Government officials spent the past few weeks trying to create a bailout plan for the Wall Street crisis. But even with a solution, consequences of the crisis could affect the lives of students for years.

“Somebody somewhere has to come up with $700 billion, and that’s going to reduce the standard of living for everyone,” said Chair Michael Zimmer, professor of economics.

Zimmer said since the final plan is yet to be announced it is hard to determine the scale of the impact, but it would be an expensive decision affecting students and their future ability to obtain loans.

“You might graduate a perfectly good student, but banks might not want to take a risk,” he said. “[Students] will have a tough time buying a house.”

Soumendra De, associate professor of finance, said graduating students could have a tough time finding employment because of layoffs.

“The hiring rate will be down and starting salaries will be lower,” he said. “Employees will be more picky, so students should be concerned with building resumes and getting good grades.”

Zimmer also stressed the importance of education, saying students should study hard to become the best in their field of study.

But he said even with a job in the bag, students should try to make smart financial choices and save enough money to make a good investment after their first three years of employment.

“If I could put away $10 every day, I could have roughly $10,000 by the end of three years,” Zimmer said, encouraging students to then invest the money in a broad-based mutual fund. “I’d act like I didn’t have it—like I lost it—and start all over again at 25.”

By the time students retire, their money could grow up to about a quarter of a million dollars, he added.

If saving $10 a day seems like too much, De said students could start saving money now by eating in more and cutting back on vacations during school breaks.

Even though the current situation may put a dim outlook on the future, De said there are a few upsides to the crisis.

He said once students get past the loan obstacle, they could purchase houses for a reasonable amount because of falling prices. The same goes for investments on stocks that have dropped over the past few weeks.

“If people are smart and start investing early, they’ll get very good assets at low prices,” De said.

He also said that while interest rates on student loans will eventually increase with a bailout, the amount of money available should stay the same or possibly increase.

“Both [presidential nominees] are looking to raise student loans, so it shouldn’t be an issue,” De said.

And while it is too far off to tell, De said students could end up in a better position for early retirement than their parents.

“The world could change so drastically that they might be able to retire at 50,” he said.

Zimmer also said with the right financial planning, students could be better off than previous generations.

“I’ve read there’s lots of people not adequately saved,” he said. “You have to think about putting money where it’s likely to grow, not depreciate.”

But there is a simpler solution for students who may fear stock market investments and economic lingo.

“If [students] study hard and then are willing to work hard, everything will turn out fine,” Zimmer said. “And don’t be shy about investing. If you start early you have a chance to do some good accumulating over your lifetime.”