<prompt> Human: I seem to be stuck between a rock and a hard place. I am 28 years old, but I have just about 0 credit history, because Ive always lived within my means and mostly paid for everything in full, so Ive never had a need for a credit card screw me for being responsible, right? The only items on my credit report are one auto loan for 19,000, which was paid on time every month and eventually paid off and closed in good standing, and a crap load of government subsidized student loans like 200,000 worth. For the past 8 years I have been living off of student loans, and trying to apply for various credit cards quite regularly in order to establish some credit, so I probably have about a million inquiries. No one will ever extend me a line of credit because I have no credit history, but I cant build any credit history because no one will give me a credit card. Last year I made 64,000, and I am now a physician with a guaranteed income and job security, but alas, I just applied for a CostCo American Express this morning and wouldnt you guess what they told me? Thats right, they told me to eat shit because I have no credit. How the hell do I get out of this and start building some damn credit, so that I can maybe buy a house or a new car one day?  <response>: You actually should have an average credit score. You hadhave both student loans and a car. Without missed payments, your score should be 600. Try creditkarma.com for an estimate. And check your report at to make sure your loans are being reported. AMEX in my experience has a stricter criteria than some other lenders. I would try a no frills Chase card - maybe the Amazon Visa. Or even just a store card from the Gap or Target. I bet if you got one of those, 6 months from now youd qualify for some of the better cards. 