Back in October, MeritAid.com reported the results of a study that showed that 16 percent of prospective college students are going to postpone college with close to 50 percent reconsidering whether they can afford it.

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Past collegiate trends in economic slumps have shown that many students will turn to graduate school and such programs when the job market is starting to look thin. The irony is that instead of starting to pay off existing loans, students will continue to rack up more.

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But in the absence of choice for many, it’s a more desirable alternative to moving back home. There also lies the hope that with a higher degree there’ll be greater opportunity when the time comes again to go job hunting. To quote numerous infomercials, experts agree. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘

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There are graduate admissions officers who imply that the push into graduate programs will give students a firmer foundation when they do enter the work place, whether or not it has gotten less rocky by that point. The conflicting opinions seem to be more realistic with the belief that even after financial assistance many hopefuls still won’t be able to fund graduate studies.

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Applications are already showing early signs of rising regardless of the shrinking private loan options.

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It has been speculated since the 1990s that a four-year degree just doesn’t offer the same competitive edge that it used to. But with the economy in the bind that it is, I can’t help but beg the question ‘- what amount of higher level education is really going to be the leg up that it needed in the current situation?

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Higher level jobs are minimal for those in the liberal arts fields, with old jokes lingering about finding work only in food services. MBA students can only hope that by the time their graduation rolls around that the economy will have steadied in time for their job market debut.

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And it’s no wonder that law schools have seen numbers lagging given that the profession has one of the highest suicide rates.

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As for paying for graduate school, some students are taking both traditional and untraditional steps to paying their way.

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Armed services recruitment numbers are up for the first time in four years, with many students ‘- high school and undergraduate levels ‘- taking the most traditional stand-by in hand for funding their education.

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In August, colleges are expected to start seeing an influx of veterans due to the 21st Century GI Bill replacing the Montgomery GI Bill. It will guarantee tuition, living expenses and other fees in their residency state to any public institution after 36 months of active duty ‘- an opportunity to too good for many college hopefuls to pass up.

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Some students however are taking very untraditional steps, such as Natalie Dylan (a pseudonym), the 22-year-old college graduate who has put her virginity up for sale, with bids up to more than $3 million sale through a Nevada prostitution website. There are 10,000 interested parties participating in the legal bidding.

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Though with a possible book deal in the works and a ‘transaction’ (Nevada‘s word, not mine) yet to take place, I won’t be the first to suggest that the follow-through may have been a gimmick as a means to get publicity for a better deal. Lifetime Television has to be just itching to get its hands on the rights for a made-for-TV movie.

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The idea of the gap year has actually become more of a reinvented luxury alternative rather than a grace period. The latest programming options promise firmer foundations for incoming students offering real-life experiences that are combinations of internships and study abroad programs that essentially cost the same as or more than a semester at college.

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But traditional speaking, it’s no great secret that the gap year can often lead to an abyss of college postponement. Some students are opting instead for part-time enrollment so they can work alongside a lightened class schedule. Many more are using the trusty standby of going to some sort of two-year program or community college for starters.‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘

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As I sat writing this in my local library over break, I couldn’t help but overhear a neighboring conversation and the unsettling relevance it had to what I was researching.

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The conversation was between two guys in their early 20s who were discussing unemployment in Massachusetts for young graduates. One of the 20-somethings had been out of state for a while working and the other had had to move back in with his parents to cut costs as he started to search for jobs to pay off his student loans.

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They discussed teaching, communications and food service opportunities in Amherst. I couldn’t help but wonder if I was getting an eerie peak at my own future.

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Hannah Nelson is a Collegian columnist. She can be reached at hnelson@student.umass.edu.