SMARTTRACK College Funding

What SMARTTRACK College Funding does

SMARTTRACK College Funding is a privately-held U.S. financial advisory firm founded in 2001 that helps middle and upper-middle income families reduce the net cost of college while protecting retirement savings. The company addresses a specific pain point — families who assume they do not qualify for financial aid and consequently overpay or take on excessive debt — by analyzing how financial aid formulas evaluate income, assets, taxes, and business or property ownership, then restructuring the family profile before applications are filed. Its leadership comprises founder-CEO Sam Mikhail (CCFS) and founder-CFO Scott Greenameyer (CPA, CCFS), and the firm is operated under the Financial Strategies Group umbrella (California-governed, headquartered in Hendersonville, TN).

The core product is a web-based SaaS platform at app.smarttrackcollegefunding.com that bundles free self-service tools with premium advisory services. Free tools include a Financial Profile Assessment, an SAI (Student Aid Index, formerly EFC) Calculator, a College Search tool, and a "Find Your Major" feature. Premium offerings comprise Smart Navigator (per-school cost and generosity scoring), Smart Scholarships (a proprietary database of 15,000+ merit scholarships including 1,500+ full-ride/full-tuition awards), Smart Steps tutorials and guides, and one-on-one guidance from SMARTTRACK Certified College Funding Advisors producing a customized college funding plan. The stack uses third-party integrations only for Google reCAPTCHA security and Acuity Scheduling for booking consultations; no AI/ML capabilities are disclosed.

SMARTTRACK operates a hybrid go-to-market combining direct-to-consumer self-service with four B2B channel programs launched or formalized in 2021: the High School Initiative (counselor resources and co-branded registration pages), Employee Benefits Programs (employers and benefit providers), Member Benefits Programs (associations, organizations, non-profits), and a Professionals & Business Referral Program (financial planners and CPAs). Monetization comes from freemium access to tools, paid professional college-funding planning services with a $10,000 savings guarantee, and revenue-share arrangements with channel partners, supplemented by partnerships with NCSA (student-athlete recruiting) and NSHSS (high-achieving honor society).

Name

SMARTTRACK College Funding

Legal name

SMARTTRACK College Funding

Website

https://smarttrackcollegefunding.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Short description

SMARTTRACK College Funding is a private financial advisory firm helping middle and upper-middle income U.S. families reduce college costs through financial aid optimization, scholarship search, and tax-advantaged funding strategies delivered via a web platform and certified advisors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

College Funding Advisory

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (6117), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Scholarship, Financial Aid & FAFSA Support Platforms (EDAFAMAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Funding Planning (College/529) (FSAEAAAF), Scholarships, Grants & Education Benefits Administration (Financing-adjacent) (FSAKAEAM), Financial Aid Systems, Disbursement & Payment Operations (EDADAHAJ)

Keywords

• College funding advisory
• Financial aid planning
• College savings consulting
• Education financial planning
• Merit scholarship database

Headquarters

HQ city

Glendale

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Free Assessment and Consultation: Initial online assessment and evaluation call with a College Funding Advisor are provided free of charge to help families understand their potential eligibility and college funding options
2. Advanced Professional Services: Discounted professional college funding planning services for families with complex financial profiles who need more comprehensive planning beyond the free tools
3. B2B Referral and Revenue Share: Revenue share arrangements with partners including high schools, employers, associations, and professionals who refer families to the platform. Partners receive commissions on services purchased by referred families

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SMARTTRACK College Funding operates a web-based platform that helps families assess their financial profile, calculate the Student Aid Index, search colleges, and access a database of more than 15,000 merit scholarships. The free self-service tools are paired with discounted one-on-one advisory services from SMARTTRACK Certified College Funding Advisors who build customized college funding plans. The company also distributes its services through partner programs targeting high schools, employers, associations, and professional referral networks.

Product overview

SMARTTRACK College Funding operates as a comprehensive college funding platform combining free assessment tools with premium advisory services. The core offering includes a free financial evaluation, SAI Calculator, College Search, and Find Your Major tools. Premium features (Smart Navigator, Smart Scholarships with over 15,000 merit scholarships, Smart Steps Tutorials, and one-on-one SMARTTRACK Advisor consultations) build upon the free platform. The company also operates specialized programs including the High School Initiative for educational institutions, referral programs for professionals and businesses, Employee Benefits Programs for employers, and Member Benefits Programs for associations and non-profits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SMARTTRACK College Funding Platform Web-based platform that helps U.S. families assess their financial profile, calculate the Student Aid Index, search colleges and majors, and access over 15,000 merit scholarships. Includes free tools (Free Financial Evaluation, SAI Calculator, College Search, Find Your Major) and integrates with one-on-one advisor services. Targeted at parents of college-bound children, particularly middle and upper-middle income families who assume they will not qualify for aid.
• SMARTTRACK Advisor (College Funding Plan) One-on-one guidance from certified college funding experts who develop a customized SMART PLAN for paying for college while protecting retirement savings. Includes data-driven projections of what each school will offer in free aid vs. loans and identifies cost-effective, tax-advantaged funding options. Targeted at families needing comprehensive planning beyond the free online tools.
• High School Initiative Free cooperative program for high schools providing online parent education workshops, customized co-branded registration pages, promotional materials, and free family evaluations to help school counselors support college funding. Targeted at private, public, and parochial high schools and their guidance/career counseling departments.
• Employee Benefits Program Cooperative program that lets employers and employee benefits providers offer complimentary college funding assessments, educational resources, and discounted professional services to employees with college-bound children, with revenue share for the employer/benefit partner. Targeted at employers and benefits providers seeking to add differentiated family-focused benefits.
• Member Benefits Program Cooperative program for associations, organizations, and non-profits offering free college funding resources and discounted services to members with college-bound families, with revenue share for the partner organization. Targeted at membership organizations whose members include families with college-bound children.
• Professionals & Business Referral Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Helped over 400,000 families save over $4.2 billion off the cost of college since 2001
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NCSA (Next College Student Athletes)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with NCSA College Recruiting to help student-athletes navigate the college recruiting process. NCSA provides tools, hands-on guidance, and a network of 35,000+ college coaches. Over 200,000 student-athletes have made commitments through NCSA. The partnership helps connect athletes with college opportunities while addressing affordability concerns.
• NSHSS (National Society of High School Scholars)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with NSHSS, an academic honor society for high-achieving students. NSHSS connects members with scholarship opportunities, educational events, internships, and leadership opportunities. Students meeting criteria (3.5+ GPA, 1280+ SAT, etc.) can apply for membership which may help with admissions and merit scholarships.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• FitBux: Digital student loan and financial planning platform focused on optimizing student debt and college funding decisions; comparable in serving the same family/student cohort with a fintech-led, advisor-supported model.
• CollegeVine: College admissions platform with growing financial aid and affordability content; overlaps in serving college-bound families from junior year onward and increasingly bundles admissions and funding guidance.
• Saving for College: Independent information and comparison site focused on 529 plans and education savings strategies; comparable audience of families planning college funding and a similar content-plus-tools model.
• CollegeBacker: 529 college savings platform with employer and gifting integrations; comparable in targeting middle-income families planning for college costs and embedding within employee benefits channels.

Direct peers

• Fastweb: Long-standing free scholarship database and college search platform serving college-bound students and families; overlaps directly with SMARTTRACK's Smart Scholarships database and college search tools.
• MEFA (Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority): State-sponsored education finance authority offering college savings plans, loans, and college-planning resources — directly comparable mission of helping families plan and pay for college, with a similar mix of educational content plus financing products.
• College Ave Student Loans: Online lender and education finance company offering student loans, parent loans, and refinancing; targets the same college-funding decision moment with comparable family-focused financial products and scholarship/information resources.
• Frank (by JPMorgan Chase): Frank was a direct-to-consumer student financial aid platform helping students find and apply for financial aid — virtually identical customer and use case (college-bound families seeking aid optimization), and was acquired by JPMorgan Chase in 2021 for its embedded student-finance positioning.

Broad incumbents

• SoFi: Large consumer fintech offering student loan refinancing and broader financial products; competes in the family college-funding conversation, particularly for refinancing decisions after graduation.
• College Board (BigFuture, Net Price Calculator): Mission-driven incumbent administering the SAT and operating free college planning, financial aid, and net-price tools; overlaps heavily in financial aid information and scholarship search but as part of a much broader portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SmartTrackCollegeFunding

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SMARTTRACK College Funding