SmarterBucks Adds Education to Student Loan Card Reward Program

SimpleTuition's SmarterBucks has launched a blog that's designed to add expert commentary to a program in which card payments contribute to student loan repayment.

SimpleTuition's SmarterBucks rewards program provides loan payments as credit card rewards. Friends, family and others that have SmarterBank Visa debit card can use the online SmarterBucks Marketplace to earn 2%-16% of each transaction's value as a loan payment. The reward value is paid directly to the lender once each month.

"Outstanding student loan debt in the U.S. recently passed the $1 trillion mark. That means there are millions of graduating students and young adults who are starting out their lives already deeply in debt," said Kevin Walker, SimpleTuition's co-founder and CEO, in a press release. "Our goal is to help them understand their repayment strategies, and provide content and tactics that can help them get debt-free faster."

Blog contributors include Lynette Khalfani-Cos, founder of AskTheMoneyCoach.com and the author of a number of books on financial management. The blog will also include contributions from people who are paying off their own student loans.

The SmarterBank card accounts are managed by Bancorp, a Wilmington, Del.-based bank and card issuer.

Sallie Mae also offers a student debt rewards program called Upromise, which allows family members to earn cash back for college through purchases with the Upromise World MasterCard. Debit card purchases are also eligible.