Back-to-School is Time for High School Seniors to Get Serious About College

Search Blogs that Mention this News Release
Click this link to view linked Bookmarking Services
Click this link to view linked Blogging Services
Back-to-School is Time for High School Seniors to Get Serious About College
            Wiredscholar.com Offers Valuable Interactive Tools And
              Information for College Preparation and Financing

    RESTON, Va., Aug. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- With the pomp and circumstance less
than one academic year away, it's time for high school seniors to focus on
their post-graduation plans. If they're planning to attend college next year,
there are things to be done and decisions to be made this fall -- the first of
which is deciding where to apply.  With thousands of postsecondary
institutions to choose from, students often need help narrowing down their
choices.  Wiredscholar.com, the foremost online "going-to-college" resource,
has new site features including interactive tools and information to help
students and families prepare for and select a college.
    "The first big roadblock in the planning and paying for college process is
often determining which schools to apply to," said Michael Darne, director,
wiredscholar.com. "Wiredscholar.com's interactive tools and calculators help
college-bound students narrow down their choices and apply to schools that
best meet their needs."
    Among the new features, the school comparison tool allows students to get
detailed information about the schools they are interested in at the click of
a mouse.  Students can access information on admissions, the campus
environment, enrollment, freshmen admissions profiles, school expense and
financial aid for schools they are considering. They can even view up to three
schools at once, side-by-side, from wiredscholar.com's database of nearly
4,000 schools.
    In addition, coming later this fall, students will be able to search for
schools that best meet their needs, based on state, entrance difficulty,
public versus private, SAT/ACT test score ranges, campus settings,
undergraduate student enrollment, combined tuition, room and board fees and
majors.
    Another feature is the school affordability calculator, which helps
students and families determine how much out-of-pocket expense they can
realistically afford.  This tool quickly finds the average cost of attending
the schools students are interested in, the average financial aid awards
offered by each, and how much families might be expected to pay out-of-pocket.
Once students and families have a general idea of their financial need, the
tool highlights the various financing options at their disposal, including
student loan programs.  The calculator will even tell students how much they
can expect their monthly payments to be if they choose a loan program to help
pay for the cost of their education. Even families of high school freshmen and
sophomores can use this tool to give them an idea of how much they can expect
to pay in the future.

    Wiredscholar.com offers other interactive tools and information to guide
students and their families through the college preparation and selection
process, allowing them to prepare, evaluate, select, apply for and finance an
education entirely online. Additional resources include:

    *  Online test preparation from kaptest.com;
    *  Pros and cons of early admission;
    *  Scholarship database including information on more than 600,000
       scholarships;
    *  Tips on how to apply for scholarships;
    *  Savings and budget calculators; and
    *  Online loan functionality and information about financial aid.

    About wiredscholar.com
    Wiredscholar.com is the foremost online resource for "going-to-college"
information for students, parents and guidance professionals.  Launched in
spring 2000, the site is the most comprehensive and objective resource on the
Web for information and interactive tools to assist with college preparation,
evaluation, selection, application and financing, all in one online location.
Wiredscholar.com is an independent brand of Sallie Mae, the nation's largest
source of education funding, which extends the company's commitment to helping
students achieve a higher education.  For more information, visit
http://www.wiredscholar.com.
SOURCE Wiredscholar.com
http://www.salliemae.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/147826.html or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 147826
CONTACT:
Tara Malatesta of The Castle Group, Inc.,
617-227-0012 ext 234 or email: tmalatesta@thecastlegrp.com, for
Wiredscholar.com