If you open a bank account on St. Kitts (and we recommend that you do) you will get a Visa debit card and checks. There are two banks that we recommend. One is The Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotia Bank) and the Royal Bank of Canada. Both are Canadian and both are substantial corporations.

Depositing money in US or EC dollars does make a difference. If you deposit as EC dollars, you can only withdraw money at ATMs that give EC dollars. The ATM outside of campus is one of those machines. On the other hand, if you deposit in US dollars, you can only withdraw from the ATM at the Marriott since it issues US dollars. (Of course, you could make a withdrawal at the counter of Scotia Bank.)

I cannot answer questions about withdrawing EC or US dollars from RBC since I have little experience there.

Money that is deposited in US Banks can be withdrawn at any ATM with a debit card. Your home bank may charge you for using an ATM that is not a part of their system. You also will have to deposit your financial aid check in your home bank. Since you will receive that check in St. Kitts, there is an additional problem in getting it back to the US. An on-island account makes more sense.