I did not set out to find and review Forbes’ Best of the Web picks on college planning, I just happened to stumble upon it, and have I got something wonderful to pass along if you haven’t been there.

I hit upon it because one of the sites I was reviewing this morning had the Forbes Best of The Web logo on it, so I went over to Forbes and reviewed its top ten.

Education Planner, which can be found at www.educationplanner.org won the blue ribbon, and it’s a gem. Easy to use, crystal clear, no hassle signing in, and mountains of useful information that you can get at in manageable pieces

This is what Forbes has to stay about its top pick: “One-stop shopping, courtesy of the nonprofit American Education Services. This well-organized site guides you, step-by-step, through preparing, selecting, applying, deciding and paying.”

In the preparation phase students can take a career assessment quiz based on Holland Personality types. The My Planner area provides customizable planning resources. Forbes says the very best thing about the site is that it brims with useful calculators. Worst: Test Prep information is limited.

My initial impressions: Loads of material that I happen to be very interested in. The section entitled, Discovering helps students to discover more about themselves, their skills, and the careers that may suit them best. The Career Key will help students to see how their personalities are directly related to finding a career that they can excel at. Students answer a brief series of multiple-choice questions to determine industries and specific occupations that match their predilections.

They then can search hundreds of careers based on work environment, required skills, education, and salary. There’s a section on preparing for college, which has helpful study skills tips, an education timeline and test prep tips. There’s a section on selecting the right schools, programs and degrees, and what to look for in a school, college or university.

The three remaining sections at Education Planner are: applying, deciding, and paying. I particularly liked the12 ways not to choose a school, the financial aid award analyzer, and the free scholarship search.

CollegeAnswer, which can be found at www.collegeanswer.com, took second place. This is what Forbes has to say about the site. “Answers to all your paying-for-college questions, courtesy of education loan giant Sallie Mae.

“Start by reading up on the all-important FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and avail yourself of the copious checklists and calculators. Use the School Affordability Analyzer to calculate what your actual costs might be, and the Award Analyzer to compare packages from each school.

“Search the database of more than 2.4 million scholarships worth more than 14 billion dollars (powered by Scholarship Experts database). Using the Search for Schools function (powered by Peterson's database), you can compare up to three schools side by side, including tuition costs, nearest airport and the percent of students with full-time job offers within six months of graduation.”

Forbes said this was best about the site: The Education Savings Comparison Chart provides side-by-side information on the 529 savings plan, Coverdell Education Savings Plans, and Series I savings bonds. The chart compares tax advantages, income restrictions and who – parent, student or otherwise – has control over the account. The worst, it said, was that there was no information on universities outside of the U.S.

Mapping Your Future at www.mapping-your-future.org took third place. Forbes says this is the place for newbies to click first. “This easy-to-navigate, easy-to-read source for general information will ease you into the college planning process. Information is organized via interactive tours that both parents and students can explore. The college planning section offers step-by-step advice, broken down in timeline fashion for students from grades 8 through 12.

“According to the site, 8th and 9th graders should start thinking about their career possibilities; by grade 11, these potential career paths should be discussed with a guidance counselor,” which I wholeheartedly agree with.

“Undergrads can find career advice in addition to graduate information and resources. Best part of the site: Webcasts jazz up dry information like financial aid. One 18-minute presentation about Financial Life 101 goes over the basics of money management, including the dangers of high-interest-rate credit cards.” Worst: Application tips fail to include anything on essay-writing.

Fourth place goes to Peterson’s at www.petersons.com. Listen to a Podcast on your MP3 player about getting money for college, shop the online store for test prep guides – get "20% off every book every day" – or click on the link to EssayEdge.com to find out how you can get your essay professionally polished.

Join in the weekly online consultant-led discussions or browse the archive; recent topics include strategies for visiting schools, how to analyze your award letter and how to successfully compete for merit scholarships. The Study Abroad section features summer and other program options, as well as articles like You'll Bring Home More Than Credits and Memories and Take the Shock out of Culture Shock.

Peterson's focuses not only on undergraduate, but on graduate, nursing, culinary and adult learning as well. Best: The College Admissions Test Prep section offers everything from practice tests to tips and strategies, and suggests books to buy that will help students get the score they want! Worst: If you want any kind of essay-writing assistance here, you'll have to pay.