Students and Parents Now Have Access to a Comprehensive College Financial Education Resource
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE via COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Aug 22, 2001--GetSmart (www.getsmart.com), a leading online financial services marketplace, today announced the addition of Wiredscholar -- a comprehensive online resource that allows college-bound students, their parents and guidance professionals to quickly and easily prepare, evaluate, select and apply for education financing -- all utilizing the convenience of the Internet.
According to U.S. Department of Education statistics, for the 1999-2000 academic year, annual prices for undergraduate tuition, room and board were estimated to be $8,265 at public colleges and $20,805 at private colleges. In the past 12 months alone, there were nearly one million unsubsidized student loans (loans not based upon economic need) awarded in the U.S. totaling more than $6.3 billion -- a number that is expected to increase as college costs continue to rise.
''Planning for college is one of the most important decisions a person can make,'' said Lauri Kober, CEO of GetSmart. ''Wiredscholar makes this decision easier by combining everything college-bound students and their families need to evaluate and prepare for college all on one web site. The addition of this service makes visiting GetSmart even more valuable for consumers.''
Wiredscholar, which is part of Sallie Mae (Sallie Mae was established in 1972 as a federally chartered, government-sponsored, stockholder-owned company), is the premier ''go-to-college'' online resource designed to meet the needs of students by providing comprehensive information about going to college. Other education web sites focus on only one component of the education lifecycle, such as a financial aid, making it necessary to search multiple sites to meet consumer needs. Wiredscholar is an inclusive Internet destination that provides an extensive overview -- from test preparation to college selection to meeting tuition expenses -- of everything a student needs to prepare for college.
Wiredscholar provides:
-- Information on the nation`s only online student loan application and fulfillment system, in which students can choose from more than 500 loan lenders assistance in preparing for college entrance tests
-- Access to a detailed database of information on 4,000 undergraduate colleges and universities in the U.S.
-- Guidance on choosing the college or university that best meets a student`s academic and financial needs
-- Detailed information on financial planning, locating scholarships and understanding award letters and funding options
-- Tips on writing admissions essays and understanding the admissions process, including managing deadlines
-- Access to self-assessment tools to help students explore potential career opportunities
-- Access to the largest scholarship database available to students and families today, with more than $1 billion in scholarship resources represented
-- Interactive tools and calculators to help families estimate the costs of college
-- Tools to help compare and evaluate college acceptance and financial aid award letters
-- Information on how to compare student loan lenders and borrow responsibly
About GetSmart
GetSmart is a leading financial services marketplace that provides consumers with the tools to efficiently manage their finances and access competitive financial products and services through a single online destination. Consumers can access a range of products from more than 100 financial service providers, including credit cards, mortgage and auto loans, electronic bill payment, and account aggregation. In 2000, GetSmart.com was named ''one of the 50 most incredibly useful sites'' by Yahoo`s Internet Life magazine. Founded in 1996, GetSmart is based in San Francisco and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Providian Financial Corp. (NYSE:PVN).
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