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Earnest

Student loan provider

Earnest logo
201-500 employees
  • Fintech
  • B2C
  • Personal finance
  • Lending
  • Credit cards
  • Financial Services
The East Cut, San Francisco, CA

Company mission

To make higher education accessible and affordable for everyone.

Top investors

Some candidates hear
back within 2 weeks

4% employee growth in 12 months

Our take

Earnest offers student loan refinancing and personal loan products. It looks at thousands of data points such as education, saving patterns, investments, and career trajectory to issue a unique credit score, which can prove a lifeline for students who may otherwise struggle to qualify for loan refinancing.

For the portion of student debtors with low credit scores, Earnest is one of a few scant options. Borrowers can choose their own loan terms to fund up to the full cost of their education, and there are no origination, application, or late fees.

Earnest has grown from distributing $8M loans in its first year of business to an impressive total $18.5 billion in student loans refinanced, and has served upwards of 200,000 people. With student loans representing such a huge sector of lending, there should be plenty of room for Earnest to continue expanding in the future.

Kirsty headshot

Kirsty

Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle

Benefits

  • Robust 401K package
  • Monthly & annual remote work stipends
  • Remote-first flexibility
  • Professional development & tuition reimbursement
  • $1000 annual travel perk
  • No meeting Thursdays
  • Annual company-wide offsites

Company values

  • Earn Happy Customers - Our customers’ journey is ours to share. Our success comes from anticipating their needs and providing the solutions they’re looking for. This combination of empathy and action helps them become our best endorsers and biggest fans.
  • Better is Better - The path to great means getting better every day. We push ourselves, and each other, to remain curious and think differently. We know the value of compounding and how continuous 1% improvement leads to massive changes. We are always willing to challenge the status quo in order to achieve our goals.
  • PhD in Moving Fast - Our customers are tired of long wait times and large student loan bills so we constantly seek out ways to deliver faster. We refuse to waste time on things that don’t move the needle and we surprise teammates and customers with our speed.
  • Passion for Challenges - Perseverance and optimism are just the start to take on the inertia of a national trillion-dollar problem. We enjoy tough challenges knowing that if we persist through them we will make a difference.
  • Impact is a Team Sport - We maximize our impact when we act as one team. We each play our part and put team success above personal achievement. Earnies are willing to do what it takes to make the team better even though it may be uncomfortable for ourselves.

Funding (last 2 of 4 rounds)

Mar 2017

$20m

SERIES C

Nov 2015

$75m

SERIES B

Total funding: $127m

This company has top investors

Leadership

Co-founded SolidEnergy Systems. Was a Part-time Partner at Y Combinator. Is a Board Member of Car Dash and Roofr, and is a Mentor at First Round Fast Track.

Jobs (16)

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Software Engineering

Other Engineering