Tuition bills have arrived, and some families are discovering that after scholarships, grants, and federal financial aid there may be a gap when it comes to covering remaining college costs. Sallie Mae – the nation’s saving, planning, and paying for college company – offers competitive and flexible private student loans to help families make college happen.

Available for students attending degree-granting institutions, the Sallie Mae Smart Option Student Loan offers competitive fixed and variable interest rates and no origination fees or prepayment penalties. Fixed rates range from 5.74 to 11.85 percent APR, while variable rates for undergraduates range from 3.25 to 10.22 percent APR.

Smart Option Student loan customers may choose to make monthly interest-only or fixed payments while in school; or defer payments until after school. Customers also have multiple options to reduce their interest rates. Customers can receive an interest rate 0.50 percentage points lower when they opt for an in-school interest-only payment over the deferred payment option, and an interest rate 0.25 percentage points lower if they choose an in-school fixed payment over the deferred payment option. Customers can also reduce their interest rate by 0.25 percentage points by enrolling in the automatic debit option.

Lower interest rates mean customers can graduate with less student loan debt. A typical freshman customer who makes interest-only payments on a Smart Option Student Loan while in school could save as much as 25 percent on total undergraduate loan costs, compared to the deferred payment option. A typical freshman customer who makes monthly fixed payments while in school could save roughly 12 percent on total loan costs, compared to the deferred payment option.

“Even with careful saving and planning, we know that predicting the total cost of college can be a challenge,” said Kelly Christiano, senior vice president, Sallie Mae. “Our Smart Option Student Loan and Parent Loan can help bridge that financing gap affordably and responsibly, giving students and families flexibility and peace of mind whether they are entering or returning to college.”

The Smart Option Student Loan also includes:

Graduated Repayment: The Graduated Repayment Period is a transitional repayment plan that offers qualified students who have graduated from a degree-granting institution greater budget flexibility upon graduation. Students who graduate and maintain their eligible Sallie Mae loans in good standing may request to make 12 interest-only payments before transitioning into full principal and interest payments.

Study Starter Benefit: This new and exclusive benefit gives customers free access to 24/7 online tutoring and study help from the experts at Chegg. Sallie Mae is the only lender to offer this up-front, in-school benefit.

Cosigner Release: After graduating, and after making 12 on-time principal and interest payments and meeting certain other credit requirements, a primary borrower may apply to have their cosigner released from the loan.

Free Access to Credit Scores: Customers have access to their FICO® Credit Score on a quarterly basis, along with information about factors that affect credit scores and why monitoring credit scores is important.

Sallie Mae also offers the Sallie Mae Parent Loan with competitive fixed and variable interest rates, no origination fee, and a choice of repayment options. Fixed rates range from 5.74 to 12.87 percent APR and variable rates range from 4.75 to 11.12 percent APR for academic year 2017-2018. By comparison, the Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Parents is offered only at a fixed rate of 7.0 percent for academic year 2017-18, and carries an origination fee of 4.276 percent.

For more information or to apply, visit SallieMae.com.

Sallie Mae (Nasdaq: 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, 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.