Sallie Mae Thanks Financial Aid Professionals for Helping Families Make College Happen

NEWARK, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

National Financial Aid Day falls on October 21, and Sallie Mae – the nation's saving, planning, and paying for college company – is using the occasion to thank financial aid professionals for their efforts to help make the dream of college a reality for students and families across the country.

According to the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, the majority of Americans know little about financial aid programs or how to access them. To help raise awareness and acknowledge the contributions of financial aid professionals, Congress has designated the third Wednesday of October each year as National Financial Aid Day.

"Securing financial aid can mean the difference between being able to pursue – or having to postpone – the dream of college, and we are proud to partner with financial aid professionals across the country to help make college happen," said Kelly Christiano, senior vice president, Sallie Mae. "We salute their dedication and commitment, and we thank them for working tirelessly to help students gain access to, and achieve success in, higher education."

Finding and tapping into available financial aid can be challenging without the assistance of a financial aid professional. Working with financial aid professionals, however, simplifies the search process and makes it more productive. These experts have in-depth knowledge that makes them uniquely qualified to help students and families tailor their searches to programs and scholarships best suited to their individual circumstances.

Sallie Mae collaborates with financial aid professionals at more than 2,400 colleges and universities throughout the United States to promote financial literacy and encourage responsible borrowing. The company has the largest national school relationship team in the industry, providing relationship management, technical support, customer service, and school assistance nationwide, as well as free online resources and tools to help their students save, plan, and pay for college.

Sallie Mae is investing millions of dollars to enhance the customer experience from application through repayment, and earlier this year, the company moved all customer service of its private education loans to the United States. In addition, Sallie Mae recently extended its free FICO^® Score benefit to more than 1 million borrowers and cosigners.

For more information on saving, planning, and paying for college, visit SallieMae.com.

Sallie Mae SLM is the nation's saving, planning, and paying for college company. Whether college is a long way off or just around the corner, Sallie Mae offers products that promote responsible personal finance, including private education loans, Upromise rewards, scholarship search, college financial planning tools, insurance, and online retail banking. Learn more at SallieMae.com. Commonly known as Sallie Mae, SLM Corporation and its subsidiaries are not sponsored by or agencies of the United States of America.

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