activity, to child support judgments, evictions, property tax liens, the status of homeowner’s association dues, whether or not a borrower is underwater on their current home, or whether a borrower owns other properties that credit agencies typically miss.

A “Charge Off” is an accounting term that creditors use when they assume after a period of delinquency that they are not able to collect on a debt that is owed to them. Creditors write that debt off as a loss against their income taxes. Just because a debt is charged off (or written off) does not mean the debt is forgiven. The money is still owed. The creditor will usually sell or assign the debt to a collection agency or a lawyer to effect collection.

If you’re thinking you can settle your student loan debt for 40% to 60% less than what you currently owe, think again. Student loans are nearly impossible to discharge in bankruptcy and therefore just as difficult to settle. If you’ve defaulted on your student loans, your best option is to figure out how to get caught up. Otherwise, you could be sued for the debt.