"Before they know it, they're behind the eight ball in terms of credit card debt," he says. "That's what scary to me as a freshman proctor."

Taking Care of Business

DeGreeff isn't the only one scared.

Spurred by several of suicides by college students unable to cope with mounting credit debt, Manning of Georgetown says he has used recent appearances on ABC's "Good Morning America" and on National Public Radio to encourage universities to address the problem.

He is critical of the surveys some colleges use to measure the magnitude of credit problems on campus because they typically draw from a pool of enrolled students.

That type of methodology, he claims, fails to get to the heart of the problem.

"The people with the worst credit card problems are not captured--they've [already] dropped out," Manning says.

To prevent unmanageable credit from reaching the level where students have to drop out, a number of consumer advocacy groups have set up programs to help educate students about the advantages--and dangers--of using credit cards.