Surely, there is not enough time to get your fuel for the day and make it to class in time. No bagel or coffee for you today. Yet again, you’ll have to settle for a Diet Pepsi and Snickers from the vending machine. How often does this occur? More often than one might expect.

In a non-scientific study, I spent a few hours outside of Einstein’s during the morning rush to find out just how many half-awake students were left without a bagel.  The result was frightening, and even more alarming is the amount of sales Einstein’s losses.  

While lost-sales varied by day, mostly due to the breakup of class schedules, I found that an average of 25 students each day decided to skip the wait and head to class instead. While it was uncommon to see someone already waiting in line exit due to an upcoming class, I regularly witnessed numerous students stop and turn around after seeing a long-line protruding from Einstein’s.  

Some expressed their frustration vocally, while others quietly turned away in dismay. 

So a few kids walk away hungry – their loss. But what does Einstein’s have to lose? Plenty, if my assumption is correct. Twenty five hungry students each day is 125 hungry students a week, 1875 hungry students a semester, and 3750 hungry students during a school year. Obviously, each of those students’ orders would differ dramatically, but for the sake of the assessment we’ll presume a single homogenous order. 

I normally order a large coffee (it’s usually a $1 refill in my paisley Einstein Bros. coffee mug, but let’s ignore that for now) and an everything bagel with cream cheese; total cost: $4.28.  Assuming all 3750 hungry students have the same appetite as me, that’s $16,050 in sales Einstein’s left on the table. Yes, $16,050 a year in lost sales – enough to put a student through one semester of classes or buy them 162 kegs of Bud Light.

So, why the bottleneck?  

I’m not a logistics major, but I presume the general layout of Einstein’s itself causes the backups. I hope this article opens a broader discussion as to why so many students are left without a bagel and coffee each morning.

With the national unemployment rate at 10.2 percent, retailers are trying to buoy sales as consumers cut back on discretionary spending. Most retailers have been responsive to the new found frugality of consumers and Walmart’s CEO recently announced the firm would be cutting prices weekly on top-selling items and holding those price cuts through the holidays.

The deals being touted this year have started far earlier than in previous years with many retailers offering Black Friday-esque deals weeks in advance. Walmart has practically been giving products away – last week, shoppers who bought either a Blackberry or Xbox 360, were given a $100 Walmart gift card.  The company also dropped prices on other electronic devices.

In regards to pricing, Walmart has indeed been on the offensive.  Most notably, the company has started a highly publicized all-out price war with Target and online-retailer Amazon.com. When Walmart offered numerous pre-release DVDs like “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince” at $10, Amazon.com quickly dropped their prices on the same DVDs to $9.99. Walmart responded instantly by dropping prices to $9.98. Just last month the three companies engaged in a similar price war on popular books, including Sarah Palin’s new book “Going Rouge.”

Many have even taken their advertising blitz to social media Web sites like Twitter and Facebook.  Staples, an office supply retailer, used Twitter to announce price cuts upwards of 50 percent on products ranging from laptops to computer monitors.

Despite the attempts to boost sales during the recession, however, analysts are mixed as to how holiday sales will pan out. According to Bloomberg Analysts’ holiday sales estimates vary from a one percent decline to a nearly three percent gain over last year. The retail sector has posted negative year-over-year sales every month for more than a year, according to Thomson Reuters.

Those looking to search for the best deals have numerous resources available to them on the Internet.  Shoppers can head to bfads.net, dealnews.com, blackfriday.fm, black-friday.net, blackfriday.info or dealtaker.com for a roundup of some of the best deals available online and in stores.

The abundance of deals is sure to spur demand for numerous products.  So, if you’re looking for a new laptop, TV, shoes or anything else, be sure to act quickly as these outstanding deals aren’t here to stay.

A recent study released by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that U.S. employers plan to hire seven percent fewer 2010 college graduates than they did from the previous year’s graduating class. NACE executive director, Marilyn Mackes, suggested that “Traditionally, employers tend to be conservative about their college hiring when the economy is in flux.”

Another sobering statistic from the study: “Less than 20 percent of 2009 grads who have applied for a job actually have one in hand.” In comparison, 50 percent of graduates from the class of 2007 had jobs by the time of graduation. Surprisingly, in a time when soon-to-be graduates should be searching more diligently for a job, the data suggests that only 59 percent of this year’s graduating class have started looking for work, compared to the class of 2007, where two-thirds were looking for a job at this time.

Searching for jobs using Craigslist, monster.com, and yes, even the career center, simply won’t cut it anymore. It will take more initiative on the student’s part and possibly some trade down. With fewer jobs available, more students have opted for heading straight into graduate school, while others are looking for internships after graduation, rather than a full-time position. The latter, though unpaid at times, can be a good way for recent graduates to get their foot in the door at a company. Students might even consider public service positions, such as the Peace Corps, to further boost their resumes.

Indeed, many students have the right to be frustrated and scared about what the future may hold in the near future, especially at such a turning point in our lives. Advisers can do little more than offer support and hope. Some, like Trina Thompson from New York’s Monroe College, have taken matters into their own hands – she is suing her college for $72,000, the full cost of her tuition, because she cannot find a job. While certainly ambitious, I don’t offer that as advice. Rather, focus on networking and being aggressive when it comes to the job search.

The average debt taken on by students to pay for higher education is now $23,186, up from $13,172 during the same time period. Meanwhile, tuition has grown at about twice the rate of inflation in recent years.

Many students, however, owe far more than the average, especially those who take more than four years to graduate or go on for graduate degrees. 

The amount borrowed by students grew by about 25 percent over the past year, the highest year-over-year since records were first kept, according to the department of education.  This rising cost of tuition and loose lending standards may be fueling the fire.

Given the current job market and the growing levels of debt, many graduates find themselves in a difficult environment upon graduation. In a 2006 survey of college graduates by Alliance Bernstein LP, 39 percent of college graduates expect it will take 10 years to pay off education-related debt.  

This has repercussions after graduation, with 44 percent of surveyed graduates suggesting they delayed buying a house and 28 percent delayed having children because of education-related debts.

For those seniors worried about entering the job market and underclassmen worried about the exponentially growing cost of attending a university, what options are there? 

According to Sallie Mae, the United States’ largest college student loan company, graduates can request deferral or forbearance, which can temporally suspend payments during a period of financial hardship – keep in mind, interest will continue to accrue during this period.  Graduates can also request an extended-payment option, which reduces monthly payments and extends the loan term. 

Furthermore, graduates might consider living with their parents after graduation, delaying the purchase of that new car they’ve been waiting for, continuing a diet of ramen noodles instead of shopping at Whole Foods, or postponing the cliché tour of Europe with friends upon graduation. 

In Washington, the education committee approved an Obama initiative in July, which seeks to shut down the 55 billion dollar Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP).  The bill would give the Education Department oversight over student lending. The plan would increase the government share in loan origination from the current level of 20 percent to 80 percent on July 1, 2010, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

The remaining 20 percent would be left private. If the plan passes, taxpayers will put up approximately $100 billion per year to lend to students.

 According to Reuters political analysts, the bill should easily pass in the House, but may face headwinds in the divided Senate.

Students with outstanding loans after graduation should talk to their respective loan providers and discuss payment options upon graduation.

According to Chief Economist David Rosenberg of Gluskin-Sheff, “The historical record shows that equities go down in September or October by 10 percent or more fully 15 percent of the time.” 

Optimism among investors has been growing in recent months on the back of less-bad economic data. 

Meanwhile, the S&P 500 rose more than 50 percent from the 666.67 bottom forged on Mar. 6, 2009. Foreign markets are down, as well, with the Shanghai Composite in Asia down more than 20 percent from its August high.  

Private-sector jobs in the U.S. fell by 298,000 in August, greater than the 213,000 drop projected by economists. The jobless rate jumped higher than expected to 9.7 percent, up from 9.4 percent in July, according to Labor Department data released on Sept. 4, which is the highest level since June of 1983. The all-inclusive U-6 jobless rate rose to an all-time high of 16.8 percent in August, from 16.3 percent in July.  

It seems as though cash-strapped consumers continue to tighten their belts given the weak employment market, with Redbook reporting that chain store sales were down 0.6 percent in August and down 5.1 percent year-over-year. Retailers are now offering deep discounts to lure customers after a lackluster back-to-school shopping season, with Retail Metrics estimating that teen retailers feared the worst in August.

Those consumers still able to afford luxuries are benefiting from a weak retail market, with many retailers offering large discounts and price roll-backs.  

Many remain optimistic that the U.S. economy is improving. According to the Wall Street Journal,  J.P. Morgan economist Bruce Kasman suggesting that, “We had been looking for improvement, but the speed at which it’s come and the magnitude with which it has come is surprising.”  

According to the L.A. Times, President Obama suggested that the recent uptick in manufacturing data in the U.S. and abroad is proof that “the steps we’ve taken to bring our economy back from the brink are working.”  

The increase is partly due to the recently expired “Cash-for-Clunkers” program, which led to 690,114 new sales at a cost of $2.88 billion to the taxpayer.  Consumers were given credits of up to $4,500 for select models.